Lotus has crafted a unique musical style outside of simple genre limitations. On a given weekend the band could be the only group with guitars at an all electronic music festival and then the next night crash a traditional rock festival with their dance heavy beats, synths and samples. Equal parts instrumental post-rock and electronic dance, the band's distinguishing feature is the ability to maintain a decidedly unique musical voice and remain current while bucking passing trends. No matter
Lotus has crafted a unique musical style outside of simple genre limitations. On a given weekend the band could be the only group with guitars at an all electronic music festival and then the next night crash a traditional rock festival with their dance heavy beats, synths and samples. Equal parts instrumental post-rock and electronic dance, the band's distinguishing feature is the ability to maintain a decidedly unique musical voice and remain current while bucking passing trends.
No matter what the venue, the energetic joy and catharsis of a Lotus show is infectious. The band slowly built a devoted fan base through steady touring and the crowds have grown at an increasing pace. This grassroots growth has made the band in high demand for festivals including Bonnaroo, Outside Lands, Ultra, and Rothbury and earned the band sold out shows at the country's premier theatres and clubs.
Lotus's new self-titled album moves in a decidedly more electronic direction than their previous two releases - Hammerstrike (2008) and Oil on Glass/Feather on Wood (2009). Analog synthesizers, manipulated sounds, dub effects and heavy bass are complemented by horn and string arrangements in addition to Lotus's standard guitar/bass/drums instrumentation. Grooves move from slinky funk and gritty half-time on the first half of the album to the beautiful and expansive closing track Orchids. While short pieces of vocals are used throughout, the only song to feature singing is The Surf. The track may be the closest thing to an indie-pop song the band has released, but the melodic guitar hooks and ecstatic synth parts are pure Lotus.
Similar to their music, the recording process for the album looked in multiple directions in order to achieve a distinct style. Using traditional recording methods to track live to analog tape and then editing and mixing using modern techniques created an expanded musical space filled with uniquely crafted sounds. The band road tested and tweaked these tracks for the better part of two years. The result is an album worthy of the self-titled status - the band's singular sound and spirit runs through every track.
