There comes a time in every band's life when abandoning commercial expectations in favor of heartfelt musical expressions and relatable lyrics takes center stage. For the Tulsa-based pop/rock foursome Capital Lights, that realization came remarkably early in its already impressive career, following a name change and stylistic shift from members' days in locally acclaimed screamo act afterEIGHT.
"We had a couple people leave the other band's line-up, I stepped up from bass to singing, rewrote our material and we changed styles completely," says front man Bryson Phillips of Capital Lights' debut disc This Is An Outrage. "The main thing we've learned personally is to really focus the writing on what you like rather than trying to be like all the other bands around. When we were doing the screamo thing, we were seeing other bands and trying to be just like them. But in Capital Lights, I started writing on an acoustic guitar without trying to plug into any particular formula, just being ourselves and playing 100 percent exactly what we wanted."
Outside of being drawn in by the band's vibrant blend of Relient K and Jimmy Eat World, there was an underlying originality to Capital Light's peppy surge of power chords and relevant writing subjects. Those ideas were soon fleshed out in a Seattle studio stationed within the illustrious Capitol Hill neighborhood (hence its slightly tweaked moniker) alongside producer extraordinaire Aaron Sprinkle (Pedro the Lion, Anberlin, The Almost).
"Going into the studio was different than we expected, mostly because we'd never worked with a producer before," admits Bryson. "We were expecting it to be a really stressful thing with him on top of us all the time, but we went in really prepared and he was seriously the most laid back and coolest guy. He made a lot of notes on our bridges and choruses and helped cut them down in length, but he was much more a friend who made it very comfortable to talk and hang out with."
The resulting dozen tracks throughout This Is An Outrage range from pure bred alternative pop to assertive modern rock, wrapped around a topical plane that spans the palette of meaningful, whimsical and satirical. The scalding "Kick It Off" is sure to be a fierce concert classic and "Worth As Much As a Counterfeit Dollar" possesses one of the most contagious choruses in recent memory. "Night of Your Life Is When You Die" is an anthem for anyone who embraces the straight-edge scene, suggesting the party hearty mentality isn't all that it's cracked up to be. The energy escalating "Return" is amongst the disc's most inspirational, while the historically slanted "Frank Morris" provides a fictional account of the famed Alcatraz prison escape.
"We're really big proponents of writing about the experiences we deal with on a day to day basis," Bryson verifies of that varied songwriting swath. "My vocals are very fast paced in the way they present what we have to say and we're hoping people take away something positive from this project because there's already enough negativity out there."
Thus far fans old and new alike have been flocking to the material, thanks to extensive touring, including headlining dates and time supporting Hawk Nelson and Run Kid Run. No matter with the format, Capital Lights' fan base continues to expand like lightening, as evidenced by feverish MySpace activity, downloads and CD sales at shows.
"Even though we're a brand new band on our debut album, we've had the chance to meet so many amazing new listeners all across America and we're hoping the word keeps on spreading," sums up Bryson. "We've always dreamt of going out on the road and we absolutely love it so far. From here on out, the goal is just to stay steady on the road, get these songs in front of people and hopefully continue to write songs that mean something to us and those who check them out. This is something we want to turn into a long term career for as long as we possibly can, and of course, we're here to have fun and bring as many people as we can along for the ride."
I actually have a personal connection with this band. One trival fact about me is that before meeting my (now) husband and becoming a mother to my step-daughter, I was a concert photographer. I spent every weekend and many days during the week photographing major and local concerts and band photo shoots. I met Bryson Phillips (vocals) way back when he was still in high school and he and his band were trying to get their feet wet in the local music scene. In fact, afterEIGHT was one of the first bands I ever photographed (though if I remember right, they were called something else before choosing afterEIGHT). As they were diving into the local music scene, I was diving into the photography scene as a concert/band photographer. There was another high school aged band trying to create their own space in the local music scene who allowed me to tour with them and photograph all their shows. Bryson's old band used to play a lot of shows with them and so I got to know him pretty well. I was extremely thrilled to see Bryson's face in a band photo with an upcomming release. He's matured a lot from the little high school boy I used to know. Then again, haven't we all?
Check them out!!!
Capital Lights - "Outrage"
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