Named after and led by C. Shirock, this Nashville quartet will be challenged to fit its big sound into Cafe Bourbon Street's tight confines, not to mention through the club's modest PA.

      On their third self-released full-length album, Believe , Shirock shows a penchant for grandiose rock emanations. On "Mission to the World" these tendencies emerge as a glam veneer, while on the title track and elsewhere the band recalls U2 and other arena-rocking Brits.

      Fortunately for Shirock, such large ambitions are offset by a well-balanced blend of supple playing and creatively applied electronic embellishments, revealing that they pay as much attention to the details as to the general ambiance. Lesser moments like "Proud to Say" seem geared to radio play and mass consumption, but for the most part they are outweighed by their more interesting and arresting counterparts.

--Stephen Slaybaugh

WBGU brings progressive pop band, Shirock, to Union pub

  "Who thought such an awesome band could come from little ol' Tennessee?" WBGU promotions manager Alex Merced said about the next concert in the WBGU spring semester concert series; Shirock.

Shirock is a Nashville based progressive pop band that is playing a free show at the Black Swamp Pub on March 18 along with three other bands; The Separation Tree, The Fashion and Temple of Abandoned Stone. The show will begin at 7 p.m. and ends around 11 p.m.

Chuck Shirock, songwriter and singer of Shirock, is looking forward to tonight's performance. "We're looking forward to performing in Bowling Green because we're always excited about getting out music in-front of new audiences," Shirock said.

WBGU is also looking forward to the show as Alex Merced describes.

  "This is another great show in the long list that WBGUfm has got going on this semester. They kind of remind me of a mix of Radiohead and Our Lady Peace," Merced said.

However, Shirock's third independent album "Believe" appeals to almost every genre, conjuring up a mixture of pop, alternative, and progressive rock, in a ten track scenario that is sure to provide something for everyone and proves to be rather listener-friendly if you are just beginning to listen to Shirock.

"If you were new to our music, I would recommend listening to three songs, 'Well Aren't We All,' 'Say It Out' and 'No Regrets.' We haven't recorded "Say it Out" and 'No Regrets' yet, but you will be hearing both of those live on Friday. I would recommend "Well Aren't We All" because it is what I want to say to people right now...It's revealing about myself, it's honest; everything I want a song to be," Shirock said.

And Shirock encourages everyone who is interested to come take part in their live show tonight at the Pub.

"Our favorite way to introduce people to Shirock is live; it tends to be a lot more effective and moving than the recordings alone," Shirock said. "There is nothing better than being able to connect with people when we perform, which sums up why we do this. Our music is written for a purpose, we are trying to share our lives like an open book with whoever will listen and there is no better way to that than standing right in-front of you."

The band would like to extend thanks to WBGU for playing their music and to Alex Merced for giving them an opportunity to perform for the Bowling Green population.

"We'd like to say thanks to Alex Merced for putting this whole thing together and to WBGU for promoting Shirock. All we are trying to do is share our lives with you, person to person and bring you back to what life is all about, people," Shirock said.

Shirock will be the second band taking the stage at roughly 8 p.m. Shirock encourages those who would like more information to visit them at their website at www.shirock.net.

-Chelsea Howard