Sunday night, I was fortunate enough to catch a short but sweet set from local band Melany Ether at The House, 263 E. Lincoln Highway. When I asked guitarist/singer Jason Jensen and bass player Brandon Welch how they would describe their music, they were at a loss for words. They told me to listen to their set and decide for myself, which I did. In the end, I proclaimed them as a jam-rock band. Their songs are all instrumental except one and, though sometimes short, they are complex compositions. These guys know how to write music. Their notes are fast, complicated and groove-based.

Aside from Jensen and Welch, the other two members of the band are Ben Aldis on percussion and Chris Peterson on a second guitar. Despite only playing one show previous to this, and only six months total playing together, these guys sound like they have been together for years. With influences like underground bands Yo La Tengo, Sea and Cake and Rainer Maria, you can just imagine the style and diversity in this band. Welch and Jensen hope to record in a month after they work on a few more songs, and then tour as much as possible.

Their set opened with a mellow song that quickly changed tempos and gave you an idea of what this band was all about. Their second song, “Attack in Quotes,” is fast and separates into many different songs that range from fast to slow. If this is confusing you, you get the idea of how complex these guys are.

The next two songs were short, but still funky and difficult to play. My least favorite song was the only song with vocals, “Soft California.” It took a kind of punk rock turn, which stood apart from anything else they played in their set. Closing the set was a unique song that sounded like southern rock at first, but then shifted into a jammy medley, then drifted back to southern rock.

Bottom line here, these guys have talent. Jensen and Welch are both in other bands other than Melany Ether. In Welch’s other band, he plays trumpet and keyboard, which proves his wide-range talent. Unfortunately, I was not able to stay for the second band, of which Jensen is also the guitarist/singer. If they were anything like Melany Ether, I’m sure the audience wasn’t disappointed.