Other Lives
The recent expansion of folk music into something that is actually acceptable to the average listener has spawned a seemingly endless stream of bands, looking to emulate the success of Fleet Foxes et. al. Inevitably, the quality amongst the horde is inconsistent, rarely throwing up anything likely to wrestle the nu-folk crown from the current incumbents. To call Other Lives a Fleet Foxes rip-off band is completely inaccurate and unfair, primarily because the members have actually been together longer, but unfortunately they’ve been lumped in with the chasing crowd by many writers. Yet despite this unfortunate association, Stillwell, Oklahoma’s Other Lives are set to become one of the best bands of their ilk with the arrival of their second album, Tamer Animals.
The core of the band have been together since 2004, initially in instrumental folk-rock band Kunek consisting of five multi-instrumentalists, Colby Owens, Josh Onstott, Jonathan Mooney, Jenny Hsu and Jesse Tabish. Kunek released just one, much loved, album Flight of the Flynns in 2006, before announcing to their fans that there would be no more releases from Kunek, and instead the members would transfer to a new band under the name Other Lives. Their new band continued in much the same direction as their previous incarnation, adding vocals (provided by Tabish) to extend their music beyond what they were previously capable of, and dropping some of their more post-rock tendencies.
Other Lives’ self-titled first album was released in 2009, bringing with it favourable reviews, and drawing comparisons to Midlake and Band of Horses. The album stayed fairly modest with its ambitions, keeping instrumentation mostly fairly minimal, and never straying too far from the folk-rock they were familiar with.
While their debut was a good first step for a band still finding its feet, the potential for improvement and expansion was clear. The band resisted the temptation to rush into a second album, instead taking over two years writing and perfecting their sound. Aside from the work on the second LP, the intervening years saw the band spend a lot of time on the road, supporting bands of the caliber of The National, and having their music featured on high-profile TV shows like Greys Anatomy. They decided to self-record the follow-up, allowing more artistic control, and removing time restraints that may otherwise have been in place. The result is Tamer Animals, a record which outshines it predecessor in every way, and which elevates the band to far more than just an ‘upcoming act’.
The album at times blurs the line between popular and classical music, with the opening horn pulses of first track ‘Dark Horse’ sounding equally at home on this album as they would in a Steve Reich composition. The instrumentation has been expanded from their debut, featuring a more extensive string section, as well as other orchestral instruments such as bass clarinet, French horn and bassoon, with occasionally unusual arrangements that set the album apart from many others. Recent single and standout track ‘For 12’ has attracted a lot of attention from the media, with its Radiohead-esque string section, and led to Zane Lowe inviting the band in to record a live session for his Radio 1 show.
The band are heading out on a US tour to support the album, but making time to hop over the Atlantic to the UK in August, before heading back to support Bon Iver and Mates of State on their tours. One of their stops in the UK is a Rockfeedback show at London’s The Lexington on 18th August, which promises to be a very special night if they can channel even a tenth of the atmosphere of their album to their live show. Make sure to keep your eyes peeled all week for our upcoming Other Lives takeover on the website, and enjoy what promises to be one of the breakout acts of the summer.
Live Dates
12th August - Summer Sundae Festival, Leicester
17th August - Deaf Institute, Manchester
18th August - The Lexington, London (ROCKFEEDBACK GIG - DETAILS)
19th August - Green Man Festival, Brecon
2nd September - End of the Road Festival, Salisbury
Links
Videos
For 12
Tamer Animals (Live)
E Minor (Live)