"A DAY WITHOUT GRAVITY" gets its first review! Printed in The Post on 10/30/07. Also online at: http://www.thepost.ohiou.edu/Articles/Culture/2007/10/30/21988/ Downplay's new album A Day Without Gravity sounds like Three Days Grace deconstructed Maroon 5's love-struck lyrics to give an edgier sound to today's pop-rock genre. Surprisingly, the Columbus-based band pulls off a raw but professional-sounding album that most seasoned musicians are too jaded to produce. Lead singer Dustin Bates opens the album with "The Stain," a distorted, raspy intro that instantly hooks. The lyrical trend throughout the album examines the rich celebrity culture and the female heart-breakers who reflect this growing fad. "Edge of the Universe" and "Filthy Voodoo" maximize Bates' rock vocals with a complex instrumental edge. "Queen of New York City" holds the album's core as Bates sings about an unobtainable girl who he can't walk away from. It is the perfect blend of angst and pop that could make this a mainstream hit. If the producers of Gossip Girl got hold of this song, the band could be on the road to national success. The band maintains enough rock to keep its male fan base and enough heart to swoon its female audiences. While the term b-side may have negative connotations as being less-than-average, Downplay breaks that notion the second the guitar intro begins playing in its song "B-Side." The song reflects the emotions of having a close friend die. "We live on the B-Side now because you are gone, but we'll see you on the other side." The rock-ballad reflects true passion, which may be a product of the band losing its close friend in a plane accident. The only low point on the album emerges with "Fade Away," which examines how fame changes people. Lyrically and instrumentally, the song is weak because the vocals are difficult to understand and the music is not catchy enough to keep one's attention. The song should have 'faded' onto the cutting room floor because it spends 3 minutes and 23 seconds asking too many questions: "Are you happy with what you have become? /Hey yeah did your dreams just disappear one day? /Did the real you fade away? /Celebrity, what are you famous for? /Do you like being the camera whore?" The album takes a mellow approach toward its end with "Maybe" and "Back For More" clinching the heartstrings of listeners without losing rock credibility–a feat that can be difficult to balance, but one that Downplay pulls off exceptionally well. A Day Without Gravity is a diamond that is waiting to be discovered outside the rolling hills of Ohio. Downplay proves it's ready to take on the mainstream players and has the potential to explode into a nationally successful band. Downplay will be giving seasoned musicians a reason to care about music again, instead of falling into the pitfalls of blindly producing records to fill the shelf.With albums like A Day Without Gravity, Downplay finally brings real (and much needed) competition to the pop-rock scene. DOWNPLAY SIGNS WITH TRUE ANOMALY RECORDS Columbus, Ohio, -- May 8, 2007 -–- All the hard-rocking and hard-working has finally paid off as fan favorite Downplay recently inked a deal with Columbus, Ohio based True Anomaly Records. The record deal comes at a time while the band is immersed in the studio recording the much anticipated follow-up to their self-released debut "Saturday." Downplays sophomore effort is set for a Summer 2007 release on True Anomaly Records, and promises to take the band's lyrically-driven rock to the next level.