Here’s a toast to the independent musician. The individuals and bands with a natural ability to make something quality, and noteworthy, all for he love of music.
For Matthew Stevens, and the band mates that make up Illinois’ Emblems, the universe seems to have lined up in its favor ever since the first tracks received approval from Stevens’ idol turned mentor, Matt Pond. In fact, Emblems came together as the vision of Stevens back in 2005 after a Matt Pond PA show. The name stems from his long admiration for Pond who’s 2004 record Emblems is the bands namesake, “It was one of those albums that got me through a lot of things and I thought it would be cool to name that project after that record. So I emailed them, I had established this relationship years ago, and he said he would be honored and to send him the record when it’s done.”
It would take a few years, but Stevens, along with the first incarnation of the band (there would be many more), finished an EP in April 2009. He kept to his word and sent it over to Mr. Pond who shot back a glowing review. This would start a pseudo student/mentor relationship between the two, one that lead to email exchanges and shared tour dates. Not a bad start.
Since Emblems began making music, Stevens has been the backbone. He’s struggled to keep a solid band together having gone through five string players, including violin, mandolin, viola, cello, and fiddle. As of now, the band has decided to stick with the viola played by Kristi Ditsch. The rest of the band is filled out by Matt Schoeffler on bass, Luke Mowcomber on drums, and Stephanie Popoca on everything else (keys, glockenspiel, trumpet, melodica, & vocals). This line-up is the first time that the other musicians have been just as excited to make the band work as Stevens is.
The writing process offers another sign of a new found solidarity for the band, “For a while it’s been mostly me [Stevens], especially some of the string parts that have been passed down, so we had to catch up on that. But each person definitely brings their own take on things.” His personal writing style is influenced by every day life in rural Illinois.
I live out in the middle of no where in a log cabin surrounded by forest. Seclusion is something that has affected my writing.”
Recording now at Chromatic Studios, the new record will feel “different,” as Stevens describes it, with a full band behind it. Producer Jonathan Alvin, of Phantom Planet and Dr. Manhattan fame, is guiding from a distance, keeping the sound clean while letting the band be itself.
Stevens hints that the forthcoming record will be darker but with what he calls a “timeless energy.” Coming of age is the idea as Stevens writes from the same isolated, in limbo place that lead him to write in the first place. “Thinking that nothing you’re doing is what you should be doing. You can hear that urgency in there.” As a taste of things to come, “Rotten Woods” is isolating like a Doves track. Long vowels carry over pianos, acoustic strums, and viola giving the backdrop as Stevens describes that wooded place of his. All these elements create a very full sound as it works hard to elicit an emotion.
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There’s no doubt that this band is serious about its pursuits. With a studio and a producer, Emblems is determined to do it right the first time. This pursuit of perfection is driving the naive excitement of making a debut record in some bold directions that stand a chance to make it in the Chicago scene.
If you want to catch them, you’ll have to head to Chicago or the surrounding area. But, an east coast tour may be coming this summer to coincide with the new record, which they are planning to release in May or June.
