Alli's Articles
INTERVIEWS, REVIEWS, CULTURE PIECES, MUSICAL RAMBLINGS.
The COVID-19 outbreak that is currently ravaging the globe is not only wreaking havoc on normal day-to-day life, but also the livelihoods of musicians and careers of bands as well. I thought about this as April 3rd came around, the release date for the debut album from beloved New Paltz indie band, GREENHOUSELAKE. (And no, I’m not just capitalizing their name because I was so excited, that’s actually how it’s stylized.) This group, made up of Elijah Bloome, Caleb Couri, Joe Leonardo, and Nico Caro, is no stranger to the blog, as I reviewed their first single from their first full-length release, “ALLCAPS/NOSPACES” in February. I'm not the only one who appreciates GREENHOUSELAKE's comforting, joyful indie-rock sound with thoughtful, emotional lyrics: They have a huge fanbase in the town of New Paltz that go wild for it as well. Home-grown in the basement of house show venue Crossroads, they’re always the main act and put on a show so invigorating that it almost guarantees a mosh pit at the end of every performance. Despite school not being in session on campus when the album was released, support from students and other members of the DIY community shone through on Instagram, with dozens of story posts with words of praise and Spotify links to their page popping up on my feed that day. Although I was upset that I didn’t get a chance to talk to the band in person, I still wanted to reach out through Instagram and talk to them about their album. Just this Friday, the New Paltz Oracle posted an amazing article written by Elijah himself further explaining the history behind Crossroads and a first-person look at the inner-workings of the DIY community. Seeing the community get excited over the piece further proved to me something I was beginning to see throughout this quarantine: The semester might have been cancelled, but the New Paltz music community is still going as strong as ever virtually. **
What is the significance behind the band’s theme of capital letters and no spaces seen in your name and in the title of your debut EP? Joe: I believe this came to fruition after rehearsal one night. The all caps has been a trendy thing in music but I’ve personally always loved the look of it. At the time we were transcending from Absolute Zeros to GREENHOUSELAKE so we were still refining things such as the band name and our general vibe/sound. We agreed that the band name would be all caps with no spaces and shortly after we found “ALLCAPS/NOSPACES” had a ring to it. Elijah: We wanted to be bold! Loud and proud! Where does the name GREENHOUSELAKE come from? Elijah: We also wanted the name to be meaningful. Caleb and I grew up in a little town called Bloomingburg, NY, and we used to hang out after school at this lake between our houses (Lake Nashopa). There was this abandoned green house that was practically falling into the lake that we would explore (hence the pseudonym we invented for it), and thinking about it always brings me back to a very important time in our friendship. Who are some of your musical inspirations? Joe: Artists that have had a major impact on me: Led Zeppelin, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Incubus, Emancipator, Bonobo, Mac Miller, Lettuce, Kid Cudi, DeerHunter. Elijah: Pavement, Neutral Milk Hotel, La Dispute, Sonic Youth, Pinegrove, Alan Watts (his voice is pretty much music to me at this point) Caleb: My music tastes go all over the place, and I’m a big hip-hop head and jazz fan, but a lot of the musicians both Elijah and Joe listed are what I hone into a lot when I think about writing GREENHOUSELAKE parts! Personally, when I listen to your music, I feel very comforted. A lot of the lyrics on “ALLCAPS/NOSPACES” are very caring and I feel almost at home. Is this the vibe you want to give off with your music? Are there any other feelings you want listeners to feel? Joe: That's really amazing to hear. When writing, our intention was to create songs people could jump around and dance to. Elijah is an incredible songwriter and storyteller. As an individual he is genuine and very empathetic which shines true through his writing. Elijah: I wrote this album during a pretty manic episode; it was a relatively natural release of emotions and thoughts that I’d been repressing for awhile. I wanted to phrase them in an almost feel-good mannerism, inspired by bands like the Pixies and the Monks. Looking back I often wonder how the lyrics are received by others; that’s pretty cool that they make you feel that way! Were you nervous about releasing your debut EP during this period of self isolation and quarantine? How has the pandemic affected the release? Joe: I felt we had to release it no matter what. It’s been a pretty long time coming and we were all excited to finish this project and move on to the next. The biggest bummer was the cancellation of the release show and many other gigs. Caleb: I agree with Joe. It was definitely the time to release it, and I think that now if our music being publicly released can help anyone through this time, then that's a huge plus! It is disappointing to have to cancel the planned EP release show. Hopefully once things have recovered we can find a way to properly celebrate. When I reviewed your first single, “GOOSEBUMPS,” I remember reading that it was mixed by a member of the band, Caleb, at Crossroads. First of all, I just wanted to say your mixing is very impressive, the quality is spectacular! What was the mixing process for this EP like? Have you mixed other projects in the past? Joe: Caleb is basically a