Jott fortysixandtwo: Many Small Steps…

“My goal is to build atmospheres that allow the listener to tell his or her own story.”

Once again, Desert…Mountain…Dust…travels to Germany. This time on our list is Walsrode, a town in Lower Saxony where young Ambient / Drone / Noise maker Jott can be found. 

Despite balancing music with becoming a father, Jott’s nonstop flow of creativity has paid off handsomely, with him already making a mark on the US...

Jott’s former primary project How I Met Lauren first caught my attention a few years back with the fantastic  ‘//////sixsixsick//////’ originally released on Kansas based label Big Pharma Records back in March of 2016 (BPR would later appoint Jott the head of their sub label Big Pharma Europa in early 2017). 

To me, it still holds up as some of his most ambitious and amazing work. Resulting in the successful merging of Brian Eno's positive energies with a much darker, indescribable force. Listen below:

Jott then hooked up with the New York based Ben Hudgins, and released a strew of material via Ben’s highly praised tape labels Endless Landscape of Decay and Zero Sum Recordings (under the banner of Machine Tribe Recordings).

The rest of 2016 and most of 2017 saw many collaborations for HImL, including the elaborate storytelling audio experiment in episodic form ‘the_cyberpunk:episode zero’ with Endless Chasm, and the more Wall Noise orientated release ‘Void’ with Melinoe and See Through Buildings. 

But the biggest team up had to be ‘With the Blessing of Satan’ - which saw contributions from Armor Breach, hallwayss and Black Sheet Servitude to name a few, resulting in a unique, multifaceted extreme music experience.

Soon after, Jott joined forces once again with one of the participants - Ben Rehling of See Through Buildings - to form the noise / soundtrack duo ‘a wet palace’ who released an EP entitled ‘[]’ on Analog Cowboy Records and their debut cassette on Machine Tribe.

The following September, MT released the cassette ‘Todallem’ (Death to Everything) an EP by Jott’s Metal band “Dovahkiief” which featured stellar remixes by such artists as Lorenzo Abattoir (Mare Di Dirac) and Jack Lynch as well as bonus Dovahkiief tracks. 

As well as the title track, the highlights of the release for me include ‘Schluss Machen Bei McDonald’s’ which is rather an out of body audio experience with haunting vocals that truly stealing the show. 

Then ‘Satanic Death Ritual’ personifies a powerful conjuration with thunderous tribal drums and low guitar rumbles, the blackened ceremony reaching it’s climax with a wash of feedback as the drums change up their pace to the fadeout. 

Finally the tape closes with the simple but effective guitar delay run of ‘-’ It’s a stripped down and sleepy sound but remains one of the most memorable tracks on the release. In short, Todallem’ balances Jott’s love of metal and more eclectic electronic pallette brilliantly. 

Purchase a cassette copy of Todallem HERE

In late 2018, Jott took another step forward and formed a new solo project entitled ‘Kummer' which saw a release on LSD Induced Nightmares Records in Texas. As well as the creation of a new Ambient duo with his other half ‘K8’ entitled ‘MOMOFUKU’ that fuses both analogue and digital software who were gifted a debut tape release via Chicago based label Lurker Bias ‘Blessed By The Algorithm’ a perfect modern yet minimalistic  dream…drift…scape. Listen below:

I caught up with Jott to find out more about his musical beginnings, the happenings of Big Pharma Europa and what the future holds for him and his other projects…

DMD: What artists and bands had the biggest influence on you growing up?

J: ISIS (the band). They are by far the biggest creative influence I've ever experienced. Other people that influence me are The Mars Volta, Tim Hecker and The Boats. 

DMD: Where did you first hear drone / ambient / noise / experimental music?

J: I was always interested in audio plays and therefore listened to a lot of ambiences and noises as a kid. I got fascinated by how some noises can give you real shivers.

