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At the heart of every great rock group is a stripped down dirty blues band. From the Stones and Allman Brothers to the White Stripes and the Strokes, they all know the secret to hip-shaking on the dance floor is a driving backbeat that gives way to clever guitar leads and soulful vocals delivered with a swagger.
San Francisco’s Leopold and His Fiction are no exception. Borrowing heavily from Detroit Motown and groovy 60s pop for their sound, the group pulls out all of the stops live to move their audience.
Guitarist Daniel James and drummer Jon Sortland originally connected with one another through a Craigslist ad for musicians. They bonded over their heartache of recent band breakups, James with the previous Leopold lineup and Sortland with XOXO AKA Ra Ra Rabbit, and agreed to ease into jamming together. Things quickly clicked between them and by the second session Sortland invited bassist Micayla Grace to round out the group. Three weeks later the trio were playing live shows together.
“Before [Micayla and I] joined Leopold, the band had more of a old country vibe mixed with an Americana, Southern, vintage rock sound. Daniel has roots in Motown from his Detroit upbringing,” explains Sortland. “When it comes to old rock n’ roll, I always leaned towards the British invasion era.”
Sortland and Grace, who both grew up in Nevada City and played in seminal punk bands such as the Circus Tents and The Tanks, joined Leopold and His Fiction eight months ago. Sortland explains that in the studio they all collaborate together while keeping the original natural sound that is Leopold and His Fiction.
“This is a new process for me considering I have been a partner in starting every band I have played in with other people from the ground up. There is a lot of energy in playing the new album material because it’s all new to us and it’s the first time Daniel has had a full live band to properly present his work,” says Sortland.
With over 80 gigs under their belt, including shows at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, Leopold and His Fiction are now turning their gaze to Europe, a full U.S. tour and finishing up their third album.
Sortland says enthusiastically, “We plan to go anywhere and everywhere we can!”
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Lemonade is cool and refreshing, usually sweet and a little bit tart. Jesse Locks is a freelance writer. You can reach her at jesse@arthurmag.com
San Francisco’s Leopold and His Fiction are no exception. Borrowing heavily from Detroit Motown and groovy 60s pop for their sound, the group pulls out all of the stops live to move their audience.
Guitarist Daniel James and drummer Jon Sortland originally connected with one another through a Craigslist ad for musicians. They bonded over their heartache of recent band breakups, James with the previous Leopold lineup and Sortland with XOXO AKA Ra Ra Rabbit, and agreed to ease into jamming together. Things quickly clicked between them and by the second session Sortland invited bassist Micayla Grace to round out the group. Three weeks later the trio were playing live shows together.
“Before [Micayla and I] joined Leopold, the band had more of a old country vibe mixed with an Americana, Southern, vintage rock sound. Daniel has roots in Motown from his Detroit upbringing,” explains Sortland. “When it comes to old rock n’ roll, I always leaned towards the British invasion era.”
Sortland and Grace, who both grew up in Nevada City and played in seminal punk bands such as the Circus Tents and The Tanks, joined Leopold and His Fiction eight months ago. Sortland explains that in the studio they all collaborate together while keeping the original natural sound that is Leopold and His Fiction.
“This is a new process for me considering I have been a partner in starting every band I have played in with other people from the ground up. There is a lot of energy in playing the new album material because it’s all new to us and it’s the first time Daniel has had a full live band to properly present his work,” says Sortland.
With over 80 gigs under their belt, including shows at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, Leopold and His Fiction are now turning their gaze to Europe, a full U.S. tour and finishing up their third album.
Sortland says enthusiastically, “We plan to go anywhere and everywhere we can!”
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Lemonade is cool and refreshing, usually sweet and a little bit tart. Jesse Locks is a freelance writer. You can reach her at jesse@arthurmag.com
