The Holland folk-rock-punk trio unleashed new songs for Local Spins on WYCE, which also debuted tracks by Pink Sky, Ashley Daneman and more. The story, podcast and video.
Time for “Chatter”: Brother Adams releases its new album on Aug. 30. (Photo/Local Spins)
Brother Adams is back.
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After releasing its last studio album four years ago – and enduring a series of lineup changes since – the inventive, Jammie Award-winning Holland rock/folk band is poised to release its new studio album at the end of August and re-enter the West Michigan musical fray.
“We’ve been taking the time to regroup and find our new stride and I think we’re there now,” said lead singer and bassist Jair Driesenga. “We got confident about a year ago and started heading into the studio and laying down this new record and we’re really happy with it.”
In-Studio: Brother Adams was joined at WYCE by special guest JRob. (Photo/Local Spins)
The band — featuring Driesenga, his brother, Bryce, on lead guitar, drummer Matthew Loveless and some special guests – is rolling out the new album, “Chatter,” on Aug. 30, but giving fans a taste of what’s to come by releasing singles from the project three Fridays in a row, starting with “Plastic Apples, which came out Friday.
As for the refreshed Brother Adams approach? It’s familiar Modest Mouse-meets-Bright Eyes-meets-Jack White territory, with a twist and a more experimental edge.
“We’re progressing and expanding and getting a little more eclectic with our sounds,” said Driesenga, noting the album “gets more rock-hued as it goes along and more psychedelic and conceptual. It tells the story of our band up until now.”
Driesenga called it “basically an old-school psychedelic-rock concept album that you don’t have to be a total music nerd to appreciate. It does have indulgent instrumental-breaks and a spoken-word track, but it’s also got catchy hooks and sing-along choruses.”
VIDEO: Brother Adams, “You’re a Rock” (Local Spins on WYCE)
The band – with special guest, Grand Rapids hip hop artist Jeff “JRob” Robinson – told part of that story for this week’s edition of Local Spins on WYCE, performing the new songs “Momentum” (with JRob) and “You’re a Rock” on the air. Watch the video here, with the full radio show podcast below.
The new album is the follow-up to 2015’s “BLOOD,” which won “Listeners’ Choice Album of the Year” honors at the WYCE-FM Jammie Awards.
Drummer Matt Loveless (Photo/Local Spins)
The music, Bryce Driesenga said, was written after the band “recalibrated” as a trio due to lineup changes and “started fresh right after that.”
To help further promote the new recording – which was recorded and mixed by Jake Kalmink at The Stooge in Zeeland and mastered by Rawss – the band also is releasing videos to give fans “little tidbits, little snacks to get ready for the whole thing.”
“We wanted to build up some excitement,” Driesenga said. “We want to show different sides of our artistry.”
The band plays Rockford Brewing in Rockford at 8:30 p.m. Saturday (Aug. 10) and Dark Horse Brewing in Marshall on Aug. 17 for the Chicken Wing Thing event.
The Aug. 9 edition of Local Spins on WYCE – which showcases regional music at 11 a.m. Friday on WYCE (88.1 FM) – also boasted the on-air debut of tracks by Jordan Hamilton, The Moxie Strings, Hayes Griffin & Nate Roberts, Likemelikeyou, Pink Sky and Ashley Daneman, as well as music from Afro Zuma, The Great Ones (this week’s musicians’ pick by Brother Adams), CrossBow, Joe Hertler & The Rainbow Seekers, Free Hat and Melophobix.
Listen to all the songs in the podcast here. And check out previous episodes of Local Spins on WYCE here.
PODCAST: Local Spins on WYCE (8/9/19)
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