Great bands come and go all the time in Milwaukee. As disappointing as it is to watch an established local band call it quits in its prime, it seems as if there’s always a new project in position to pick up the torch and carry it to new and exciting places. Right around the time Milwaukee favorite John The Savage was lurching to a premature halt, the members of Soul Low were beginning to lay groundwork on material that would eventually populate their outstanding and beyond-their-years debut, UNEASY.
Fittingly, the young outfit—which has since become one of the best and most popular acts in the city—recently stepped into Shane Olivo’s Bobby Peru Recording Studio to honor John The Savage with a spot-on adaptation of its frenzied seven-and-a-half-minute standout, “Sinking Ship,” for the West Allis studio’s first “BPR Session.”
“John the Savage is honestly the most influential Milwaukee band for Soul Low,” says bassist Sam Gehrke. “The live performances never lacked in energy and character. At a time when apathetic indie performances were rampant, John the Savage performed interesting music with clever arrangements, and with a conviction that was absolutely mind-blowing to four 16-year-olds.”
If Soul Low can do this great of a job emulating and expanding upon a band as off-kilter as John The Savage, we’re somehow even more excited to see how they’ll adapt the music of Tigernite at our Local Coverage concert January 15—which, coincidentally, is the band’s next Milwaukee show.