Denver has had a burgeoning music
scene the past few years. Bands like The Lumineers, Tennis, Elephant Revival,
and Slim Cessna’s Auto Club have all broken through being just a regional band. I have really fallen for a new band Ark Life.
They call themselves “rock and roll with western soul”. I think this is a great way to describe their
music.
The band is led by the main
songwriter and vocalist, Jesse Elliot. His name might sound familiar in that he held the same position with the
hard working band, These United States. That band is currently on hiatus after
touring endlessly for a number of years. Jesse moved to Denver and quickly fell
into the great music scene in this Mile High city. He soon met the players who make up
Ark Life (Lindsay Giles, Anna Morsett, Natalie Tate, and Ben Desoto). All of
these players were in other bands or doing solo work when they met Jesse.They
all knew when they played together they had something special. Jesse started writing songs especially for
this band and they just released their first album, The Dream of You and Me, a few months ago.
Jesse wanted to make sure
the band would be compatible, so he made a choice to do things a bit backwards
from other bands. Ark Life went out on the road first to make sure they could
be and work together in close quarters. Magic happened with the amazing songs
and harmonies they put forth. They then decided to record the album and have
been on the road touring it.
They have a very unique
sound. With three female singers and Jesse, they have killer harmonies. Having three female voices gives their songs a very special sound. Trust me in that it is
very beautiful and even better live. Here is "Proud of Me Out There Mama":
I had the pleasure of working
their merch table when they came through Baltimore a while ago. They had been
on the road for a while but they were so kind and to me and others.
I loved their vibe not only musically, but as people. I look forward to getting
back to Denver and hanging out with them again. In the meantime, you should
listen to their rock and roll western soul, and see them for yourselves.
