Opening the set with "Poppies," the band played a relaxed, if somewhat slow-moving set of about 20 of Wozniak's self-penned compositions to a packed house at the Knitting Factory on Friday night, January 23rd, which may not actually have been all that hard to achieve, given the size of the venue. The club is not much bigger than my living room; the acoustics are better, however, and I didn't have to worry about spilling beer on the rug.

If I had to give Marcy Playground's music a quick disposable description, it would be acoustic grunge. The band, whose members originally hail from the area, have returned home with a sense of triumph. Dressed in a black K-Rock jersey and blue jeans, 27-year-old Wozniak spoke about the band's momentum. "Last time we played in New York was at the Ludlow Café to a pretty quiet crowd," he said, referring to the Lower Eastside eatery. "It's good to have some warm bodies in the room."

The bodies were, in fact, very warm at the concert. (This may have had to do with the fact that the Knitting Factory was a tad too generous with their thermostat that evening -- thank God for coat checks). Riding on the back of their single, "Sex and Candy," Marcy Playground has managed to build a solid and moderately religious core following.

Not so long ago, however, things were far less rosy for the band. Marcy Playground was one of EMI's roster of acts who were left stranded when the label suddenly folded about seven months ago. Fortunately, after a brief stint in record label limbo, the band was subsequently picked up by Capitol, a subsidiary of EMI's parent company.

Wozniak assembled Marcy Playground in 1994 upon returning to New York City after attending Evergreen College in Olympia, Washington. The band's sound has been likened to that of Nirvana and other "Seattle-based" bands of the early '90s. Like Cobain, Wozniak has battled demons associated with a predilection towards heroin, although he appears to have left that aspect of his career behind him.

As mentioned, the trio, rounded out by Dan Rieser on drums, puts out a large sound, given the instrumentation and size of the group. Wozniak has a lazily attractive if somewhat unassuming style of vocals; the band's onstage manner is relaxed and playful.

I guess if I have one complaint about the group it would be that they lack a bit of a wallop. I'm not suggesting that the band run out and buy smoke machines and paint their faces like Gene Simmons, however, they could use a little more action: an electric guitar, some backing vocals, naked dancers, I don't know.

The lack of theatrics notwithstanding, the crowd at the Knitting Factory seemed pleased with the local heroes on Friday night. As I looked about, I realized that I was in the midst of an audience who actually cared about the subject matter of Wozniak's songs. I heard the fellow in back of me repeating the lyrics verbatim, while a girl to my right silently mouthed the lyrics. Marcy Playground is undoubtedly on their way up. A couple more singles like the current one and this band could find themselves the proverbial contenders.