Call Me Lightning kept fans waiting for more than three years before releasing its follow up to 2007's highly-praised "Soft Skeletons." And sure, record label and bass player changes had a lot to do with that, but we like to stand by the adage that says good things come to those who wait.
The band got back to basics this year and signed with Milwaukee's own Dusty Medical Records to release "When I'm Gone My Blood Will Be Free" in late July. This is the record that, at long last, pays proper tribute to the fact that the band is named after a Who song.
It's a pretty significant departure from "Soft Skeletons" -- and especially from "The Trouble We're In," both of which prettied up semi-sloppy punk into something you could dance to but did nothing to discard the chaotic immediacy of each song.
"When I'm Gone..." on the other hand takes its time. It's an album of epic builders that, at times, reach anthem-like climaxes and then chugs along in the dramatic way only ‘70s rock can.
It's sounds like a good fit for Call Me Lightning. Frontman Nathan Lilley sings as if he's been liberated.
After playing a few shows locally this summer, including the inaugural "Save the Turf" benefit show at the Cactus Club in late September, the trio is hitting the road with Chicago's Russian Circles for a tour that shoots them around the Midwest and the West Coast. There aren't any Milwaukee shows on the list, but Madison's High Noon Saloon has the band booked for Oct. 16.
For specific tour dates, look here.
OnMilwaukee.com staff writer Julie Lawrence grew up in Wauwatosa and has lived her whole life in the Milwaukee area.
As any “word nerd” can attest, you never know when inspiration will strike, so from a very early age Julie has rarely been seen sans pen and little notebook. At the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee it seemed only natural that she major in journalism. When OnMilwaukee.com offered her an avenue to combine her writing and the city she knows and loves in late 2004, she knew it was meant to be. Around the office, she answers to a plethora of nicknames, including “Lar,” (short for “Larry,” which is short for “Lawrence”) as well as the mysteriously-sourced “Bill Murray.”
