Starting in that basement would be too early. No, the story of this song starts sooner, before that One AM Radio (myspace) show in Boston.

The One AM Radio at Solar Haus, Blacksburg, by David Franusich

Check out my photos from the One AM Radio show, was all my friend’s email said. Who? It’s this band. They’re good. Check them out.

I did. I checked out some mp3s. They were good, but I still hadn’t heard much of their music when late February rolled around and the band’s tour hit Boston. Wandering around the Boston University campus with my friend, we eventually found the show, in the basement of the cafeteria. With most of the lights turned off and the only amplification being used on his guitar, Hrishi Hirway and his band played a beautiful set.

But the truly breathtaking part was the closer, a long song with a slow build and a repeated line–and the sea swallowed up the sky–that all the seated college students sang along to.

I’m not going to do a karaoke duet with you; I’m not the type that will sing in front of people. But on the walk home from the show, my friend and I sang the refrain into the chilly Boston air. That moment still hangs in my mind.

Once I had the EP that has this song, Night Falls, I played it on repeat for months.

the One AM Radio - All I Can Recall is the Haunting (mp3)

the One AM Radio in a basement at B.U. 2/28/03 by me