The Square Life

WHEN DAVID AND ANDREW WESTERN PACKED UP THEIR TRUCK and drove out of Utah seven years ago, they joined the ranks of many who leave small towns in search of fulfilling their dreams in big cities.

But unlike the throngs who sometimes get snagged on street corners, playing music for money, the Western brothers made it - with a band called Highbench and fellow musicians Shane Fillmore and Chris Muir.

They all emigrated from the Beehive state to the Big Apple – but none of them were worried about failure. They could only imagine making that first big hit.

“We just always assumed we would (succeed),” said David Western, guitarist and lead singer. “It was weird. I guess we always thought we could.”

The band got their start when David, 27, Chris, 27, and Shane, 28, were learning how to drive. Back then, the Western brothers lived on High Bench Road, in Alpine, hence the name of the band.

When they were good enough, they made the rounds at local bars, proms and weddings and got paid $1,000 for two hours of work. The money wasn’t bad, but they felt like they had to leave if they really wanted to break into the world-wide music scene.

For them, New York City was music central, and the obvious place to go to get noticed. Luckily, the move paid off.

On speakerphone, from their manager’s office on Madison Avenue, the band talked about going on CBS’ “Morning Show” as a featured group, even though they haven’t yet signed a contract or produced an album. Their hit song “Stand” was chosen by Apple Inc. to be the demo song on models of the iPhone in Cingular stores nationwide.

Right now they’re working on an album that they anticipate will be finished in two or three months. Some offers to sign with a label have come along, but the band hasn’t made a decision yet.

“We’ve struggled with the idea of staying independent and deciding to work with labels,” Chris said. “We’ve done the indie side, but we don’t mind going with a major label and selling to the masses.”

In fact, bringing their music to the masses would be a measure of success, the band says. Their goals are to release a full album with at least one or two songs that make it to the radio and possibly gain Billboard attention. It also wouldn’t hurt to go on tour, worldwide, Chris says.

While the band has been gaining momentum and attention, there was one “eureka” moment about a year ago that brought their progress home. It was the moment that said to them, “you have arrived,” and since then, there’s been no going back.

The band – who, at an average height of 6 foot 3 inches, was once criticized for being too tall – had just played a concert for about 150 people and brought down the house. Afterward, they mingled with fans and bumped into Counting Crows frontman Adam Duritz. Duritz had been in the crowd listening, and he liked what he heard.

“It was good to hear an artist that we admired growing up telling us he likes us and that we had what it took,” David says, and the band agrees.

But that doesn’t mean a growing popularity is going to their heads.

Their favorite song at the moment, which hasn’t yet been released, is called “Satisfied,” and it aptly represents the band’s state of mind. The song is about being content in the big city, and not getting caught up in the hustle and bustle of metropolitan life. It’s about keeping track of what’s important, David says.

Not getting lost in the rock star lifestyle and staying unique is something the band has made a goal of achieving.

“I think what makes us different is our overall energy,” David says. “We have an overall vibe and energy that’s different from most rock bands. We don’t try to portray ourselves as a really hard core ‘party it up’ band. After shows, people come up and say there’s a really cool buzz in the room. It’s a kind of different environment that we have at shows, which is reassuring.”

Even though the band relocated to New York, Highbench has more fans that live out of the state, and out of the country. The band has developed a major following through MySpace and iTunes, and with today’s technological advances, Chris says it’s not so important where you are, but who you are.

“There comes a point where you have to realize you just have to do what comes naturally for you and what … you’re best at,” Chris said. “I think if we were to do it over, we’d do it the same. But I think the world is shrinking. We thought we had to be out here, but the world is shrinking and you can basically make your music from anywhere now.”

Still, when it comes to living the dream, some places just can’t be beat.