Tag: Great Expectations

Change of Pace — Ness Lake Finds the Right Groove on “Normal Speed” Album

Marco Aziel, Chandler Lach, and Brandon McDole of Ness Lake. Photo – Spencer Isberg

Chandler Lach needs a change of pace.

The Ypsilanti musician spent six years working on Ness Lake’s latest album and reflecting on several life changes.

“I was facing a lot of weird inner turmoil and changes,” said Lach, the band’s frontman, about Normal Speed.

“And now, looking back on it, I wrote all those songs about needing to get better before realizing that I really needed to. I think it’s a pretty constant experience of an artist to look back on former work and think, ‘Oh, you were so cute six years ago. I can’t believe that experience was so intense for you. I can’t believe that was what was consuming me at that time.’”

Lach chronicles his evolution across nine tracks, which explore relationships, mental health, and sobriety.

“There’s a lot of hope on the album, too. It’s cool to see that hope has been realized,” he said.

“Thematically, it’s knowing that things need to improve and not knowing exactly the steps to get there, but seeing that there is some light there. It’s strange writing songs now. I have different problems and anxieties, but also different joys and pleasures.”

On Normal Speed, Lach excels alongside bassist/multi-instrumentalist/producer Marco Aziel and former drummer/percussionist Brandon McDole. Ness Lake’s contemplative lyrics and experimental instrumentation instantly resonate with fans of emo, shoegaze, and indie rock.

“I walk away from the whole experience [being] so grateful to Marco and Brandon for pushing [us]. This is the product … because of that hard work,” said Lach, whose band name takes inspiration from Loch Ness. “I’m really interested, excited, and curious to see how it’s received and what happens next. I think no matter what, we have a cool roster of new songs.”

I recently spoke with the band about the album ahead of a January 30 album release show at Ziggy’s.

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Buzzworthy — Honey Monsoon Drenches Detroit in Jazz-inspired Indie Rock

Honey Monsoon at Ann Arbor’s Om of Medicine in February. Top row from left: Taylor Greenhields, Ana Gomulka and Ian Griffiths. Bottom row from left: Andrea Holther-Cruz and Leo James Willer.

For Honey Monsoon, the sweet sounds of jazz-inspired indie rock, neo soul and funk are dripping heavily throughout metro Detroit’s music scene.

The Detroit-based quintet are spreading the nectar of the Motor City’s burgeoning jazz indie rock scene at clubs like The Blind Pig and Om of Medicine in Ann Arbor, The Loving Touch in Ferndale, the Plymouth Roc in Plymouth, the Tangent Gallery in Detroit and The Loft in Lansing.

Together, Ana Gomulka (music, lyrics, vocals, guitar and keys), Taylor Greenshields (drums and percussion), Ian Griffiths (bass and vocals), Andrea Holther-Cruz (keys and vocals) and Leo James Willer (live painting) are introducing their talents to a growing Motor City audience.

Gomulka attributes the band’s smooth sound to their longtime love of past and present jazz, soul and funk singers and musicians, including Esperanza Spalding, Sharon Jones, Kneebody and Hiatus Kaiyote.

“When we first started this band, I don’t think any of us were like let’s make jazzy music. When I was young, I grew up listening to Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan because that’s what my parents played,” she said. “So when I sang people would be like, ‘Oh you sound like Sarah Vaughan or something like that.’ I was like, ‘Oh, I wasn’t even trying to sound like her.’ I think that’s where our jazzy sound comes from. It’s just what comes out.”

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Fantastic Four — Adventures with Vultures, 3 Other Motor City Acts Showcase Musical Prowess at The Blind Pig

Adventures with Vultures, aka Matt Sauter, headlines his first show at The Blind Pig in Ann Arbor, Mich.

A new “Fantastic Four” demonstrated their musical prowess Jan. 20 at The Blind Pig.

The “Fantastic Four” – Adventures with Vultures, Brother Elsey, Great Expectations and Honey Monsoon – represented some of southeast Michigan’s emerging musical talent during a 3.5-hour show filled with folk, roots, pop and jazz rock at the iconic Ann Arbor, Mich., 400-person venue.

It also served as the first headlining show for Plymouth, Mich.-based folk rocker Adventures with Vultures, also known as Matt Sauter, who released his debut EP, “Junction,” in October on Original 1265 Recordings.

Sauter’s down-home and fun-loving stage presence instantly connected with the crowd during his 45-minute set, which included the folk rock gems “Okay Guy,” “Skies of Gold” and “I Found a Dreamer” as well as a new track, “Hell or High Water.”

“So many of you f*ckers came to the show tonight. I can’t believe it,” said Sauter, who’s also a student at the Detroit Institute of Music Education (DIME). “We used to play at coffee shops in Plymouth, Michigan, and all you guys came here, and we really appreciate it.”

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Folk Implosion — Adventures with Vultures’ Matt Sauter Gets Introspective on New ‘Junction’ EP

Matt Sauter, aka Adventures with Vultures

Matt Sauter found his folk after a painful breakup.

The 25-year-old folk rock singer-songwriter, who’s known as Adventures with Vultures, switched from making hip-hop music after his then girlfriend told family and friends that he played guitar and sang.

“She wasn’t a big fan of me making rap music,” Sauter said. “She would always tell her family and parents that ‘He’s a singer, he plays guitar and sings.’ When she broke up with me, it really hurt, so I said if she wants to tell everybody that I play guitar and sing, then I’m going to play guitar and sing.”

Two years later, Sauter officially entered the folk rock world with the release of his new Adventures with Vultures EP, “Junction,” in October on Original 1265 Recordings. Named after a street in Plymouth, Mich., “Junction” represents a rite of passage for Sauter as an individual and a musician.

“There’s like a handful of us, me and my buddies, we all actually have JCT tattooed on us, so there’s a little brotherhood with these kids that I grew up with, and they’re still my great friends,” he said. “I wanted to make this project for these kids who had been around me since we were 6.”

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