Rolling in the Grass with Whitney
During the height of the blur that is Spring Weekend, Whitney is set to bring Brunonia back to earth. After their iconic indie rock band The Smith Westerns broke up in 2014, drummer Julien Ehrlich--also formerly in Unknown Mortal Orchestra--and guitarist Max Kakacek went out on their own. Emerging from the ashes of that legendary band, Whitney began writing new music and released “No Matter Where We Go,” their first single, in June 2015.Based in Chicago, the band stays close to its small-town roots (they recorded their first demos in a rural Wisconsin cabin). Their 2016 debut album, Light Upon the Lake, is an ode to youth, asking in its title track, “when old days are gone, will life get ahead of me?” But if you’re worried about depressed sadbois pensively singing ballads to their first loves, have no such fear. Kakacek’s soft yet complex guitar riffs back up Ehrlich’s touching falsetto to take you on a journey of happy nostalgia for the “Golden Days” of yore.Whitney’s most popular song is “No Woman,” which has garnered more than 22 million Spotify plays. But my personal favorite is the above mentioned “No Matter Where We Go,” which Pitchfork Magazine said is “delivered with such gentle earnestness that it’s improbably touching.” You can call it indie-rock or indie-pop, but they don’t like labels. “Whitney’s just a headspace,” said Ehrlich in an interview with The Guardian.Since Light Upon the Lake’s release, they’ve been touring as much as possible, living out of an old van traveling to sold out shows across the country. They even played on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and CBS This Morning: Saturday. While they will appear at a few festivals this summer, their lack of a full tour gets me excited that a new album is on the horizon, because it’s about time.No matter where Whitney goes, the uniform of beaten-up boots and thrift shop sweaters follows. I saw them play in Montauk, NY this past August, where heat, sand, and Dom Perignon-drinking Goldman analysts didn’t stop them from dressing—and playing, quite literally—the part. In the same The Guardian interview, Ehrlich describes waking up on the road once, “rolling in the grass, basically naked and shit.” This Whitney fan can’t wait for you all to roll—albeit clothed—in the grass with them on the 28th.If you haven’t already listened, check them out on Spotify , Soundcloud , or Apple Music. Image via