‘Carry’ my favourite track by ISIS has a heavy drone intro that I listened to on repeat when I was younger. It was used as music in a video about parachuting. 

A year later, YouTube added the feature that tells you the song playing underneath the video and that's how I found my favourite band of all time.

DMD: Please tell us the story of How I Met Lauren so far, I am particularly curious as to how you came by the name…

J: How I Met Lauren was the name of my personal music project because I became friends with an exchange student named Lauren from the USA in 2009. She was not the only reason I chose to express myself with music but certainly the biggest at that time.

How I Met Lauren started with a lot of shit songs and evolved into this ambient/drone thing it is now. I had never thought to get into this scene when I started making music at first.

I have put How I Met Lauren on hiatus for now because I felt like I had to leave something for later on. I will return to this project and make some violent ambient again (in the future) but I personally want to focus on more structured music at the moment.

DMD: Is there a strong noise scene in Walsrode?

J: There is none.

DMD: What recording gear do you use?

J: I used to have a studio/rehearsal room with my band Dovahkiief, the hyaenidae. It was a great spot and for two years I recorded most of my music there. 

We had to abandon it after moving to another city and now I make most of my music in my bedroom studio. 

In terms of software I was using Cubase and Audacity but made the switch to Logic Pro X last year. Recently I got into randomised step sequencing using a digital step sequencer with two oscillators, letting it generate chords within set parameters. 

I'm also working with an elektron digitakt at the moment to realise randomised breakbeats and chance-based triggering with samples. I got the digitakt to work less with synths and more with samples but found myself quickly adding synthesisers to the setup since the digitakt has elaborate midi features.

I like to use gear that other people have thrown away. If I have to climb inside a dumpster to get it, it makes it more interesting. I like to use broken gear and I use a lot of circuit-bent stuff. 

If I need a certain effect I'd rather let one of my more able friends build it for me to suit my needs rather than buying an expensive pedal everyone else already has.

DMD: Speaking of which, can please you elaborate on any pedals that have been custom made for you? 

J: The metaldrone is a hardcore bend by simon the magpie. It's patch bay enables you to connect the bending points yourself. the barbed wire is functional and serves similar to a Thermerin in some settings.

J: The Endless Chasm made by abraxas devotionals (AKA ZS Lawrence from the Futuristic Ambient project of the same name) is a delay pedal with a feedback loop that allows you to process only the wet signal with outboard gear and create feedback with it, for the purpose of creating washes of sound.

J: The phase of the sun (also made by abraxas devotionals) is a circuit-bent phaser that glitches and mangles the input sound then routes it through an echo to create washes and waves. Both the EC and SP are custom build for my needs and basically the only two in existence.

DMD: What’s going on with Big Pharma Europa? 

J: Big Pharma Europa has been releasing free music since May '17. All of our releases are free for everyone from everywhere. Since my personal life has gotten more busy lately this project isn’t that active at the moment. We've had a small hiatus since my life got a bit busy but we are back on track and have just released a new split between MOMOFUKU and Dakota Snaketail's project The Flesh, Full of Black Sand which you can listen to here

DMD: What is your favourite release from How I Met Lauren? Also will there be any more releases in the sixsixsaga?

J: My favourite release is //////sixsixsin///// and yeah there will be more.

DMD: Tell us about your other projects and bands:

J: Kummer is my main focus at the moment. I want to combine ambient music with a more structured, approachable track concept. It’s basically a blend of Drum ’N’ Bass elements and Ambient / Drone atmospheres. 

My first full album with Kummer is still in the process of recording at the moment.

‘a wet palace’ is an experimental collaboration between californian noise artist ‘See Through Buildings‘ and me. We’re burying real instruments in walls of terror. We’ve got an album out on MTRec and we’re working on a new EP at the moment.

'MOMOFUKU' is my newest project. In a phrase, it's complicated Ambient. I’m doing this with the Mother of my Daughter. It’s better than couple's therapy, trust me. MOMOFUKU blends digital possibilities like chance based triggering, randomising sample slices and random chord generation with experimental analogue gear that's in part custom build for our needs.

