Walking Shapes, Lushes, Narrow/Arrow to play Columbus show

Madeline Poedtke
Tue, 25 Mar 2014 02:25:35 +0000
Music, brewery district, Columbus, double happiness, lushes, narrow/arrow, walking shapes

Indie band Walking Shapes is set to perform at Double Happiness March 26.
Credit: Courtesy of Courtney Rodwell

Double Happiness might turn into triple happiness when the Brewery District’s venue welcomes the bands Walking Shapes, Lushes and Narrow/Arrow.

Walking Shapes

Hailing from New York City, the five-piece indie band Walking Shapes is on tour to promote the release of its upcoming full-length album, “Taka Come On,” and is set to play in Columbus Wednesday with doors opening at 7 p.m.

Walking Shapes’ lead vocalist and guitarist Nathaniel Hoho said he met guitarist Jesse Kotansky in July 2012 at a mutual friend’s party in Brooklyn. The pair kept in touch and Hoho eventually invited Kotansky to join the band he was involved with at the time.

“We went on some tours in that project and then that band kind of ended, so (Kotansky) and I started this new project, Walking Shapes,” Hoho said.

In 2013, keyboardist Jake Generalli, drummer Christopher Heinz and bass player Dan Krysa joined the band. Walking Shapes released its first record “Mixtape Vol. 1” in July 2013.

“We wanted to use (‘Mixtape, Vol. 1’) as an opportunity to release music and also involve people that are close to us,” Hoho said. “We kind of use (the first album) as promotional. We gave it away, it’s still available for free online.”

“Taka Come On” is set to be released April 8 and Hoho said the album’s “vastness” has been compared to albums released by the alternative bands My Morning Jacket and The Flaming Lips.

“(The latest album) touches on rock, maybe a little bit of folk and then maybe a little more new wave,” Hoho said. “It’s tough, we’re trying to reflect and pay homage to what we grew up listening to but we’re really just trying to come up with our own sound.”

Hoho said the band was inspired by New York’s diverse music scene while creating “Taka Come On” over the course of a year.

“I typically come to the band with most of the song ideas and I try not to really think about writing because I’ve been playing for so long, so I try to let that creative process flow through me uninhibited,” Hoho said. “Then I’ll take it to (the band) and we’ll focus on it and try out different grooves, different drum parts, cut the song up and try to do something unique with it.”

Hoho said he feels fortunate because he works at a recording studio and Krysa is also a producer and audio engineer. Walking Shapes created the album with the help of producer Gus Oberg.

“We worked with (Oberg) because we really liked the last record that The Strokes came out with and he was the producer for that album,” Hoho said.

Lushes

Based in Brooklyn, rock band Lushes was formed in 2010 by James Ardery on synthesizer, vocals and guitar and Joel Myers on drums and electronic percussion.

In an email, Myers and Ardery said they both grew up in the Midwest with an interest in music but neither of them were necessarily planning to make music for a living.

“I got my start playing in a band called Dill Pickles From New York in fifth grade,” Ardery said.

Myers said he grew up playing classical piano and started playing drums shortly before joining forces with Ardery.

“James had put up an ad randomly that said he wanted to start a sludge metal band. I had no idea what sludge metal was but I hit him up,” Myers said. “We started another band briefly with a singer and, once it didn’t work out with him, we started writing as a two-piece.”

Lushes released its first full-length album March 4, “What Am I Doing.”

“We had a certain trajectory set up for us, of doing the corporate climb and having a normal, settled life,” Myers said. “We both took a stab at that and decided it wasn’t for us. All the time between then and now is what’s on the album.”

Narrow/Arrow

Originating from Mansfield, Ohio, Narrow/Arrow is made up of vocalist and guitarist Cody Nicolas, bassist Mark Canole and drummer Jonathan Hape.

“I definitely think ‘emo revival’ is one of the better ways to describe (Narrow/Arrow’s sound),” Nicolas said. “But personally, if we’re just talking in band practice, it’s all rock ‘n’ roll.”

Though now based in Mansfield, Nicolas and Canole weren’t making music there as Narrow/Arrow originally.

“Mark and I met in Salem, Mass., when I played in a band called The La De Les and Mark played in a band called Walk Harbor City and we ended up getting a condo together,” Nicolas said.

In 2012, Nicolas said he moved to Mansfield and was hoping to convince Canole to do the same.

“I pitched to him how cheap it was to live (in Mansfield) and that it’s centrally located and Ohio is kind of a hotbed for the music we like,” Nicolas said.

When Canole relocated to Ohio, he and Nicolas had no plans of starting a band together until the disbandment of The La De Les.

“The same day that my band broke up, I went upstairs and asked Mark if he wanted to start a band together,” Nicolas said.

Narrow/Arrow released its debut EP, “Middle Children,” March 7 and Nicolas said it was inspired by family, friends and the fact that he and Canole are middle children.

“It’s kind of sarcastic like being middle children and blaming all of our problems on that but, at the same time, the way we make decisions is oddly based on the ‘We’re still here too, don’t forget about us’ mentality,” Nicolas said.

Prior to the release of “Middle Children,” Narrow/Arrow performed primarily in Mansfield but the band has started booking more gigs in Columbus.

“We’re very excited about the Columbus music scene. We’ve only played there infrequently but every band we’ve played with has been awesome,” Canole said. “It’s insane how great the bands are in Columbus.”

Tickets for Wednesday’s show cost $5, and are available at the venue or online at Ticketweb.com. Double Happiness is located at 482 S. Front St.