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Jun 9th, 2009
Local Gold
The Lovebones
By Matt Monk and Brian Campbell (with Reyan Ali)
Our members are... Matty Monk (vocals, piano, guitar), Joe Benick (guitar), Brian Campbell (bass), and Justin Walsh (drums, backing vocals, and bare-chested modeling).
We formed in... Galion, Ohio, 2002, in the middle of a cornfield.
Our most recent release is... Cougars. You know what we're talking about.
Our primary musical influences are... anything that's got soul: the Ohio countryside, dirty rock 'n' roll clubs, and the hot Tennessee summers. Everybody is influenced by all sorts of different players from elite jazz players to country to funk. I think that's what gives it its own thing.
Our music is best described as... blues/jazz/rock with Southern-fried soul, with funky progressive bass lines and psychedelic guitar riffs, heavy/solid but tasteful drumming, and constructed and well thought-out songwriting with soulful vocals.
I would describe our live show as... full of power and passionate energy. Every man in this band believes in the songs, the words, and their part [in] bringing this music to life. We are definitely a live band; it's all we've ever had. We were always the poor kids battling the odds and records are very expensive to make! And no one's ever given us a penny we didn't work for giggin' out. We try to bring everything to the table at a live show. We want your heart to touch the rooftop when the raw energy hits and your emotions to run wild when the epic ballad reaches its climax.
Our band's name comes from... our buddy in Nashville, Dylan Woods. Our band at the time, Trees, constructed of original members Matty Monk, Justin Walsh, [and] Brian Campbell. Everything fell apart when we lived in Nashville and we were getting a new sound together. Dylan just came over with the name "The Lovebones" and we all thought that it was brilliant.
It may be amusing to learn that we... have lived in four different cities and had four different band names and this is the final one. Galion/The Beat Generation, Dayton/Hassan Circle, Nashville/Trees, and Columbus/The Lovebones.
One essential element to our music is... [that] we all grew up together and dedicated our lives to this music. We try to bring real and emotional storytelling to the songs and everyone in the band is trying to take their own instrument to the next level.
The best thing about Columbus is... its diversity. It's really indie to me. I guess we're just used to Nashville and seeing some of the best players in the country all thrown into a small competitive town. There's something for everyone here, and a giant university with a lot of kids from all over who all love music. Great town to be based out of.
The greatest show we've ever had was... probably our latest record release party at Skully's when our drunken buddy Mike Kropf ran up on stage and was pretending to play piano, and everyone thought that it was planned.
The best thing about playing live music is... it's very forgiving. You throw notes out and they never come back. They just float into the atmosphere.
The worst thing about it is... nothing. It's always new and changing. You just got to learn how to ride the wave.
In five years, we... hope to be living in a bigger van-hopefully a nice bus touring-and making even better music.
The Lovebones will perform at The Thirsty Ear (1200 W. 3rd Ave) on June 11, the Scarlet and Grey Café (2203 N. High St) on June 27, and Skully's (1151 N. High St) on July 25. For more information, visit myspace.com/mattymonk.
Originally Published: June 9, 2009