We are two people behind the hardware but we often feel like randomness is our third bandmate as it's the essential part for creating interesting artefacts and sonic environments that feel organic.

‘Dovahkiief‘ is a stoner/sludge band project I founded in 2015 with a good friend of mine. since we had to abandon our studio, this project is on hiatus until we find a place to shred again. The next tape is currently in the mastering stage though!  

DMD: Could you please explain the meaning behind the name Dovahkiief?

J: ’Dovahkiin' is the main character in the video game 'Skyrim'. there it means ‘Dragonborn’. 'Dovahkiief' is a word that I came up with, figuring it would translate to ‘Dragonbong’.

'Dovahkiief' also sounds a hell of a lot like 'Doofer kifft' which is german for 'dumb person who smokes reefer’. ’Todallen' would really translate to 'death to all' but it’s actually 'Todallem' which means 'death to everything’ it's a made up word made from 'Tod' and ‘allem'.

DMD: Tell us some of your favourite albums

J: Isis - Oceanic

Tool - Lateralus

Cypress Hill - Black Sunday

Denzel Curry - Imperial

Arsonists get all the girls - Portals

Bob Marley - Exodus

Billy Talent - Billy Talent II

DMD: Any plans to play live with How I Met Lauren?

J: I’m working on a proper live setup but it's not a main concern at the moment. 

You can check out my 'Magpie Metaldrone' video (see below) for a How I met Lauren live experience.

DMD: If you could work with any artist living or dead who would it be?

J: Isis or Aaron Turner

DMD: Was there a concept behind ‘NORSEFIRES’ and the ‘A Wet Palace’ albums?

J: Many artists try to tell a story in their concept art. My goal is to build atmospheres that allow the listener to tell his or her own story.

NORSEFIRES was a 'study piece' for me because it is the product of me figuring out a steady effect chain for my guitar setup.

With a wet palace, my partner Ben and I were trying to take this DIY niche music we already make to the next level. Not in terms of popularity, but in terms of production value. 

The album definitely tells a story but I am sure mine differs from yours, a wet palace is by far my most complicated album to date.

DMD: How did the record ‘With the Blessing of Satan’ come to be? Are there more plans for another huge collaboration like that in the future?

J: I made WTBOS over the course of 2016, I had so many collaborations going that I found it more a curse than a gift, hence the name of the album. It’s a collection of tracks I made with a lot of great friends.

WTBOS Part II will be a thing at some future time but other things are more important at the moment.

DMD: In the past did you play in any other musical projects / bands? Also how many different instruments do you play?

J: Before going on hiatus, How I met Lauren was my musical outlet since 2009. I didn’t switch from the name but I have switched genres a lot, always doing what I wanted to do. 

I’ve played with some bands, mainly keyboard in a metalcore band and vocals in another metalcore band after that.

I own a violin and trumpet next to a variety of synth equipment and my bass / guitar setup but I don't claim to know how any of this works.

DMD: Apart from music, where else do you find inspiration?

J: Movies, people, trash and nature.

DMD: What music have you been listening to recently?

J: I dug up my stoner rock vinyls and got those spinning in the last few days…

At the moment I’m trying to avoid any and all radio music. I tend to stick to Amenra and Old Man Gloom these days.

DMD: Do you have a favourite HImL release?

J: //////sixsixsin//////...However the ////// series is currently on hiatus, as is the rest of HImL. But there is already new material recorded for part four.

DMD: Do you have any plans to play live?

J: it was never my main focus but I am working on a live setup at the moment to be able to play my music in front of an audience.

DMD: Anyone you want to give a shout out to?

J: SHOUTOUTS!  

