Saturday, March 17   1:00 a.m.
Whisky Bar   (303 W 5th St)

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Thin, handsome and vulnerable, Reeve Carney could almost be the hero of a Tim Burton fairytale. It�s not surprising he counts the director as one of his many unusual inspirations, along with Screaming Jay Hawkins, Walt Disney, the Beatles, Texas swing, and, as he unassumingly admits, �a lot of obscure artists you probably wouldn�t know.� There�s something in his youthful countenance, in the beautiful, moody, carnival-esque, hypnotic nuances of his music, and in the sincere way his delicate voice carries the emotions of his songs that remind you of an innocent soul caught in a world of adults who no longer remember how to follow their imagination and dreams.

Yet, Reeve is far from being a child and his humble manners fail to conceal a long history of musicianship. His mother claims he learned to play the piano before he could walk and his father, a mainstay in the jingle business, often used his son�s gift on the job, teaching him the art of writing a good hook along the way.

The child prodigy did not waste any time on the road to greatness. Reeve recorded an album with Peter, Paul and Mary when he was only 8 years old and was contacted a few years later by Michael Jackson to sing on one of the tracks of HIStory. In 1999, when his mother could no longer afford guitar lessons, she brought him to an old Los Angeles blues club where he started playing weekly with artists over twice his age. A year later Carney put another notch in his belt by winning �Best Performance in a Feature Film� during the 2000 Young Artists Awards for his portrayal of a young Ethan Hawke in Snow Falling Over Cedars. His numerous other magazine and TV appearances explain his comfort in front of the camera although his good looks certainly don�t make it hard either.

Now 23, Reeve has close to a decade of live shows behind him and the experience is obvious, from his virtuoso handling of the guitar and piano to his incredible stage presence. His music effortlessly combines a dizzying array of styles drawn from rock, folk, jazz, reggae and blues with Southern influences. �I try to make music that�s timeless,� he says, and he does. His songs can evoke anything from Jeff Buckley to Paul Simon, John Lennon, John Lee Hooker, Thom Yorke, Pink Floyd and George Gershwin. With an ear for the unusual and the sublime, he creates melodies of powerful force and chaotic grace. They are transported by words that speak of love, loss, faith and the human aspiration to greatness. Anyone who has had the chance to see Carney perform is immediately moved by the way his true love for the craft of songwriting always shuns manufactured entertainment: �Music is my passion,� he states with heartfelt sincerity. �I would continue to do it whether or not I make a dime.�

Reeve is accompanied by his incredibly talented Revolving Band. As he explains, �the cool thing about our band is that we all grew up together or met in school.� His brother Zane Carney joins him as the band�s maestro on the guitar and his sister Paris Carney provides backup vocals that reveal a flawless training in jazz. They are, as a side note, probably the best looking family of siblings you will ever see. JD Lipscomb carries the bass with a cool and artful touch while Gavin Salmon brings gripping energy to the drums. Finally, Charles Jones does wonders on the keyboards while sometimes gracing the audience with a superb gospel voice. The personality of each band member shines through at every moment and it�s evident that the bonds of blood and friendship that tie them together are only made stronger by an immense respect for each other�s artistic brilliance.

Years of playing in and around LA recently culminated in Reeve and the band securing a weekly residency at the historic Molly Malone�s. The shows have become something of a phenomenon in LA, where an initial audience of friends and family has since been joined by a crowd of fans that range anywhere from eager college students to trend-setting hipsters and industry heavyweights. The word-of-mouth is such that the room now systematically spills beyond its capacity, the front doors having to be shut before Reeve can go on stage. Inside, the concert is packed with throngs of admirers who listen to the boy wonder mesmerized and cheer enthusiastically whenever they hear one of their favorite songs or the performance reaches a particularly feverish frenzy.

A double live CD/DVD called Live at Molly Malone�s captures the magic of these sets that are already becoming legendary. The independent release serves to share with those who could never make it and as a legacy for those who were a part of it.

The band�s enormous promise and undeniable talent of the band has led the illustrious manager David Sonenberg of Fugees and Black Eyed Peas fame to take them under his wing. Reeve Carney & The Revolving Band are on tour now with blues sensation Jonny Lang, with their debut album coming in 2007 on Interscope Records.