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A Piano In Every Home
North American Review Part I Album Release March 19, 2016 at Icehouse with Chris Koza 21+ / $8 adv or $10 door / 11 pm A Piano In Every Home is comprised of some of the most musically prolific young men in the Twin Cities, so don't act surprised when you see the names of Travis Erickson, Jacob Pavek, Jake Wallenius, Mark Kartarik thrown around online at The Current and other notable Twin Cities publications this spring. They just released Part I of their latest album, North American Review, and will take the stage at Icehouse Saturday night to perform it. Joined by famed local collaborators including Leah Ottman (violin) and Kara Laudon (vocals), in North American Review Part I, the artists of A Piano In Every Home have perfected how to capture memories and feelings of the past in a way that is digestible in the present. The expertise these veteran players lend to the songwriting and sound make North American Review a polished piece reflecting their years of intertwining work together. Yet with Erickson at the vocal helm, these four craft one of the most original albums any of them have ever released. |
back, left to right: Jake Wallenius, Travis Erickson, Mark Kartarik / front: Jacob Pavek
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Erickson is at heart, an artist: musing carefully over words in speech and lyrics, sculpting sentences that are as pleasing to hear as to say - although his quick wit and boisterous laugh might have you thinking otherwise. He immediately puts you at ease in his presence, and in that way, this music of his is a self-portrait. Inspired by Bob Dylan and other iconic folk types, Erickson's influences in music and life draw from a sense of exploring the wild unknown, and a desire to reflect upon those adventures through artistic creation.
A Piano In Every Home is the result of Erickson's 12+ year friendship with Pavek, started as kids in Hudson, Wisconsin, and almost 9 years of musical collaboration. They released Meridian in December of 2013, just the two of them. Wallenius and Kartarik joined for the release show, and then “we all moved under one roof," Erickson pointed out, and, "by the time we put out our last album, it was well, god, it’s interesting enough the two of us, but we should branch out a bit.”
The result of this doubling is two parts to one whole: North American Review Part I and Part II.
A Piano In Every Home is the result of Erickson's 12+ year friendship with Pavek, started as kids in Hudson, Wisconsin, and almost 9 years of musical collaboration. They released Meridian in December of 2013, just the two of them. Wallenius and Kartarik joined for the release show, and then “we all moved under one roof," Erickson pointed out, and, "by the time we put out our last album, it was well, god, it’s interesting enough the two of us, but we should branch out a bit.”
The result of this doubling is two parts to one whole: North American Review Part I and Part II.
"For whatever reason, this came very early on," Erickson explained, "where I was wandering around the beautiful old book section of [the] Saint Paul Library, and I think it's Princeton, used to compile back in the 19th Century, a volume called The North American Review, which was a compilation of poetry from all across North America as the country was kind of developing and founding. I think it's been out of print for a long time... And that passage stuck in my head... whatever we do for the next album I'm going to position it as such that it will hold itself well under that name."
Yet, Erickson reminds us: "You can only have so much intentionally behind naming something."
Yet, Erickson reminds us: "You can only have so much intentionally behind naming something."
"I know very much what I'm not good at. I think everyone in here knows what they're not good at. What we really know, we know how to do well." - Travis Erickson
The intentional choices are many on this release. One of those specific choices is in the genre and style of the music itself.
"I know very much what I'm not good at," Erickson reveals. "I think everyone in here knows what they're not good at. What we really know, we know how to do well. I know how to sit down and write a self-portrait... I can do that. I can do it well... Beyond that, let's not get silly about it."
This knowledge of self is integral to the success of the album, as its genuine nature is infallible. Its stories many not be one hundred percent true, as mystery is an attractive element in good songwriting. But knowing what, as a band, you can do well, and selecting those best pieces to present to the world, is not a form of lying by omission. It's common sense. As Erickson advised, "Let's only put forth publicly... the things that we know we're very good at... we know our limitations, and I think that's part of why it works."
"I know very much what I'm not good at," Erickson reveals. "I think everyone in here knows what they're not good at. What we really know, we know how to do well. I know how to sit down and write a self-portrait... I can do that. I can do it well... Beyond that, let's not get silly about it."
This knowledge of self is integral to the success of the album, as its genuine nature is infallible. Its stories many not be one hundred percent true, as mystery is an attractive element in good songwriting. But knowing what, as a band, you can do well, and selecting those best pieces to present to the world, is not a form of lying by omission. It's common sense. As Erickson advised, "Let's only put forth publicly... the things that we know we're very good at... we know our limitations, and I think that's part of why it works."
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