I think I would have stopped making music if i haven't been 'picked up' by my buddy and mentor Benjamin Joseph, the head of Big Pharma Records. What they did for me when they believed in me and my music and challenging me to create a whole album that they would like to put out on CD was the push into the right direction I needed. 

If I had to name one person that influenced my music more than anyone else I would name them.

s/o to the three Benjamins, (Hudgins / Joseph /Rehling) who each had their own way to support me and my music. 

s/o to the moorstrassegang for being the local support I need.

s/o to Dakota Snaketail for their endless creativity and powerful spirit. The brightest diamonds really are made under the highest pressures. 

s/o to K8 and every friendly noise fire out there. You know who you are!

Everyone who put me on his or her label, everyone who collaborated with me, everyone who waited days for me to send over files I promised. You are what makes me an artist after all. Thank you.

LINKS:

Kummer / How I Met Lauren Soundcloud

How I Met Lauren bandcamp

Big Pharma Europa bandcamp

If you'd like to hear more of Jott, click HERE for a mammoth 3 hour MOMOFUKU YouTube mix!!!

D…M…D… LIVE!!! SikTh - Live @ Reading Sub 89 Concert Review

Reading, known the world over for it’s annual music festival, has seen historic performances from such revolutionary bands as Nirvana, System of a Down and Rage Against The Machine. But if you take a step outside the overflowing, muddy campsite away from the throngs of hungover / sunburnt attendees, the largest town in Berkshire suddenly transforms into a more hapless place when it comes to live music…

With gigs featuring both local and out of town bands plagued by poor promotion, low attendance and a general sense of apathy, it’s hardly surprising when bigger bands faced with the task of booking a trot around the UK completely ignore Reading and instead head east toward the capital.

Very occasionally the stars do align and an internationally renown group makes the extra effort to come down the M4, and any fans in the surrounding area circle the date in their calendar in red sharpie, and pull out every stop to make it there.

Above: The Sub 89 on a beautiful overcast day. 

With that in mind, on February 21st the celestial orbs above our little blue green planet came into order as we were gifted with a reformed SikTh coming to lay waste to our humble Reading.

Now if you’re unfamiliar with SikTh (why are you reading this?!) the Watford sextet established in ’01 were the band that made the UK metal scene’s collective jaws drop after releasing the avant garde masterpiece ‘The Trees Are Dead And Dried Out…Wait For Something Wild…’  in 2003. 

The record, which captured the group’s insane math core influenced energy and forward thinking musical approach matched by deeply visceral lyrics was light years ahead of it’s time and utterly unlike anything heard before or since. After the album swiftly became a cult hit, the band amassed a die hard following and toured the UK.

After a few brief stints around Europe and a trip to Japan, the group unleashed their second album ‘Death of a Dead Day’ in 2006, seeming poised for world domination. But the band split up the following year with the members heading their separate ways on to different projects. 

As time passed, the emerging Djent and Progressive Metal movements took a firm hold, with many of the groups citing SikTh as a crucial engineer (second to Meshuggah) in the implementation of the Djent sound and inspired many a metal band to go in a more experimental sonic direction.

Thankfully SikTh re-grouped and played a storming headline show in 2014 at the Red Bull tent at Donnington Download Festival, then brought out the crowd funded mini-album ‘Opacities’ a year later. After a tour with Slipknot, original vocalist Justin Hill left to focus on his career as a producer.

The band recruited new vocalist Joe Rosser of guitarist Pin’s side project Aliases and spent months writing and rehearsing before finally releasing their first full length in over 10 years: ‘The Future In Whose Eyes?’ in June 2017 to grand critical acclaim.

But despite coming back to claim the crown, can SikTh who were always a band too unique for their own good and too difficult to pin down (pun intended) still deliver the goods in the live arena and prove to everyone they’ve still got what it takes 17 years after their inception?

