Courtesy of oliviamanagement.com
Even though “Kid Tiger”, the sophomore album from Daniel Ellsworth and the Great Lakes came out on March 4, I would bet that a lot of Rochester hasn’t bought it yet, though anyone who does not have this album as part of their playlist is definitely missing out. This up-and-coming indie-rock band has something that seems to fit the Rochester music scene: it’s laid-back but focused instrumentally, with quality vocals and lyrics that require multiple listens to fully appreciate.
The first song on the new album was one of my favorites. The piano solo at the beginning caught me off guard but was a smooth way to introduce the song. The drums come in a few measures later with a beat that perfectly fits the theme that the piano introduced. Coupled with beautiful, soft lead vocals and great harmonies from the backup vocals, what’s not to love?
The rest of the album follows suit, presenting song after song that exhibits smooth harmonies and great lyrics. “Little Light”, which is tenth on the album, shows off their musicianship, beginning with tight harmonies then moving on to mixed meters of five-then-six that are further energized by the song’s changing tempos. Too many popular artists today cannot even handle 5/4 time, let alone switching to six and back again. Hearing this rhythmic virtuosity on their album got to the core of what makes the band great; it’s a group that comprises talented people who can make great music, plain and simple.
It’s clear to me that band members Daniel, Timon, Marshall, and Joel really know what they are doing when it comes to composition and their instruments; Daniel Ellsworth and the Great Lakes isn’t your run-of-the-mill band based in someone’s garage, not to say good music has never come out of a garage or been written by a self-taught musician. But it came as no surprise that all four members have music degrees from respected music schools: Belmont, Berklee, and Ohio State. Luckily, all were in Nashville at the same time and, through mutual friends, came together.
The group’s success with their first album, “Civilized Man”, was enough to gain them recognition; they topped Amazon’s mp3 album sales chart and were named one of the “15 Bands to Watch in 2014” by Esquire magazine. This didn’t come without hard work and touring night after night to get their name out.
According to the band, their first album was definitely a group effort but a somewhat less cohesive one. Daniel had written some of the songs before the band had formed so it was, in Joel’s words, “a little bit more of a mixed bag”.
“We love the first record,” Joel said in a recent interview. “But we’re super excited about this one just because it’s much more a collaborative effort as far as variety goes.”
I got to chat with the band as they drove towards Chicago in their van earlier in the month. They seemed like a down-to-earth bunch that love making music together and are humbled by their fans and success thus far.
When asked about their writing songs as a team vs. writing alone, the consensus was writing as a team is far better. “It’s great writing with three other guys that are just as into it and committed as everyone else,” Joel said.
Press releases compare the group to Passion Pit, Cold War Kids, and Walk the Moon. When asked what makes them different from these groups, Daniel had an honest answer. “We never think about [other] groups when we’re writing,” he said. “We just try and think about…[trying] to make something that we would listen to. If people compare us to other bands that are good, it’s always a compliment.”
This album – which was inspired by drawings of animals, good mustaches, moderately priced whiskey, and doughnuts, according to their Facebook page – is worth every cent of the $12 it costs to buy it from their online store. That’s a cheap bottle of whiskey or two-dozen donuts.
Sanguinetti is a member of the class of 2015.
