Daniel Ellsworth & The Great Lakes

Overview

They never look the same at the end of their set; a pair of hip horn-rimmed glasses breaks in half, buttons become undone, and their once slicked-back hair is simply not anymore. But they wouldn’t be themselves if it were any other way; they thrive when they render themselves void of energy, and humbly hope it rubs off on the kids in the crowd, too.   They are Daniel Ellsworth & the Great Lakes. To see them live is to experience the crux of who they are: A high-energy indie rock band dead set on producing the best live sound they know how. And boy, do they know how. After well-deserved accolades from music blog ‘Consequence of Sound’ for their CMJ showcases, DE&TGL are gaining momentum as a band you should go to bat for. “Even at two in the morning, on guitarist Timor Lance’s birthday, during their fifth CMJ showcase [in three days], they played their hearts out in pure joy,” says Ben Kaye of Consequence of Sound.  From the source, their songs are: “rock songs, heavy and dark, light-hearted and danceable, observational and introspective,” says guitarist Timor Lance. “We thrive on our songs sounding like DE&TGL,” says bassist Marshall Skinner. And just so you get how much emotional, mental and physical energy spent in one set, drummer Joel Wren points out, “There's a point in the middle of every show when one of us turns to someone else and says, ‘I think I might die’,” and there you have it.  Formed in 2010 in Nashville, Tennessee, the group released their first full-length studio album, Civilized Man, in 2011. Recorded and co-produced with Mark Never (Andrew Bird, Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Lamb chop), Civilized Man was listed in the top 100 albums of 2011 by Amazon, with the pop-rock single “Shoe Fits” debuting at number seven on Amazon’s top 100 songs of 2011.  “Apparently nobody told Daniel Ellsworth that when you drop your first full-length, it’s not supposed to be a greatest hits record... this sounds like a cross between Jack White and M. Ward, and those guys are about three sips of absinthe away from total wizardry.  Seriously, this will be my highest rated review. Go. Buy. The. Record.” says Wells Adams of Brita Revolution.  Recently, Daniel Ellsworth & the Great Lakes was named one of the 15 Bands to Watch in 2014 by Esquire Magazine. Their sophomore album, Kid Tiger (out March 4th), was recorded by Vance Powell (Jack White, The White Stripes, The Raconteurs). DE&TGL are spreading their brand of genre-spanning rock with love and care, and a cannonball of sound… all resulting in broken eyeglasses, unkempt hair, and a damn good time.