PUTNEY — Next Stage Arts Project presents two indie rock bands, Brattleboro-based quartet The Snaz and Keene-based trio Jake McKelvie & The Countertops, at Next Stage on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 7:30 p.m.
The Snaz is a young, original rock band featuring Dharma Ramirez (15, lead vocals and guitar), Mavis Eaton (15, keyboards and backup vocals), Zack James (13, drums) and Sally Fletcher (15, bass).
They have won “Battle of the Bands” competitions in Brattleboro and Northampton. Their prize for the Brattleboro event was recording time at the Guilford Sound studios, where they recorded an EP with the help of Grammy-nominated record producer Peter Solley.
Jake McKelvie & The Countertops features Jake on guitar and vocals, Nick Votruba on bass and Matt Bacon on drums. Their music is simple, the songs hummable and the delivery a little nasal, with no pretence, no layers of coy artfulness, nothing much at all really beyond straightforward, to-the-point songwriting.