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KelownaNow wants to get to know the hard-working, up and coming artists who fill our city with music and we’re almost positive most of you do too!
Our Saturday Spotlight series that will feature a new, local act every other weekend, to better strengthen our scene and get to know the people behind the music.
Get to Know: LAKEMAN
Experimenting with unique atmospherics, delving deep into concepts that feature tidbits of Okanagan history and relying heavily on intuition, LAKEMAN goes beyond catchy riffs and infectious hooks to create living and breathing art that resonates.
Tell us about the inception of LAKEMAN?
I noticed three other like-minded individuals that could form an interesting musical project.
I wanted to start a project that not only broke down borders in genres but in instrumentation roles, I wanted a band that no one had to be stuck on any one instrument, where we could all freely explore our potential on any instrument we cared to try.
How would you categorize your music and where do you draw inspiration from?
We play a variety of Ambient Metal/Post-Rock/Prog-Rock. Personally, I like music that is experiential in nature.
We all seem drawn to the most experimental aspects of any genre we explore. I always laugh because we each seem to be trying to outdo one another on what creative extremes we can find. The heaviest metal, the trippiest electronic music, the longest concept albums, etc…
I’d say 90% of our music is pulled together by musically improvising as a band. No one is the main songwriter, no one comes with pre-written songs, we try to be intuitive. The overall concept of the band is a nod to local Okanagan myth, legend and odd-ball history.
For the last number of months the group has been hard at work on their latest project Progenitor, a collection of videos and songs that come together to form their sophomore concept album.
Progenitor examines three facets of the overarching theme of fatherhood through songs which are inspired by Okanagan legends and historical figures, the new journey of becoming a father (which three of the four members recently have) and personal reflection.
What do you hope your music means to others?
Local Artist/Musician Ana Eries Luyben once told me after a LAKEMAN set that she was scared to clap during our performance because she didn’t want to interrupt something so beautiful and sacred.
Personally I care less about how many notes are played and more about how deep mentally and emotionally we can take you with our music.
I remember bar managers getting frustrated with us, claiming their liquor sales went down during our set because so many people were entranced by what we were doing.
The point if there is one is this: forget the beer in your hand, forget the place you dwell. focus on the sounds. Let the music take you to some other place.
A LAKEMAN performance is much different than anything you will have the opportunity to see while exploring the Okanagan music scene. Usually dark and loud, the band pulls you in from the get-go and keep you hypnotized as each song effortlessly melts into the next.
Amidst the everflowing stream of sound, each member swaps their instrument for a new one and never misses a beat.
How do you feel about the Okanagan music scene?
A lot has changed, when we first started LAKEMAN it was hard to find any heavy, psychedelic, or progressive bands. Nowadays I feel like you could play with three or four local bands from any of those categories. Which is great, when lines are drawn it helps define the sound of a specific scene.
What achievement are you most proud of in your musical career?
This might sound a little cheesy but I think we are all proud to have simply got the chance to work together as a band.
We all were fans of each other's musical projects past and present. It is the greatest honour to work with friends you deeply love and respect musically and personally.
You can catch LAKEMAN at their album release show on Friday, Nov. 29 at Muninn’s Post or follow them on Facebook to stay up to date!
If you know of a local band or musician the community needs to hear, nominate them for a Saturday Spotlight by sending an email to savannah@kelownanow.com
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