Short and to the point, Alder Lights want to tell you all about themselves.
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
We’re from Billings, Montana.
How did you meet?
Marcus met Kaleb the day he was born due to them coming from the same womb. They both met Jake through church, all three of us played for the band at a local church.
How long have you been playing as a band?
We technically started playing as a band in 2013, we would learn covers of our favourite songs with no intention of pursuing music. We just wanted to have some fun.
Before you get sick of being asked… where does the band name come from?
The band name is actually a combination of a few different ideas we had. We wanted it to pass the “search” test. We’d type a name we thought of into a search engine or into socials and see if anything came up. Thankfully Alder Lights was the name we liked most and the closest thing to show up was some lights to buy online. There’s no meaning behind the band name. As time goes on, our views, perspectives, and beliefs adapt and change. We didn’t want to have meaning tied to our name that we may not represent us years later.
What are your influences?
Depends on who you’re asking. Jake loves bands like MuteMath, Coldplay, and Copeland. Kaleb loves The Beatles, Twenty One Pilots, and House of Heroes. Marcus loves Linkin Park, System of a Down, and Faith No More.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
Our music is high energy but largely focused on live instruments, programming is featured but we love to lean into that organic band vibe. Most of our songs come from jam sessions of us just playing random parts until something clicks, then we’ll elaborate on them. We love so many styles of music but there’s always something special when songs are created out of playing instruments in a room together based on emotion and vibe rather than simply programming stuff in a computer and emailing them to each other.
Do you have any particular lyrical themes?
Our songs (thus far) have focused heavily on struggles in life and love. We write records from personal experiences and where we’re at in life at the time.
What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?
Our live shows are an extension of our music. It’s our chance to connect with fans and give every ounce of energy we have. A live show isn’t a free ride, it’s a short period of time to win over the crowd and we don’t take that likely. It’s our opportunity to work hard and show our worth. At this point we’re not sure how many shows we’ve played but we’re sure it’s not enough so we want more.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
So far our crowds have been fairly tame aside from the occasional, “Take your pants off!” getting shouted out. We’d encourage our fans to top that.
What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.?
For drums Marcus uses a 4-piece Tama Superstar but are transitioning to a new SJC kit, Jake uses a Fender Telecaster for his guitar, and Kaleb uses a Fender Precision for his bass.
What are your plans for 2019?
We’re releasing our second record, Darkest Cameo. We’ve spent the year writing, recording, and rewriting this record so we can’t wait to release it on November 8.
If you were second on a three-band bill, which band would you love to be supporting and which band would you choose to open for you? A chance to plug someone you’ve toured with, or a mate’s band we’ve not heard of before!
If we’re gonna dream, dream big right? We’d love to open for Twenty One Pilots or Imagine Dragons to get some stadium exposure. We’d love to take our friends who play for Grant Jones along for the ride, they’re another incredible group from Billings, Montana.
Header image by Kassidy K Photography
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