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Via Old Light

West coast band shines light on an old recording medium

Gritty guitars, driving rhythms and a do-it-yourself ethic combine in Old Light, a Portland band bringing its brand of rock ‘n’ roll to this weekend’s Nelsonville Music Festival.

The quartet, led by vocalist and guitarist Garth Klippert, has kept busy in 2013 touring across the country and releasing three cassettes out of a five-part series.

While the modern music listener seldom uses cassettes, Klippert said the idea of releasing cassettes in addition to online streams was to preserve a fresh approach to the music they are making.

“(The cassettes) are kind of a fun challenge. They’re lower fidelity than digital and vinyl, and it’s been really great,” Klippert said. “We don’t have the freedom of unlimited tracks and the ability to edit things that aren’t perfect, everything we record this way stays.”

Klippert said Old Light operates under a desire to be as flexible in its sound and style as possible, and it shows on the recordings, with sounds varying from surf-rock to metal to straight-up garage rock. 

They pull influences from bands ranging from classics such as The Beatles to alternative rock band The Melvins.

“If you can do something and do it well, why limit yourself?” Klippert said. “I talk to audiences today (and) they all seem to listen to everything because music is so abundant and available.”

A former contractor, Klippert decided to dedicate his full attention to Old Light, who released its first album,

The Dirty Future, in 2010.

“(Contracting) was just a time-consuming line of work to be in,” Klippert said. He said he wanted to dedicate as much attention to the band as he could, and his wife supported the decision to work with the band.

“It’s a dream come true,” Kippert said. “It’s the best thing.”

ds834910@ohiou.edu

 

If You Go

What: Old Light

When: 6:00 p.m. Thursday, 2:30 p.m. Friday

Where: Main Stage, Porch Stage 

Admission: $75 Day Pass, $120 Weekend Pass

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