Wizard. Haha. Well I’m sure Caleb can describe his experience in the mixing booth best but I give him a lot of credit. He made it clear to us that he wanted to mix this record and that he would invest in the equipment necessary to do so. He kept his word and was in it to win it. It made me really happy to see him take initiative and pursue something he felt passionate about. Working with him was amazing. The nights spent listening and refining the tracks in his room were an all time hang but bottom line I trusted him on delivering a sound we all desired. He would keep us up to date on any changes made to the tracks via text and audio links where we were able to continue to collaborate. Elijah: I agree with Joe in every way, I couldn’t be more proud of Caleb. We recorded the majority of it over two twelve hour days in January and he spent countless hours in his room mixing and refining things. I would come up with detailed notes and corrections and he’d always find the perfect fix for every little detail. It really blows my mind that this was his first project, I hope he will continue forward as a producer! Caleb: Thank you! While I've always played around with music and producing, this is my first proper project in Pro Tools! My workflow was pretty typical of most band recordings, but what made this special was recording the majority of it in the living room of Crossroads! Vocals were all tracked in my bedroom in front of a sleeping bag hung to the wall. This is also where I mixed the record, before we gave it to our friend Jake Albi from Armless Man Records! I got to learn a lot from spending time recording Joe, Elijah, Nico, and the 6 other housemates who generously provided their voices on the record. There's a special ambience to the house that Elijah & I have lived in, and I like to think a lot of it was successfully captured onto “ALLCAPS/NOSPACES”. You guys definitely carry a torch in the New Paltz music scene, a well known headliner at many of the house shows at Groove Grove, Crossroads, and etcetera. What are your favorite things about the scene? Joe: New Paltz is incredible. I feel at home there. Seeing the boys start Crossroads at their first house on Harrington street and to witness it come to fruition was special. They took a relatively simple concept (hosting shows) and gave it their all. I remember saying to myself how cool it was to see them taking this more serious than they had to. Creating “Crossroads” and the original cat logo. Decorating the room to create a warm cozy feel. Promoting people’s business cards on their bulletin board in their kitchen. Handing out free earbuds in a giant bowl so people wouldn’t destroy their ears. Hiring New Paltz videographers and photographers to properly promote shows and support their peers. Everything they have done has been so organic and supportive of the community and I’m proud to call these guys my friends. Elijah: Well of course I have my biases, being so heavily involved with Crossroads in the New Paltz scene, but the three years I’ve spent in this town have been the best of my life (I wrote an article reflecting on that time in this week’s publication of the Oracle, if I may plug that!). When I first came here, it was so refreshing to see how much people genuinely cared about local music; how excited they were to go to house shows and mosh to their favorite bands. Teaming up with Groove Grove, Sanctuary, Sanctum, Skate House, Crazy Dan’s, the Crevice and anyone else who wanted to get involved resulted in one of the most collaborative music scenes New Paltz has ever had— we created a welcoming and safe environment for newcomers who’d never felt comfortable at house shows, emphasized the importance of including women performers, organized more DIY events than the town had seen in a long time, and made every effort to put the artist first. We recognized that New Paltz was small enough where we didn’t need to compete with one another the way other scenes do; we could book shows on different nights so that we weren’t stepping on each other’s toes, and as a result bands could perform for literally hundreds of people! I think it’s easy for people to sit home and talk badly about this music scene, maybe for the sake of clout or maybe for philosophical differences, but there’s actual value in stepping up and making a change. Now that this chapter is over, I hope to see individuals doing exactly this and picking up where we left off! Caleb: There is nothing like New Paltz! It would not be without such a diverse, open, and all-inclusive music scene that the Hudson Valley continues to be a popular tour stop for bands all over, and while I am grateful that mine and Elijah's parts in Crossroads and the DIY New Paltz scene have positively encouraged others to step up and start their own venues, it wouldn't have happened without the people who parade in mass every Friday night to see the bands in the basement. It's been a truly magical time seeing, dancing to, and working with so many gifted artists in this little college town. What are your plans for the band post-COVID? Elijah: That’s hard to say right now, especially after hearing that live shows may not even be allowed to happen until next year. We’re going to be writing new songs to the best of our ability, and I’m excited to get working on the next project! *** Thank you so much to GREENHOUSELAKE for taking the time to answer my questions! It’s your kindness that keeps this community going and inspires others! Listen to “ALLCAPS/NOSPACES” on BandCamp as well as Spotify, and most streaming services!
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