Light Pollution spreads ornate folk rock
When a band's name is Light Pollution, you might expect a group of anarchist punks railing about the blight of urban sprawl.
Yet, even though the DeKalb-based band Light Pollution has performed with environmentalist indie rockers Cloud Cult, there's no social agenda on display in their music. Consider that "Light Pollution" is the title of a song by indie folk icons Bright Eyes, though, and you'll be a little warmer.
"When it started out, it was more of a folk band, I guess," says vocalist/guitarist Jim Cicero, who, like the other three members of Light Pollution, handles additional instruments as the need arises. "We were trying to have more of an orchestral sound. We're still trying to do that, but it's changed. If anything, the stuff we're recording now is more vocal-dominated, more Beach Boys-influenced, with a lot of vocal tracks."
The four musicians consider their recent self-titled vinyl EP their debut, as opposed to a self-released disc from a couple of years ago. The EP covers a lot of ground, even though its five tracks only constitute 21 minutes of playing time. "Firewood," "The Spark" and "Each Bone in My Back" unfurl luminous chamber pop in the Arcade Fire or Annuals vein, while "Hand Crushes the Wheel" and "The Only Thing I've Got Faith In" are delivered with the delicate immediacy of Saddle Creek indie folk - with more diverse instrumentation, naturally.
Holding it all together is a self-made feeling that perfectly complements the material's admittedly few ragged edges with an inviting, all-hands-on-deck homeyness. Despite the lofty sound, it's not difficult to imagine Light Pollution's music coming out of a handful of friends.
Cicero founded Light Pollution with percussionist Matt Evert after they began attending Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. Aside from bassist Bojan Jovanovic (who, having grown up in Sycamore, is the only member who didn't move to the area) and keyboardist/violist Heather Rice, band members have come and gone, with musical friends filling in for live shows. Light Pollution's recent tour saw a fifth friend from St. Louis joining the quartet to add extra instruments.
"We like the way we sound better as a five-piece," Cicero admits, "because we have a lot of melodies going on and we kind of want to stay true to the recordings. We're looking to add another member or two, eventually."
It might make things easier in the live setting, where Light Pollution tends to change instruments fairly frequently. These include mandolin, melodica, trumpet, trombone, accordion, organ, glockenspiel and other percussion, all of which appear on the EP. Arranging all those elements might seem a huge task for one person, but although Cicero is Light Pollution's primary songwriter, he doesn't always have to figure out every last detail.
"Sometimes," Cicero says, "I'll have an exact idea in my head and I'll take it to the band, show them the different melodies. Sometimes, I'll have the skeleton of the song and then we'll add on to it collectively."
How the band determines what should go where seems to be a matter of intuition.
"Each song has its own feeling," says Cicero. "Maybe one song calls for organ, while it doesn't make much sense on another one. We approach each song individually and decide what instruments it needs. 'The Spark' is more of a rock-feeling song. There are lots of strings and horns to try and build it up and make it epic. But on 'Each Bone in My Back,' there are tons and tons of piano airs and delayed piano tracks. I don't think there's any piano on the rest of the EP."
Looking ahead, Light Pollution might not stay a college-town band for long. One member is planning a move to Chicago this winter, and Cicero himself shows signs of restlessness despite DeKalb's thriving music community.
"We feel like we've been here for a while," he observes without a trace of arrogance. "I don't know, it seems all the people that I was friends with who played music have all moved away. It's a little weird. There are new bands that start all the time, though. There's a good scene still going on, and there are a lot of good shows."
For the time being, a few Light Pollution members are living together in a DeKalb warehouse, where they're recording material for a full-length album they hope to release this winter, whether they have label interest or not.
"It's a giant space," Cicero enthuses. "It has lots of potential to make different sounds. There are all these vents that create reverb and all kinds of weird things to do."
myspace.com/lightpollution
<p class="factboxheadblack">Next shows</p> <p class="breakhead">With: Elephant Gun, Cartright</p> <p class="News">When: 9 p.m. Friday, Nov. 14, at Mad Maggie's, 51 S. Grove Ave., Elgin, (847) 531-5883 or <a href="http://www.madmaggies.net" target="new">madmaggies.net</a></p> <p class="News">Tickets: $6</p> <p class="breakhead">With: David Bazan, Venna</p> <p class="News">When: 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 7, at The House Cafe, 263 E. Lincoln Hwy., DeKalb, (815) 787-9547 or <a href="http://www.thehousecafe.net" target="new">thehousecafe.net</a></p> <p class="News">Tickets: $10</p>