Those who know a bit about San Jose indie rock quartet Get Married will tell you that the band was formed as a tribute group before evolving into a rock-a-doo-punk outfit. The group’s first several shows consisted of strictly Elvis Presley songs.
The group’s early music definitely hews closely to these founding principles. Their last EP, Four Songs, comprises four King-inspired, doo-wop-infused rock tracks that owe as much to mid-’90s pop punk as they do to mid-’50s Sun Records. But according to Get Married frontman Jaake Margo, there was always another influence swirling around beneath the pompadour grease—glam metal.
“His favorite thing in the world is guitar harmonies, or, as he calls them, ‘guitarmonies,’” Margo says of the band’s lead guitarist and co-founder, Randy Moore. As Margo tells it, Moore’s favorite group growing up was Kiss. “I was never into that.”
These days, though, Margo can abide Moore’s love of dueling guitar leads. And it shows on Get Married’s new EP, Into The Cosmos. Moore shreds on every track—from opener “Dream Boy” to closer “New Neighbor”—infusing the band’s already propulsive sound with an extra, these-go-to-11 kick.
Into The Cosmos by Get Married
“It gives us the Weezer guitar solos, as opposed to me just playing the blues scales again and again,” Margo says of Moore’s high-flying guitar flourishes. “We’re like Joe Strummer and Mick Jones,” he adds, explaining why the combination of punk and glam works. “We’re the team that makes the crazy shit happen.”
Released late last year, the band will celebrate Into The Cosmos with an official hometown release show at Art Boutiki this Friday. The EP is the band’s second release through Wiretap Records. The band signed with the L.A.-based label over the summer, and Margo says the relationship has already paid dividends.
“We made some really cool connections, which otherwise I wouldn’t have had any idea about,” Margo says, explaining that Wiretap helped the band book several key dates on their most recent nationwide tour.
All of this—plus a strong new lineup—has Margo optimistic about what the future holds for Get Married. “I’m really excited,” he says. “Really cool stuff keeps happening to us. We hope it keeps happening.
Get Married
Feb 3, 7:30pm, $10
Art Boutiki, San Jose