A question so many people ask around Middle Creek High School that I have heard is “Do you have any music suggestions?” Whether you are a music fanatic or not, there is a high possibility that you have asked, or been asked, this question before. For each person who asks me this question, they will always get the same answer: “You should listen to ALO.”
ALO, or Animal Liberation Orchestra, is a rock band who tends to tour along the West Coast. It is made up of Zach Gills on the keys, Dan Lebrowitz on guitar, Steve Adams on the bass, and Ezra Lipp on drums. Their music is easy to access, being located on many different musical platforms such as Youtube, Spotify, Apple Music, and Pandora.
On the rock band’s website it says, “ALO is a lot of things. Put simply, it’s a rock band, a family, an artistic outlet, a community, a business. But that only scratches the surface of this 3O-year musical vision-quest,” and I have to agree.
The original band was born in 1989 when Lebrowitz, Adams, and Gills, three friends in middle school, created a band called LAG. After a while they met their first drummer and music mentor, Brogan. Aside from Brogan, the other three members of LAG went to college together in Santa Barbra after releasing the album Contact. LAG’s legacy is fairly short and sweet, only releasing one album.
In 1998 the band changed their name to ALO and performed on many different stage shows around their college area. Although they didn’t have a set drummer, they were a success. After moving back home, they became known in many western states after touring constantly and playing music up on stage.
2005 was when the band really took off. Their song “Girl I Wanna Lay you Down” was, and still is, one of their top songs, with 25,974,408 listens as of 2/15/2022. Soon after, the band found a dummer by the name of Ezra Lipp who is still part of the band today. After what seemed like forever, in 2007 the band released their first album, Rose and Clover. The band went on to tour around the west coast, even traveling to the east coast for a few concerts.
Their three other major albums include Time Expander, released in 2005; Man of the World, which was released in 200;, and the most recent album, Sounds Like This, which is home to one of their best songs, “Blew out the Walls.”
But what makes ALO different from any other band? What makes it special? My father and music enthusiast, Jeffrey Lohmeyer, states, “Their music’s kinda chill and makes me relaxed. You can understand all the words they’re saying and they seem happy.” As it turns out, not only does he listen to their music on Spotify, but he has seen them in concert. “When I saw them in concert they put on a great show and it was really bizarre. They had an organ, and not a lot of bands have organs, so it was really cool.”
Students at MCHS also have listened to Animal Liberation Orchestra. Gemma Gilbert, a freshman student here at Middle Creek, was recommended to listen to the band. When asked what her favorite song was, she had to think for a moment. “It’s hard to choose. Each song has a different feeling that you don’t always expect.” Eventually, she decided and made the difficult choice: “‘Storms are Hurricanes’ and ‘Blew out the Walls.’”
Overall, ALO is a rock band with smooth music, exceptional lyrics, and an art of making the listener feel a sense of calm and excitement all at the same time. Whether you want background music, dancing music, or music to plug in and calm down, ALO is a great choice. Never have I found a person who dislikes their music, and that is just the more reason to give ALO a try. You never know if you are going to find your new favorite band.
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