Issue date: 10/9/08 Section: Features

Media Credit: Courtesy of PointDexter [Click to enlarge]

With all the hype that goes on about celebrities in the music industry, it's almost too easy for some people to dismiss Sacramento's local bands, because they haven't been on MTV or won a million Grammy Awards. And it's really a shame, because they're more likely to miss some really great music - like the array from PointDexter, an independent rock band based in Folsom.

The idea to perform music professionally began two years ago when siblings Kevin and Arianna Kinsella wanted to start a band. The idea grew, and soon they found their band name and other musicians on the internet, and viola, PointDexter arose as it is known today.

If you ask the band's members - Kevin Kinsella (Bass guitar, Lead Vocals), Arianna Kinsella (Keyboard, Vocals), David Albertson (Guitar), and Clint Brown (Drums, Vocals), all of whom wrote the album - how their music is different than other bands, you'll get a number of answers that pretty much say the same thing: They're diverse in what they play.

Although the album released in March of 2008 only features four songs, you quickly see this diversity. While many musicians make the mistake of having what seems like the same song playing three or four times on an album, PointDexter has a wide variety in terms of style and genre.

For example, "Breathe Deep" - my personal favorite - had a jazzy feel with some great piano playing, while "Tied Up" starts off almost like a tune you would find on a Spanish guitar CD, before switching to something that's more punk rock and gets the heart racing. The music then quiets down to "Travis' Song," a reggae tune you could rock your head to in the car (of all of them, this would probably make the coolest music video), and "Too Close" is the most somber song of the album, but has some really cool saxophone cameos. The lyrics range from love, to a bit of social commentary, to what seems like nothing in particular.

And the masterminds behind the album are just as diverse as their music, each adding a little of their favorite genre into the songs they create.

"Together we listen to everything," said Arianna Kinsella.

Now the band has been playing all over the area - including a number of clubs and even last summer's Warped Tour.

"We're a professional band, now," said Albertson with a touch of irony.

But for PointDexter, it isn't the tours or clubs that make it worth while. Performing is "the best feeling in the world," said Kevin Kinsella. "It's an incredible high connecting with people."

And although their latest CD is small in quantity it's large in quality, demonstrating the obvious talent and passion of these four musicians.

To listen to their latest album, visit their website at www.myspace.com/pointdexterrocks.

Kyrie Eberhart can be reached at keberhart@statehornet.com

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