Photo: Matt Elliott
Caravelle Village CD Release Party
The DAAC wsg Big House Red, Jes Kramer
Nov. 6, 8 p.m.
$5
The Strutt (Kalamazoo) wsg The Ben Daniels Band
Nov. 21, 8 p.m.
$5
Band: Caravelle Village
Album: Ephemera
Genre: Folk-Influenced Rock/Pop
RIYL: The Format, Avett Brothers, Nickel Creek, Fleet Foxes
Caravelle Village is the combined effort of two brothers, Charlie and Tyler Bennett, and their first full-length album, Ephemera, is a prime example of talent running in a family.
Tyler plays guitar, banjo, mandolin, drums, bass, harmonica and keys throughout the album, while Charlie plays all those same things sans keys and harmonica, resulting in a melodic folk/rock/pop sound rich with well-constructed harmonies and thoughtful lyrics.
Ephemera, (meaning lasting a very short time; short-lived; transitory) as an album title was chosen to reflect their songwriting process.
"[Charlie] went to school in East Lansing and, until a couple months ago, I lived in Kalamazoo," Tyler Bennett, who now lives in Grand Rapids, said. "So it started as this thing where we went home on the weekends and we'd play music, and we'd send each other ideas back and forth over the Internet. It's been like that for the past two years. We called this album Ephemera because being together for only short times, lots of the songs only existed when we were in the same city."
The brothers share lyric-writing duties, and their open method of dual-songwriting makes for an album of variety, from the slow and sentimental ("The Slide"), the dark, beautiful ballads ("Wait, Wait... Don't Tell Me"), to the more up-tempo "Please Not Tonight." With the exception of the last track, "Alle in Frieden," which is instrumental, the expressive nature of the layered vocals is a primary strength.
"I think we both have kind of conventional, classical tastes for pop music," Bennett said. "The songwriting is pretty straightforward and we rely on our vocal harmonies a lot."
Live, the two switch and share instruments frequently. While some sets they're joined by other musicians, other times they handle everything themselves.
"Sometimes, I'll have a harmonica around my neck, a guitar in my hands while playing drums with my feet and singing," Bennett said.
At its album releases dates, Caravelle Village will be including other musicians they know. You can catch them in Grand Rapids at The DAAC on Nov. 6 with the one-lady band/singer/songwriter Jes Kramer and folk/pop duo Big House Red. On Nov. 21, they'll be at The Strutt in Kalamazoo with The Ben Daniels Band.
