Once upon a time, if a local musician released a record on a national label it would generate positive press and plenty of local airplay. It would also give the central Pennsylvania collective an opportunity to salute a local boy made good–whether the record sold 5,000 or 50,000 copies. My how times have changed.

Perhaps it’s the bottomline mentality of record companies more interested in landing the next Nirvana (or Hootie and the Blowfish) instead of developing great bands, or the near-saturation level of genres and sub-genres of music, since anyone with a couple thousand dollars can make a CD. Whatever the cause, the unfortunate result is great music falls by the wayside simply because of the lack of support.

Dan Kibler, one of the most honest songwriters and solid guitarists I’ve heard in a while, appears destined to slip through central Pennsylvania’s ever-widening cracks. But perhaps, another part of the country will hook into Kibler’s newest CD, Capsule, and give it the recognition it deserves.

Before you feel too sorry for Kibler, realize that he has what most local bands would kill for–a recording contract. Signed to a New York City label, Big Deal, Kibler has the luxury of a label advancing his recording costs and the availability of national distribution and publicity. In the long run, this means Kibler can tour the country (which he plans to do this summer) and have name recognition anywhere. However, that doesn’t help here.

Recognizable or not to the general public, Kibler is well-respected in central Pennsylvania music circles. In 1981, Kibler, then 17, fronted a band called The Shout that garnered some success and signed with an independent record label. Exposed to the possibility of huge success, Kibler took off for Los Angeles in 1985 and then moved to Sydney, Australia. While in Australia, he helped with production on Steve Kilbey’s (The Church) first solo record and fronted a band called Different Tongues.

When Kibler returned to Harrisburg in 1989, he formed El Kabong. They released one CD that received rave reviews from the likes of College Music Journal (CMJ) and Option magazine. When El Kabong disbanded, Kibler began working on his first solo release, Haunted. On the strength of that release, Kibler showcased at many of the larger music festivals in the U.S. including, South By Southwest (Austin), New Music Seminar (New York City), CMJ Music Festival (New York City), New South Music Festival (Atlanta), Midwest Music Conference (Chicago) and Poptopia (Los Angeles).

Capsule is Kibler’s most astonishing work to date. A group of confessional nuggets culled from different moments in Kibler’s life, Capsule presents not only great songs, but an impressive backing band that includes drummer Ronny Crawford (Lisa Loeb), guitarist Eddie Munoz (The Plimsouls), and bassist Mike Giblin (Jeffrey Gaines, Cherry Twister).

Luckily for music lovers, Capsule is not easily categorized. It has a certain roots rock or country feel, but at the same time contains bit of the heavy-pop sound that appears in much of Kibler’s music. Unfortunately it doesn’t easily plug into today’s definition of alternative and is probably a little too loud for the always-annoying adult contemporary genre. Philadelphia’s WXPN (88.1 FM in Harrisburg) has featured Capsule on its Philly Local show, and WQXA (105.7) and WRVV (97.3) have featured it sporadically on their respective Homegrown shows, but locally no one has seemed willing to put Capsule on a regular rotation.

This leaves Kibler ready to take Capsule on the road to find it a home. Yes, he will return to Harrisburg following the tour, but Capsule might make Kibler someone else’s hometown hero, which is unfortunate.