History, Hunger and Enlightenment

Lotus, a quintet electronic rock group originally from Philadelphia, has just released their latest album Eats the Light. The band celebrated their album release on Friday evening in New York City at Samsung 837 NYC.

Jesse Miller, bassist and producer, provides insight on the band’s projected outcome of the album. He shares his interpretation of the Eats the Light.

Jesse Miller explains, “It is a pop record in the sense that the arrangements are purposely simplified and the melodies are catchy. We want people to be humming these songs days after hearing them. The album doesn’t need an accompanying catalytic life story to be explained, just put it on the stereo and enjoy.”

When I first heard the lead single, ‘Eat the Light’ I was instantly drawn to the Talking Heads influence. Part of my upbringing included: Stop Making Sense, Remain In Light and my personal favorite, the Naked album.

Gabe Otto (Pan Astral), has provided vocals for Lotus’ Talking Heads Deconstructed shows. He adds vocals to ‘Eat the Light,’ and creates a serious buzz on the album.

Eats the Light contains ten tracks featuring some of the hottest talent from Philadelphia, Los Angeles and national artists.

Luke Miller, keyboardist and guitarist, gives his perspective on their latest album.

“I wanted Eat the Light to be a celebratory album that people could sing along to while driving down the California coast,” says Luke Miller. “This is the sound of summer that makes you want to dance and raise your hands to the sky.”

‘Fearless’ encapsulates a dance heavy beat, in addition to vocals by Philadelphia-based soul singer-songwriter Mutlu Onaral. It kicks off the album with a strong presence on percussion featuring Mike Greenfield and Chuck Morris.

The percussion continues to flow with a new wave of electronic rock with the traditional Lotus sound on the track ‘I’ve Been A Fool.’ Los Angeles-based singer Oriel Poole, adds vocal to ‘Anti-Gravity.’ The track tailors a more downtempo/funky beat. The majority of the album is a dancehall classic, but ‘Anti-Gravity’ gives a Colorado Mountain guitar sound by Mike Rempel.

Overall, the album delivers another round of Lotus music in grand fashion. This marks my third Lotus album review, and I found Eats the Light provides a unique blend of electronic rock with funk, pop and hip-hop. It stirs up the historic soul from the Talking Heads, and shines light on the current state of Lotus.

The band is a living, breathing machine. They have brought in a talented list of musicians to work as pistons in a complex engine. Grab the album online, and catch them live this summer and fall on the road.

Tour Dates

New Album – Eat The Light – Out Now! https://t.co/ytdxgceMbI pic.twitter.com/ulwbHmiR65

— Lotus (@LotusTweets) July 15, 2016

Find our new album Eat the Light on @iTunes here: https://t.co/XTB68W9ho6 pic.twitter.com/7VebyF21wB

— Lotus (@LotusTweets) July 15, 2016