Album Notes

"Blending old Detroit rock, R&B and country into a Van Morrison meets Wilco at a Keb’ Mo concert-type experience, Grand Rapids’ six-piece Sweet Japonic has whittled a compact disc from the mighty oak of classic vinyl – with the connoted breadth of influence intact – which is from stem to stern a celebration of the gritty warmth that an easy and heartfelt groove can evoke. It’s a very Midwestern disc, so be sure to pack it with your flannel shirt as you head to the lake this fall.Sweet Japonic is feel good music at its finest." - Recoil Magazine

"Grand Rapids' Sweet Japonic started its fun, dance-y and reggae-tinged college rock band nine years ago.

But the band, now a six-piece group honing its own brand of Midwest sound, only counts the last two.

"We kind of grew up a little bit, I think," frontman and guitarist Lucas Wilson said. "We're maturing songwriting-wise and as musicians."

Thanks to a performance last year at the inaugural Rothbury music festival, a new lineup and sound, band members have become serious about reaching new heights.

Rothbury 2008 was "when this band jumped, so to speak, into the ocean," said Wilson, whose fellow members include drummer Roy Wallace, bassist Gabe Dutton, lead guitarist Matt Young, guitarist Sam Parks and keyboardist Davy Tyson. "For a long time, we were just kind of a local band and didn't jump into the pool. We weren't necessarily as serious about it."

Now, the group is harnessing a new sound -- soul, folk, country, blues, rock -- and new "straightforward, storytelling" lyrics. A third album with 12 tracks that channel their new throwback, Americana feel will be released Saturday at The Intersection. "Where My Devils Go" was produced locally at River City Studios by Wallace.

"With this new album, we are a band. We quit jobs," Wilson said. "We're putting every ounce of everything we have into doing music."

Dutton said he turned down a solid job offer in February at a local church that would have "paid all the bills and made ends meet."

"I really want to do the band," Dutton said. "It's a serious commitment to say we're going to make this happen."

The group recently ended a three-week tour on the East Coast -- in a new RV that, on a fun side note, has driven the entire length of New York City's Fifth Avenue after a friendly New Yorker yelled "You can't take that on the FDR!"

Japonic plans to head east again at the end of the year or early next year and pursue a West Coast tour next summer.

"We're going to tour on this album a lot," Wilson said. "We believe very strongly in what we're doing. Over the years, we've become a really good band. It's exciting to see the band grow, and it's exciting to see the reactions."

"I think next year's the one," Dutton said. "2010, it all comes together." - Grand Rapids Press