The accolades and industry praise this band has already earned is enough to make you freeze in your steps: showcased at the 2000 CMJ MusicFest in New York City; winner of the 2000 Garageband.com/ Flawless Records talent search; original music licensed to ESPN-X Games; debut release Make It Nice, receiving significant college and commercial radio rotation throughout their New England homebase and extending out to the mid-west.

But the true proof of artistic worth isn’t in awards or prominent showcasing opportunities. It is in the music, and Make It Nice makes a pretty good case for itself by being innovative, thriving and all-around good sounding.

From the very first track, this 5-piece shoots out of the cannon totally on fire and ready to knock out everything in its path. “Core” opens up the disc with an accessible, radio-ready thrust and it just gets better from there. “Ball Bearings” bounces with its untiring energy while “Hot Dog” comes on strong and loud, thumping with solid percussion and bold guitars. Lead singer Milk is simply a vocal oddity of the best kind. Whether he’s letting it rip hardcore like a bat out of hell, or speed-rapping through Johnny Wishbone’s funky hip hop approximations, his presence and peerless style gives this act attention-grabbing dominance.

There’s plenty of groove in the mix with turntablism and sampling as Johnny Wishbone doesn’t shy away from throwing everything into the pot. Great lyrics, strong vocals, funky bass and tribal, rootsy drum beats are melded with expert production, thanks to Ted Paduck (who has worked with the likes of Powerman 5000, NIN and Busta Rhymes).

Many bands try to transcend genres by doing a bit of everything all at once. That effort often results in an auditory mess. Johnny Wishbone, on the other hand, actually succeeds by giving you a bit of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, a little bit of Phish and a whole lotta something else never heard before. This is funk/rap/ metal taken to an entirely new level.