After freezing our collective nips off, the sub’s doors are opened, tickets are checked and we ascend the stairs. Pantera’s ‘I’m Broken’ blasts through the PA and the smell of beer tickles the nostrils. Yes, it’s the unmistakable yet comforting atmosphere of a metal gig, the sole thing that’s missing now is an argument about whether Metallica’s last decent record was The Black Album or And Justice For All…

Once a chunk of the crowd have filed their way in, opening act Bristol's Valis Ablaze kick the evening off. While they win over pockets of people who cordially head bang along to them, for me they represented the sub genre at it’s worst as they plodded through a set full of regurgitated and recycled TesseracT sections. 

Next up, Londoners Exist Immortal fare slightly better, as they are a much needed shot of energy. But after a while their songs also seem to bleed together, their breakdowns feeling cut from the same old cloth, although highlights are found in the odd intricately crafted guitar break, again it’s nothing groundbreaking. Which is a shame considering the musicianship and passion clearly on display here.

As soon as EI finish up they are soon forgotten, with roadies scurrying about the stage setting up drums, guitar amps and pedal boards, the excitement for the upcoming headliners reaching fever pitch.

SikTh finally take to the stage to a raucous reception and launch into ‘Philistine Philosophies’ cueing the crowd to go absolutely apeshit. Bassist James Leach shows off his slap skills during ‘Hold My Finger’ which gets everybody bouncing while ‘Pussyfoot’ sets the pit alight. 

Tie Die wearing singer Mikee Goodman gets the audience shouting “LOOK AT THE SKY!!!” before the band smash their way into the Bill Hicks inspired ‘Skies of Millennium Night’ populated by Drummer Dan Foord’s scientifically crafted drum fills. New album track ‘The Aura’ goes down exceptionally well and the amount of punters yelling along to ‘The Golden Cufflinks’ - a song that addresses the closure of many a music venue in the UK - passionately cements it as a future live staple for the band.

The second part of the set is strictly classic cuts from the Death of a Dead Day album, now celebrating it’s 11 year anniversary. ‘Bland Street Bloom’ and ‘Flogging The Horses’ keep the crazies at full pelt and Mikee even hits us with a quick shot of spoken word ‘Mermaid Slur’ which is followed up by the impossible to dance to ‘Summer Rain.’ 

https://www.facebook.com/sikthofficial/videos/1728816180511164/

After ‘Part Of The Friction’ encourages the crowd to raise their middle fingers to all the unnecessary vulturistic bottom feeders of the music industry, the group gift us the darkest metal love song ever penned ‘When The Moment’s Gone’ which is absolutely colossal, the crushing riffs of guitarists Pin and Dan Weller still seem to require an abacus to work out after their impact.

Before an emotional ‘Where Do We Fall? new vocalist Joe Rosser takes the spotlight, declaring how stoked and grateful he is to be a part of the band, observing his movements on stage he fits right in as the ying to Mikee’s yang with all the unpredictable musical chaos happening around him plus he adds his own touch to the older tracks without trying to imitate original vocalist Justin Hill.

Speaking of the devil, the man himself makes a surprise appearance for the final screams on closing number ‘As The Earth Spins Round’ which is the icing on an already glorious cake.

It’s certainly not everyone’s night, there are technical problems and small signs of tour fatigue, but when you take a look around this room you can clearly see people on the verge of tears shouting along to every word, or others with permanent grins etched on their faces who simply can’t believe they’re here to witness it. The energy being expelled by the band and reflected back by the audience tonight is nothing short of magical. 

This feeling of overwhelming amazement refuses to die out after the last note fades marking tonight a blazing success and further proof that SikTh are still the untouchable juggernaut they’ve always been, and that they are still very much needed in this mad world. Considering the reunion party has been in swing 4 years now no-one wants the rollercoaster to come to a stop yet.

An unforgettable event such as this proves that there's still hope for the future of Reading's music scene, but only time will tell.

The real question that remains is will we ever see another band as pioneering or inventive as SikTh?  

