If The Go Round’s music and history as a band thus far were a book, the opening line would be from co-founder Richard Duke: “I was hitching a ride from Denver to Chicago from a man that was most likely a meth head. He said that he’d drive me as long as I had things to say. He ended up dropping me off in Kimball, Neb.”
The story doesn’t end there, and today, it’s still not over; the second line would be from other co-founder Brandon Whightsel: “I was leaving my house with my guitar with the thought of running away in my head, and 15 minutes out the door, I ran into Rick on the side of the highway.”
Flash forward a few years. The Go Round are a four-piece, and their songs couldn’t sound more alive than they do when compared with just two guys who met on the side of the road, both holding guitars.
Having relocated to Brooklyn, The Go Round released an album titled Gone in 2010, which is a stripped-down version of their current lineup on Eastern Parkway. Even though there were only two members on Gone, it doesn’t sound rushed, especially considering the negative connotations that the words, “Two guys in a folk band living in an apartment in Brooklyn,” might put in your head.
Compare their newest release, Eastern Parkway, with their first, and you see the immense growth of the band as a whole in the year between their releases. Eastern Parkway still has all the raw and unapologetic songwriting that keeps a nice balance of the honest and real-life lyrics without forgetting the power of imagination and the magic of storytelling.
The problems with most folk bands from the get-go stem from relying on stereotypical conventions such as song structure and instruments of the genre, and as a result, they are born sounding like something before them. The Go Round combats this with passionate songwriting without sounding cheesy or clichéd.
Instrumentally, The Go Round also change it up in their live show, where the violin, drums, acoustic and then electric guitar dynamic goes beyond the tired “quiet folk band” thing we’ve all seen before. Instead, their set showcases flawless execution of one performed song into the next, and each time Whightsel says, “This is a song from the old record,” you are blown away by how violinist Theodora Prunoske and drummer Scott Townsend have found their places in the songs, which is something bands with member changes always struggle with. Aesthetically, The Go Round can be compared with what Conor Oberst was doing with Bright Eyes during their artistic peak in the early- to mid-2000s, but what would you expect mixing a little bit country, a little bit rock ‘n’ roll and a little bit of legend together into one band?
In fall 2011, The Go Round embarked on their first tour of the continental United States. Listen to Eastern Parkway on the band’s website or Bandcamp, but you can’t see what the band has evolved into without seeing them live. They’ve put themselves fully into this tour through their Kickstarter campaign without looking back.
The intense and inspiring dedication to the music is what sets The Go Round in the category of professional musicians and not the droves of schmucks who mess around with some guitars and free MacBook recording programs on the couch on a Friday night and claim they are “an acoustic band.” The Go Round are serious and dedicated. Above all, they’re intelligent and talented. Each member of the band has found a place where they can feed off of one another’s energy and showcase their own talents in a perfectly balanced equation.
