For Lowlight, the ideas of band and family are inseparable – for them, playing music together is more than an artistic or commercial venture, but a way to form and strengthen a community. Keyboard player Dana Sellers, wife of guitarist and engineer Derril Sellers, says, “In my experience, the bond shared between bandmates comes through a combination of performing live, songwriting, and traveling – a relationship that lurks between family and friends, but is unlike either. The fact that I also get to share that special bond with my husband, is something I am overwhelmingly grateful for. I am not a spiritual person, but the shared energy of your bandmates on-stage, and the audience off stage, is nothing short of addicting.”
At the forefront of one of America’s most resurgent music scenes in Asbury Park, New Jersey, Lowlight is a female-fronted indie rock band that blends traditional Americana and roots rock with synth-driven new wave into a sound that is at once fist-pumpingly familiar and slyly experimental, a seamless combination of psychedelic grooves with country twang, screaming guitar riffs with lyrics that present surprisingly delicate and fractured narratives.
Lowlight’s unique sound began to come together on the their initial full-length offering, Where Do We Go From Here, released in 2016 on the BNS Sessions label. Their next release, the provocatively-titled EP Born to Run, proved to be a turning point for the band in several ways as their sound and process evolved, including being the first release written and recorded with Rey Rivera.
Endless Bummer, which will be released by Telegraph Hill Records, with vinyl distribution by Gruesome Twosome on September 13th, is Lowlight’s second full-length studio LP, and represents the realization of the promise of their earlier releases. The record is a departure for the band, in that most of the songs were written almost entirely while in the studio to focus even further on fostering a collaborative, democratic, and communal environment. The result of this experimentation expands on Lowlight’s use of synthesized textures and intricate poly-rhythms, while remaining grounded in their country-inspired roots.
Today Glide is excited to premiere “Coastlines”, one of the more expansive songs on the new album. With a compelling balance of guitar, pedal steel, and synth, the song feels like a hybrid of alt-country and workingman’s rock and roll. There is a dreamy, washed out quality to the music, which contrasts with a euphoric and sprawling guitar solo. The joining in to harmonize on the chorus only builds onto the momentum of the song, which feels like a nod to classic rock and alt-country while also sounding like unchartered musical territory. Ultimately, “Coastlines” is yet another example of a completely original and damn fine band coming from the shores of New Jersey these days.
The band describes the inspiration behind the song:
“Coastlines” is a summer time anthem for depressed people. Lately, our home base of Asbury Park has been making a lot of headlines for being the hottest tourist destination for partiers, hipsters, and rich folks at the Jersey Shore. But for a lot of the locals, the day to day socioeconomic atmosphere in our city feels like much more of a struggle than advertised. We set out to write songs that juxtapose carefree summertime vibes with the undercurrent of anxiety of the people we know. We feel that “Coastlines” most successfully embodies this particular effort, and we named our upcoming record, Endless Bummer, after lyrics in the song.
LISTEN:
For more music and info visit lowlightnj.com.
Photo credit: Darren Cox
One Response
This song deserves to be a hit. Song of the summer!!!