Courtesy of Maddy Brout
For music lovers tired of bands who always play the same musical genre, NYU’s own Modern Diet offers a refreshing alternative.
Modern Diet, a band composed of Steinhardt sophomores Dan Hemerlein on bass, Jake Cheriff on vocals, guitar and piano, Lee Meadvin on guitar and Steinhardt junior Noah Hyams on drums, embodies the synergy of experimentation. From their stage aesthetics to the story of how the band began, Modern Diet is a conglomeration of ideas and sounds meant to attract every type of listener.
Modern Diet’s songs originated from Cheriff’s solo projects, which were translated for performance by a band. Their music also captures quintessential elements of the singer-songwriter style. The band’s focused and clear vocals illustrate the strength in connecting their lyrics and emotional arrangements with listeners.
Although the band formed at NYU, the four members previously knew each other through many degrees of separation and a few brief encounters throughout their high school years.
“Dan and I had met once or twice before coming [to NYU],” Cheriff said. “We knew we both played music, but had never really known each other besides that. But, when we both ended up in the same school again, I messaged him asking to start a band together.”
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The four released their first EP this past spring and are now making plans to record a second EP, set for release in early 2014. Both works will employ a number of different genres, as is integral to Modern Diet’s character, making it difficult to confine their songs to a single category.
“There’s definitely a lot of jazz influence, and Noah is actually a jazz major,” Cheriff said. “We’ve been calling our music Indie R&B, but it’s a fusion of a lot of different genres,” he said.
Their unique style has earned them praise from other students.
“The vocals have a really distinct quality,” Gallatin freshman Felix Chan said. “I love the contrast of the punk quality to the singer’s voice with the calmness of the instrumental parts.”
Besides recording new music for their EP, Modern Diet is rehearsing for their upcoming show on Friday, Dec. 6. The band has performed many concerts in the past year at venues around both Manhattan and Brooklyn. Their upcoming concert’s lineup also consists of other NYU-based bands, including The Roofer’s Union, The Indecent, Nardomusic and With Snack, the winners of Ultra Violet Live in 2013.
“We’ve made friends with a lot of other NYU bands, and the talent here is incredible. So, coming into this semester we knew we wanted to plan a show involving some of their groups as well,” Hemerlein said. “We’re really excited to perform on a night with all these other performers, it’ll be a completely different experience from our past shows.”
The show is scheduled to be at Muchmore’s in Brooklyn. Doors open at 8:30 p.m.
A version of this article appeared in the Monday, Dec. 2 print edition. Hannah Treasure is a staff writer. Email her at [email protected].