Much like the Hold Steady, Marah, and several other indie groups of their generation, Pela takes influences from outside the usual hipster circle of accepted forebears, including such once-unfashionable classic rock icons as Bruce Springsteen and U2 as well as more familiar indie prototypes like the Replacements and Guided by Voices. Pela formed in Brooklyn in 2004, consisting of singer and guitarist Billy McCarthy, lead guitarist Nate "Natron" Martinez, bassist Eric Sanderson, and drummer Tomislav Zovich. The nascent band released two hard-to-find EPs, 2005's All in Time and 2006's download-only Exit Columbia Street, before signing with the indie label Great Society Records. Their full-length debut, Anytown Graffiti, was released in the spring of 2007. - allmusic.com

Propped upon pile driving drums, a brooding bottom end, and flickering guitar lines that elegantly dance to Billy McCarthy's gutsy yelp, the intensity of this Pela performance - a hometown CMJ affair at the Bowery Ballroom that was the band's last of a generous 2007 - will absorb viewers right through the screen. This is music of a more meaningful variety…of course, when you pull from the very best of American rock bands, both past and present, this is bound to happen. - David Pitz