Ludlow release video for new single for 'The Country'
19 November 2018
Newsdesk
Share with:
Ludlow is an indie-pop/folk band from Chicago, Illinois. Taking influences from songwriters like Gregory Alan Isakov, Conor Oberst, Benjamin Gibbard and others, Ludlow delivers a sound that comprises an array of instruments and layers of vocal harmonies to accomplish a big, melodic sound that’s full of depth. The journey to create Ludlow was a long one, and began with a journey from a small town in Midwest Ohio. Ludlow takes its name from a school in that town that songwriter Mark Schoeck attended as a child, and as the project initially served as a method of self-examination, the name fit the music.
In early 2016, Mark had been playing open mics throughout Chicago with little progress. He began testing out new recording equipment with a friend, tracking many of the songs he had been playing around the city. The result was Siren on the Shore, Ludlow’s first collection of songs. Mark was introduced to Josh Noble and Maria Noble Kloess, and the three of them began playing as a trio at venues in Chicago, Indianapolis, and Kalamazoo, MI. The band added bassist Eddie Canga and multi-instrumentalist Bridget Smith in 2018, and played their biggest show to date at Chicago’s Metro in August of ‘18.
With the release of their EP Sunset Blues, Ludlow shifts their sound to feature more vocals, more percussion, and adds instruments from trumpet to cello and more, evoking a sound similar to bands like Fleet Foxes, Frightened Rabbit, Blind Pilot, and The Oh Hellos. Ludlow plans to continue playing shows throughout the Midwest and across the country as they prepare even more new music.
"The Country" is a song about change, the need for it, and the fear of it. Themes in "The Country" reckon with the lines that divide people from one another and how those lines can only be crossed if fear of change is absent from the equation.
In terms of the video for the song, Mark states, “I spent a lot of time thinking about this song and how people would perceive it. The way that some folks would think "the country" is America, and some would think "the country" is the sticks, farmland, outside of town. I'm not sure if publicizing this is a great idea, but I was thinking about the type of folks who are hesitant to leave their small towns - let alone the U.S. itself - but still develop and harbor intense nationalist views with pride for a country they've barely seen. We didn't want to make a video that showed how we're all alike and that we should all get along. We wanted to make a video that showed how different our circumstances are from others' across the country. Some folks are in crowds, some are miles away from anyone else. Some people are relaxing by the water while others' homes are being ruined by it. That's the country that we're proud to be a part of -- the one protesting, the one with pretty landscapes and beaches, the one ravaged by storms. Not some of it, but all of it. We liked the idea of having footage from every state so that there could be an "a ha!" moment when you see the state you're from or the state you live in. And the goal was to contrast some of the most beautiful images with some of the most difficult to create a bittersweet feeling. And of course, we're hoping the folks who sent us these videos will watch the video and share it.”