We’d best keep scanning the forest for something wild…

Lucius Fox - Cement Sun Album Review

Ahh the difficult debut album. You only get one chance to make a first impression, and such an event has transformed many a band into either a rupturing wreck or an awe inspiring exhibition that makes joe public take a big step back in astonishment.

The pressure is definitely on for Lucius Fox, a prog/math rock duo from Kalamazoo Michigan, USA. The group have been together since 2014 and have put out a grand total of 3 EPs plus one release made up of live improvisations. 

Their debut record, the 99% instrumental Cement Sun marks the result of material written between 2015 - 2017 and a band emerging after 4 months holed up in a recording studio. 

So will this Cement Sun fall straight to the ground or remain suspended above the earth while it bathes us all in it's positive glow? There’s only one way to find out…

Beginning with the striking ambience of ‘Stratovolcano’ the duo kick things firmly into formation with some adrenaline fuelled speed metal riffing injected with alien sounding guitar leads. It’s a bold opening gambit that leads perfectly into ‘Caged Bird’ which features Baroness guitar breaks and ends with the most positive breakdown you’ve ever heard. 

Up next, ‘Shapeshifter’ moves from attacking chords to a simple yet divine melody that ascends up to the heavens. It’s a real standout track for me and a grand demonstration of the band’s songwriting chops and musical diversity.

Featuring the only singing on the entire record, the attention grabbing centrepiece ‘Keith Green’ opens with a mist of guitar and plenty of David Gilmour licks to spare, then builds into a powerful surge of musical energy before dropping back to a featherlight, weightless riff. But the pounds are soon piled back on as distortion pedals are stamped on while the vocals soar majestically overhead. 

Songs like the title track and ‘Lake Effect’ show off the group’s complexity as well as their tranquility while not being afraid to throw the listener a few curveballs along the way.

Final track ‘Tunnel’ opens with an intricately crafted, dreamy first movement that soothes the mind before switching to some dazzling guitar work combined with powerfully crashing drums. Speaking of which, drummer Alex Guzman’s raging tub-thumpery during the emotional mid section is his finest moment on the record. A palm muted riff with spellbinding leads draws things to a climactic close and the Cement Sun has set.

It’s clear that Lucius Fox have upped their game since their last EP but I just can’t escape the feeling that parts of this record are longer than they need to be. While enjoyable and compelling, a few too many sections sound overcooked, a lot of the guitar parts have a very first take feel to them and the slight lack of variety in the drum fills causes the songs to drag their heels rather than to travel smoothly.

But with this constructive criticism taken with a pinch of salt, the duo are undeniably aiming for an original sound with plenty of exciting riffs and melodic ideas to go around and that in itself should not be ignored. 

Despite it’s shortcomings, Cement Sun is a debut for the two piece to be proud of, though it may not be an overflowing diamond mine, there are jewels to be found within it’s walls that deserve your attention and appreciation. 

A valiant effort and an exciting first chapter penned by a band you’ll be hearing a lot more from in the new year!

You can read an interview with Lucius Fox here

Lucius Fox Facebook

Lucius Fox bandcamp

Watch a play-though of 'Tunnel' here

Lucius Fox: The Terrific 2

Now as far as I’m aware, Michigan is famous for 2 things: 

General Motors and Michael Moore.

Coincidentally, 2 seems to be the magic number for Michigan’s Lucius Fox;

A fledgling 2 piece Alternative Metal monster simply bursting with potential....

DMD: Is there another EP on the way? 

LF: Yes! We have 5 new songs completed and are writing a few more, as well as getting more recording gear and reading up on recording techniques.  We will likely begin recording in the coming months and hopefully have a full length ready by summer’s end.

DMD: Who would you list as your influences? I’m most definitely hearing some Baroness in there!

LF: We love Baroness!  We are also huge fans of The Fall of Troy, The Mars Volta, Russian Circles, Toe, Audioslave (their first two albums obviously), Rage Against the Machine, CHON, This Town Needs Guns, Scale the Summit, The Contortionist, Rivers of Nihil, Deafheaven, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers and a ton more.

