Brooklyn-based alt-rock outfit Earthquake Lights recently released their latest album, Signs of Life. The album explores the concept of self-fulfilling prophecies, coming to terms with past mistakes, and assessing where one has been and where one is headed.
Earthquake Lights’ sound, self-described as alt-rock, reveals more refined surfaces of orchestral strings and hints of jazz influences, a comparison the band hesitates to accept fully. In any event, the sonic structure of Signs of Life flows beautifully.
Earthquake Lights have amassed millions of streams. Their previous album, Desert Bloom, charted nearly 30 times on the iTunes and Apple music charts, and somewhere along the way, they managed to snag a feature on Vulfpeck’s The Joy of Music, the Job of Real Estate. XS Noize caught up with vocalist/keyboardist Myles Rodenhouse to discuss Signs of Life, their gear, and the continuing evolution of their evocative sound.
How would you describe your music?
Alternative rock music with a focus on Orchestra and ‘70s rock vibe, and a touch of jazz and R&B/Soul.
Can you share the inspiration behind your new album, Signs of Life, and the creative process of bringing it to life?
‘Signs of Life’ was inspired by self-reflection and accepting your current reality and how it relates to decisions you’ve made in the past. The creative process was intensely experimental and primarily driven by an iterative writing style. We aimed to complete this record on a tight timeline without sacrificing our artistic vision. As such, we aimed to generate as much music at the start as possible to curate an album of things we felt good about truly. Ultimately, we pared down about 80 song starting points to just 9 to fully flesh out and release.
Who produced the album, and where was it recorded?
I produced the record, and we recorded this one mostly at my studio in Brooklyn – Douglass Recording. Vocals were tracked in my basement, except for the vocals for ‘Pictures’, which we recorded with Sean Kellett at Frogtown Creative in Los Angeles. Strings were recorded at Abbey Road Studios in London.
Who is in Earthquake Lights, and which instrument do they play?
Four primary members: Me, Myles Rodenhouse – Vocals and Keys.
Stephen Helms – Drums.
Jim DiGirolamo – Bass.
Cameron Underhill – Guitars, Keys, misc.
Honorary fifth member: Our orchestrator, Mitchell McCarthy.
Two rotating members: Justin Garcia – Lead Guitar on ‘Signs of Life.’ Evan Douaihy – Guitars, Lead Guitar on previous albums.
Let’s talk gear for a moment. Could you give us a general overview of your gear?
The band primarily uses an old downbeat Ludwig kit from the ‘70s and several snare drums. Of note, our drummer Steve hand-turned a spruce snare drum that we call the ‘Spruce Moose’ after a Simpsons gag, and he 3D printed another. Both of them have been on quite a few tracks over the years.
Jim’s Bass Rig is usually a vintage Fender Bassman 50 running into an Aguilar 4×12 cab.
For keys, I’m using a 1969 Fender Suitcase Rhodes, a vintage Wurlitzer 200a, and the Steinway B at Douglass Recording. I borrowed my friend and studio manager Chris’s Juno 60 for our song “January.”
Cam’s working with a new(ish) Telecaster, and we usually try a variety of amps and pedals depending on what he needs.
Justin has a few guitars that we usually trial on tracks, but there’s a clone of a Jazzmaster he’s been using a lot that we just loved for most of ‘Signs of Life.’ Much of his stuff ran into a vintage Princeton Reverb at Douglass Recording.
What one piece of gear do you use to obtain your signature sound?
Steve’s personally built snare drums are certainly unique to us. Also, my vocal is almost always going into a Neumann U67. I tried a bunch of other stuff, and this mic just works for me the best on 95% of EQL stuff.
What kind of guitar do you play?
There are lots. Evan’s main guitar is a PRS, Cameron usually has a Fender Tele, and Justin has a few.
How did you get started in music? What’s the back story there?
I started taking piano lessons at eight and kept up with them through high school. At the end of high school, my older brother Jake, who runs a recording studio in West Hollywood called Perfect Sound, started showing me how to record music. I got pretty into it in about 10th grade and began to focus on writing and recording songs, especially by the end of college. After college, I worked a few jobs before realizing I wanted to get into recording music. After recording professionally, I moved hard into the rock band thing.
What can you share about your writing process?
Our writing process constantly evolves based on how things went with the last record. As the producer and primary songwriter, I tend to assess the last record once it’s finished and decide how we should adjust for the upcoming record. Then, we’ll produce the record in that style without thinking too much about it until the end. So, we do have a consistent writing style within each record, even though successive record cycles are a bit different.
What is your definition of tone, and has your tone changed over time?
A few things define tone to me, but primarily, it’s the balance of frequency (warm/mid-rangy/ bright) and dynamic response (punchy or smooth), as well as harmonic saturation and other effects (verbs/ delays/chorusing, etc.). The more I produce and pay attention to the final product and what the master will ultimately sound like, the more I aim for something different with each element along the way. So in that sense, my understanding of tone has changed and continues to change, and EQL’s tone is evolving, though not drastically shifting.
What’s been the highlight of your career so far? Maybe touring or who you’ve played with, something that’s stood out.
We’ve had a few interesting moments, but the obvious highlight would be featuring on Vulfpeck’s ‘The Joy of Music, the Job of Real Estate,’ which we snagged through an eBay bid that we sniped at the last second. That was an absolutely wild ride, and the engagement on that track is probably the most robust element of our catalogue.
Which do you enjoy the most: writing, recording, practising, or playing live?
I’m all about writing and recording. Practising comes naturally to me, though I’m not as efficient as possible. Playing live is surely something the band does well, but my heart is in production.
How do you define success?
Breaking even in the music business without working other jobs.
What’s next for Earthquake Lights?
Record 4! I’ve got some strong ideas on adjusting the workflow for the next tracks, and I’m looking forward to getting a bit more experimental with the process.
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