Mobile band El Cantador spent late 2010 in an uncomfortable spotlight: riding radio play, a featured slot in 92ZEW’s Second Tuesday series and a best-band-in-Mobile Nappie Award from Lagniappe, the group then went through a very public lineup change that split some fans between the band and its departing member. The band’s answer arrived in June 2011 with a full-length album, Fools for Light, and a CD release show at Callaghan’s Irish Pub on June 18.
A Beach House, No Rules
Rather than rush a follow-up, the band put live shows on hold and camped out in a beach house to record on its own terms — no outside input, no deadline pressure. The result is a striking departure for listeners who remember the group’s folky roots: loops, delays, effects and even handclaps fill out a record that plays far bigger than three players might suggest. Frontman Heath Underwood’s songwriting carries the album; strip away the production flourishes and the songs still stand.
The New Lineup
Recreating the album’s sound live required reinforcement, and the band recruited guitarist Lane Fisher — the 2010 winner of Serda’s Singer-Songwriter Competition, who also drums for Underhill Family Orchestra — to help fill out the guitar parts. Early rehearsals suggested the chemistry took quickly, with new textures emerging live that don’t appear on the record.
Momentum is building beyond Mobile, too: after finishing the album, the band lined up new shows and traveled to Savannah to shoot a music video with students from the Savannah College of Art and Design. Fools for Light is available through the band’s website and at the June 18 release party, where fans will get their first look at the new lineup.