Elgin-based Love Shots gels creatively on second album

Critics of The Love Shots' first album have described the band's sound as "1950s doo-wop meets punk rock."

Lead singer Daniel Craig (no relation to the actor who currently plays James Bond) of Elgin says the label is "fairly accurate" and lists the legendary punk band, The Ramones, as his favorite band. Others he cites are Depeche Mode and Nine Inch Nails.

The Love Shots drew on these influences on their second album, the independently released "Summerlakes." The band - featuring Craig, Mark Gorney, Joe Haggenjos and Mike Romano - will celebrate the "Summerlakes" release with a show in Elgin on Friday, July 19.

"I added more pedal work and reverb effects because I like how electronic sounds fit together," Craig said.

Craig played all the instruments on "Summerlakes." He began by recording the drum tracks first and moved to the bass tracks then lyrics and capped the songs off with the guitar tracks.

"I've had the most fun since I first started writing songs when I was 15. On 'Summerlakes,' it was pure relaxation, pure creativity and just totally natural," Craig said.

Compared to their first album, "Crooner," everything on "Summerlakes" was simplified.

"The lyrics on 'Crooner' were foggy and with 'Summerlakes,' everything is straightforward. There's less going on but at the same time, more stuff is happening. The lyrics are really easy to follow and I recorded everything how I wanted it to sound," Craig said.

Craig said the primary problem with recording "Crooner" was scheduling between all the members.

"It was hard to get everyone together," he said, "and the first time we would hear what we recorded, we would get really excited, but then we would come back a week later and be sick of it."

As for future plans, Craig hopes to organize some shows at the end of July or early August.