The goal of their sophomore album, Nothing is Ordinary, Everything is Beautiful, is to access endless sonic influences and different noises to create an intricate blend of high-energy, alternative-pop and instinctual lyric content, according to Jordan Phillips and Adam Stark.
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Stark and Phillips, the duo that is Apollo LTD, told American Songwriter their tracks are somewhat of a “controlled chaos,” inspired by the sounds of many alternative bands before them. The writing process for this latest album started with those initial, attention demanding sonic ideas.
“We’re inspired by sounds,” Phillips said. “We’re looking for that intangible thing that sparks our interest, and we’re melody people, equally as much as we are sound driven.”
Phillips explains the two writers often start with a sonic underlay, whether that be an electronic beat, or a keys arrangement, then they move into crafting a melody around the existing sounds, and finally they attach lyrical content that fits the established atmosphere of the music.
Through this process, they are able to stay instinctual with their songs, Stark notes.
“Most of the time we stay pretty at a gutteral level with our songs and songwriting and then as we dive in, somehow this lyrical concept will start to permeate and it’s like, ‘alright, we’ve gotta finish this,’,” Stark says.
But some of the instinctual ideas carried into this latest album stem from an altered perspective because of all the changes Stark and Phillips went through both personally and alongside the rest of the globe with the COVID-19 pandemic.
With this in mind, Stark notes they are excited to bring art that is meaningful into the world, and encourage a conversation centered around human connection, hope and goodness.
The album carries threads of hope, Phillips says, opening the table to a discussion on being present, living with open eyes, recognizing the beauty in life amidst a sometimes very tragic world.
“There needs to be space for people who are willing to just be gentle, and slow to draw more trivial lines,” Stark says.
The energy that comes with a purposeful awareness and presence is the most authentic songwriting content they could bring, Stark and Phillips emphasize. This awareness is developed through the lens of their faith, and woven into their goals as a musical duo.
Telling the story of developing a present mindset through the lens of faith is valuable and fulfilling, Stark explains, because it’s where their energy originates and resides.
Nothing is Ordinary, Everything is Beautiful, is the current, climactic representation of the excitement that underlying attitude pours into their musical content, bringing the perfectly fitting lyrical message to pair with the reawakened energy of the duo’s sonic choices in their tracks.
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