Crossfade and Namedropper at Fort Jackson Oct. 29, 2005
Written by By KATIE HAHN, columbiatunes.com
Wednesday, 02 November 2005

Columbia natives Crossfade and Namedropper rocked out for more than 3,000 fans under a cold, starry night at Fort Jackson on Saturday. What a difference 18 months makes for Crossfade. In early 2004 the band had just released its self-titled debut album and started touring,

Now that touring is over, the album has sold more than one million copies.The performance, part of the Miller Lite’s Army Concert Tour, had originally been scheduled for July, but heavy rain forced a cancellation.

Opening act Namedropper, friends of Crossfade, performed for 45 minutes with a similar flair to Crossfade but with a straight forward rock and a touch of funk. Finding its name from a newspaper headline, the local band has become a favorite of the Columbia music bar scene. Namedropper, consisting of Jeff Lucero (vocals), Bart Ballington (drums and vocals) and Michael Wilson (bass), pumped and primed the crowd for Crossfade. The band played songs from its just completed first full-length independent release, "The Payoff."

Ed Sloan, James Branham and Mitch James of Crossfade, dressed down in jeans and T-shirts, were excited to perform albeit a three month delay.

"It’s a good feeling to make it this time," Sloan, the lead singer, said.The return trip was extra special for the guys, as they expressed gratitude to the troops and Columbia locals in attendance. "We enjoy our lives and playing music because of these guys," Sloan said pointing to the more than 2,000 basic training soldiers who attended the performance. Crossfade performed a mix of old favorites along with new material, such as "Jacket" and "Drunk."

"Colors," one of the band’s radio hits, was a slower version that displayed the band’s own style with heavy guitar riffs, which was received well
by concert-goers. Before each tune, Crossfade gave fans insight into the background behind its songs. Surprisingly, Crossfade revealed that "So Far Away" was actually written about Columbia. "I’ve been changing but you’ll never see me...now I’m blaming you for everything," Sloan croons during the song’s chorus.

The group said it wanted to leave Columbia so bad. The guys didn’t appreciate the city, but now they see all the positive things they missed while they were gone. Definitely check out Crossfade or Namedropper next time they play. If you missed the show and don’t have your New Year’s party schedule
yet, Sloan said Crossfade plans to perform at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach.

Namedropper, Stadium Ready Rock
Kevin Langston - Free times
Wednesday, 21 December 2005

While Crossfade’s modern rock sound is in the here and now, Namedropper casts a nostalgic eye toward the Seattle sound of bands like Soundgarden and Stone Temple Pilots. The group began as a solo acoustic act for Jeff Lucero, so the songs inevitably evolve around his classic-rock inspired riffs. The rhythm section of bassist Michael Wilson and drummer Bart Ballington find the right balance between histrionics and deftness, perfectly completing the power-rock trio. It’s a corporate and stadium-ready sound, to be sure, and in Namedropper’s case, I don’t mean that as a dig.

Namedropper, who recently opened a Crossfade concert at Fort Jackson and will be playing with them at the House of Blues in Orlando and North Myrtle Beach on Dec 29 and 31, respectively.