DMD: Are there any challenges in performing the material live?

LF: Producing a full and interesting sound with a two piece is definitely a challenge! 

 To fill out the guitar sound, we run through two amps and use an EHX Pitchfork to emulate a bass sound.  We also utilize looping pedals to layer sounds on top of each other.  Syncing complex loops with drums and switching multiple effects on or off at the same time can be difficult, but we are getting better as we go.

DMD: What inspires the lyrics? 

LF: Our lyrics are generally about stuff that sucks (Global Warming, complacency, self doubt, frustration, failure, anxiety, and lately the Flint Water Crisis) and occasionally stuff that’s pretty cool (the outdoors and nostalgia).  

However, the songs that we’ve been working on as of late are mostly instrumental. 

DMD: What sucks and what rocks about being a 2 piece band?

LF: What sucks: We have about as much gear as a four piece band, but half the people. 

 If either of us mess up in a live setting it’s very obvious. Plus it’s harder to fight bigger bands and win.

What rocks: Co-ordinating practice between two people is really easy and we live down the street from each other.  

We’re both on the same page about writing, recording, mixing. We’re really good friends and have been playing music together since we were very young. Plus it’s easier to fight solo artists and win.

DMD: What is the music scene in Michigan like?

LF: Kalamazoo, MI has an excellent music scene.  There are a number of really cools house venues, several bars that regularly put on shows and a ton of great bands spanning pretty much every genre.  There are numerous bands that tour regionally and nationally based in Kalamazoo.  Grand Rapids, Lansing, Ann Arbor and Detroit each have solid scenes as well.

DMD: What gear do you guys use live and in the studio?

LF: 

Guitars:

Fender Stratocaster

Ibanez AS53

Epiphone Explorer Korina Edition

Ibanez Rg 120

Amps:

Peavey Classic 50

Crate Vintage Club 50

Orange Micro terror 20 Watt head 

Pedals/FX:

EHX Looper 720

EHX Pitchfork

EHX Big Muff

Ibanez Tube Screamer

Dunlap Wah

Morley Little Alligator Volume 

Boss DD-20 Giga Delay

Boss Digidelay

Some sort of AB switch

Boss Metal Zone MT-2

Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive 

Digitech Compressor 

Behringer Tuner

Drums: 

Constructed from the bones and flesh of our enemies. 

DMD: Can you define the music of LF for me?

LF: We're constantly challenging ourselves in terms of the complexity, intensity and intricacy of our music while at the same time keeping things melodic. The definition of our sound that I can give you is: heavy melodic prog (which sounds really silly when you say it out loud). 

DMD: What is the epic tale of the band from it’s inception up until this year?

LF: We met in Kindergarten and have been homies ever since!  We started playing music together in 6th or 7th grade and continued to jam throughout high school.

Fast forward to 2014:  I (Jeremy) had begun writing new music (essentially the first EP) then following the dissolution of my former band, Basement Shark Attack, I was booked to play a show on my own. 

I asked Luis if he would play drums with me for that show, he accepted, so we practiced a couple times and we played the show.  After graduating from Michigan State, I moved back home to Kalamazoo, MI and we continued jamming and started booking more shows. 

Over the next year our playing style shifted dramatically to a more technical, heavier sound and we began writing and recording new songs.  In January 2016  we released the ‘Where Have You Been?’ EP that I would consider to be our first proper release as a band.  

We wrote, recorded, mixed and mastered everything ourselves (with the exception of drums, which were engineered by a friend).  Luis designed the album artwork and layout and we printed and assembled the physical copies of the EP ourselves.

I feel that we are constantly getting better and tighter as a band and I am extremely excited for what our next album brings!

You can listen to and purchase Lucius Fox's latest EP 'Where Have You Been?' here