Sophie's Floorboard: Lake Michigan

Band submission. Lake Michigan is the acoustic project of Chris Marks, from York, England (that's a long ways away from Lake Michigan). Lake Michigan approaches music in a minimalistic way, with most songs consisting of just an acoustic guitar and a single vocal track. This definitely pays off. For such a simple set-up, this huge atmosphere of introspection and reflection is created. The guitar melodies, which tend to be fairly intricate passages akin to Kinsella-related bands, the soft vocals, which kind of remind me of Ben Gibbard, and the lyrics that bring up very personal issues make Lake Michigan an experience to be felt, not just listened to. The recording quality of each album also plays a big part in creating the sound, since it makes the music sound so intimate and vulnerable, which is perfectly complimented by the music itself. I think Chris' description really sums it up, and when I read it, I knew what I was about to hear was going to be good: "sleepy late night 90s emo influenced folk". I know you're not even reading this since you're already checking out what's below after a description like that, since that description is that awesome. And the music certainly lives up to it. Enjoy.

FFO: Death Cab For Cutie, Owen, American Football, Elliott Smith, Bright Eyes