Blog
A good friend of mine who I respect very much summed up our most recent show by saying "I'm 100% sold now, that's what was missing."
Christine is a performer. A damn good one. Not to nitpick Lauren's shortcomings in that department, but being onstage with Christine is like being onstage with a star. Someone whose natural charisma can carry the entire show with ease. And we all felt that. There are some shots of the band floating around on Facebook, and it's so striking to me that we're smiling and laughing in many of them. It was a genuinely good time. Since the addition of Matt, Roxanne, Levi, and Daniel's transition to guitar - rehearsals have become fun and this band is taking on a life of it's own that I'd never quite expected. Everyone in a band sees a "family" aspect to it. And many people try to force or fabricate that relationship. I won't dwell on this but yeah, this has developed, naturally, into that type of a relationship.
When we decided to work with a new vocalist, there was a bit of waxing poetic about what Atomica Project is. Where the strengths lie in our music. I've quietly stood by for a very long time sort of knowing that answer as a producer. I'm not saying I can just make anyone sound good - but I do build the arrangements and atmospheres of our music around the vocalist. I play to strengths and avoid weaknesses. At this point in my career, I know that I do that very effectively. Hell, I get hired to do exactly that with other projects. I guess I wasn't so worried about trying a different approach, I knew it would still be Atomica Project. That said, our stumbling upon Christine is a near miracle, and one of those rare things that make me think the universe is balanced after all. She's taken the existing material and made it her own in a matter of weeks - I assume just by being a professional. And as we go down the road of working on new material together, I feel the identity of this band will be so much stronger with her contributions, her confidence, and just her personality.
So, if you were intuitive enough to hear separation on the Non Affair, you should be intuitive enough to hear a sense of absolute completion on the upcoming EP.
When I started Atomica Project, the original idea was to have an alternating cast of vocalists, not unlike one of my favorite bands - Massive Attack. With graduate school occupying all of Lauren's time, and the new incarnation of the live band itching to tour and expand upon all of the effort we put into The Non Affair - the next EP will be just that, a rotating cast of vocalists. We will be working with a variety of local Chicago artists and there may even be a trip hop legend or two making a guest appearance.
One of the people I'm very excited to work with, and have had a mutual respect for from afar for some time is Christine Ingaldson, otherwise known as Flutter. In just a few weeks, we will be doing an opening set with a great band - Milano at the Bottom Lounge. Christine will be joining us onstage for our set, and we will be doing a track or 2 off of her new record. The details -
The Bottom Lounge
1375 West Lake Street
Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 666-6775
Milano/The Atomica Project feat. Flutter
8 p.m. / 21+ / cost TBA
