Meet some of Pittsburgh’s most important musicians

‘ ‘ ‘ The names of most bands are simply meant to grab some attention. But for Pittsburgh… ‘ ‘ ‘ The names of most bands are simply meant to grab some attention. But for Pittsburgh indie-pop outfit Meeting of Important People, what’s in a name goes a good bit deeper. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ The sometimes-quartet is essentially a who’s who of the local scene, four faces who’ve been making an impact on Pittsburgh music for years and only recently combined forces. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Singer and guitarist Josh Verbanets came from Oakland’s own The You, bassist Aaron Bubenheim is still half of the power-blues band Br’er Fox, drummer Matt Miller played in the folksy Lohio, and live-show addition Jeff Baron’s in Boca Chica. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ A meeting of important people, indeed. But luckily for the band and its growing base of fans, this meeting of local musicians is more than just a mutual side project. And if the undeniable strength of the band’s just-pressed debut record is any indication, the band may be meeting a lot more attention before too long. Harping on the excitement of receiving the first mint of the new disc just earlier this week, the band feels the same way. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Honestly, if you played bass and you were better than me, and Josh hired you tonight, I would still come see the band play. I’d be a fan,’ said Bubenheim, sitting the living room of Verbanets’ tiny, one-man Shaler residence and band practice space. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ The basement of the hilltop house is set up for precisely one purpose ‘mdash; giving Meeting of Important People some room to craft its catchy indie-rock gems. In fact, the place was bought last year solely with that cause in mind. And it worked. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ The band arranged and recorded the entire record in the Christmas-light strewn basement, and aside from an old exercise bike and shelves of VHS tapes, the whole place is loaded with amps and instruments. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Self-recorded, then mixed by Jake Hanner of the superb, local band Donora, the whole process took about six months. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘We finally got copies of the record pressed three days ago. I feel like I’ve been waiting for this for a year ‘mdash; to finally have the record and be able to send it out and get an incredible response already is exciting,’ said Verbanets. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ The resulting 10-track record is filled with more sing-along hooks than some bands manage in years. Like a more-playful Spoon or a less whimsical Band of Horses, the band’s brand of harmony-heavy indie pop is fun without being silly, rocking without being raucous. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ And after just one listen to the impossibly catchy ‘Mothers Pay More’ or ‘I Know Every Street,’ it’ll be hard not to hum along … for the rest of the day. And though it may impede progress at each of the band member’s day jobs, they have the same problem. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘I’m a financial analyst. I’ve got a job job. What I do could be a career … if I wasn’t constantly walking down the hall to sing a new melody to Matt, I could really get ahead in my job,’ said Verbanets. ‘Maybe I’m either immature or narrow-minded, but I’m too excited to get my work done and get to work on my band.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Miller, who works in Oakland with Verbanets, couldn’t agree more. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Hard to concentrate? That’s an understatement,’ he said. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ With Saturday’s record release party at Bloomfield staple Brillobox, the band is ready, in its first headlining show, to take its music to the masses. Or, at least, the relative masses. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘Most of the people that come to the shows are people in other bands or involved in music somehow. I’ve never been in a band that’s played to a bunch of, if you will, civilians,’ said Verbanets. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Bubenheim concurred: ‘Everyone’s there hoping you’ll see them and come to their show, too.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Still, the fact that Pittsburgh’s music scene is saturated with fellow musicians, to Meeting of Important People, isn’t necessarily a bad thing. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ If anything, it seems to breed a crosscurrent of musical ideas and bring new bands into the forefront. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘You get more exposure being in a band in Pittsburgh ‘mdash; great bands don’t stay hidden for very long,’ said Miller. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Bolstered by The Red Western and Mariage Blanc, two other recently uncovered great bands in Pittsburgh, Saturday’s show will bring these important people out of the basement once and for all. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ Be prepared to leave humming for days.