NOTABLE LOCALS, VOL. 3

The South by Southwest music conference/festival is right around the corner. With that in mind, here's a look at two sonically similar Jersey Shore-area bands that will be playing next week in Austin, Texas, at events surrounding SXSW.

ECHO SCREEN

This Brick pop-punk foursome (above) released its full-length debut, Euphoria, in November via Rock Out Records.

Two standout songs from the disc (the pumped-up rockers "This Letter Bomb" and "Everything After Bradford") can be heard on Echo Screen's MySpace page. In addition, there's "Autumn in Disguise," a relatively quiet track from An American Tale that shows the band isn't one-dimensional.

The band's tour itinerary includes three Texas dates, the first of which is a March 17 gig at Momo's in Austin.

Official site: www.echoscreennj.com

MySpace page: www.myspace.com/echoscreen

Upcoming Jersey shows:
April 13: First Presbyterian Church of Matawan -- Matawan



SOMEDAY NEVER

Hailing from Marlboro, Someday Never (above) blends emo-infused melodies with near-metallic guitar muscle. The exceptional "Let's Get Lit and Storm the Castle," one of seven songs on the band's 2006 EP, The Natural Trend of Breathing (All Records), is just as anthemic as the title suggests.

The band rolls through Austin on March 16 for a show at Nuno's.

MySpace page: www.myspace.com/somedaynever

Upcoming Jersey shows:
March 31: Somers Point Firehall --- Somers Point
April 5: Hamilton Street -- Bound Brook
April 7: Nine Ball Billiards -- Browns Mills
April 13: First Presbyterian Church of Matawan -- Matawan