“We were on a high and then the world came crashing down” – Steve Lucarelli of LOWLIVES on the turbulent pandemic era

Rooted in the gritty realms of ’90s alternative and grunge, LOWLIVES are gearing up to release their album, Freaking Out. Featuring bassist Steve Lucarelli, the band merges the raw edge of ’90s alternative with the power of modern rock. Lucarelli shares insights into the band’s sound and the creative process behind their latest work.

“It’s the loudest, chunkiest, angriest tone I’ve ever heard.”

Steve Lucarelli’s commitment to authentic sound production is evident in his choice of instruments. “My main instrument is a Fender ’66 Journeyman Jazz Bass. It’s my dream bass. It came to me when I found a Custom Shop bass that was ordered and never paid for. My first bass ever was a 1997 Fender Jazz Bass, so naturally, it feels familiar to me, though to be honest, I prefer the chunk of a P-bass, especially for LOWLIVES. I’m going to whack a P-bass pickup in the ’66, and I do have the perfect one. Years ago, I had a guy fix the input jack on my Highway One P-bass with a passive noiseless pickup, and when I went to pick it up, he said, ‘You know what? I checked the winding on your pickup, and I thought it was weird, so I rewound it for you,’ and I freaked out on him. Well, flash forward, that’s the bass we use in all LOWLIVES recordings because of that mod. It’s now the loudest, chunkiest, angriest tone I’ve ever heard. So, it’s time for worlds to collide. Modification-wise, I always change out the bridge and put a higher mass bridge on; this one is a Hipshot Kickass High Mass Bridge, which helps improve sustain and intonation when I’m slamming on the strings as hard as I can.”

Exploring the band’s analogue preferences, Lucarelli elaborates on the gear choices for Freaking Out. “We are analogue heads. Lee (Downer, singer/guitar) and I constantly send each other pictures of vintage instruments and rigs we find,” he states. “And in a world where you can’t really even find a large bass amp to save your life, I’m rolling in with an 8×10 and an SVT Classic. I’m throwing no shade on anyone for utilising technology; hell, we aren’t recording to tape, so whatever, it’s all 1’s and 0’s anyway, but we gravitate towards the warm sounds of tubes being pushed, rather than a completely digital sample. So naturally, when we tracked bass for the new record, we used my Ampeg Heritage SVT, my Ampeg 8×10, a 1978 Marshall JMP 2203 head, and a Zilla guitar cab. Effects-wise, we used a 1960s Shin-Ei pedal for the crunch you hear, as well as a 1987 Woodcutter Rat pedal. Those pedals are a vibe.”

“When you love the band you’re in, you leave space to soak in the talents of your mates.”

Discussing the evolution of the band’s bass lines, Lucarelli reflects on his methodological approach. “For LOWLIVES, I take on a ‘hell is for heroes’ approach, and I ask myself if what I’m doing serves the song or my ego. Don’t get me wrong, I love a busy bassline, but I think we all know there are times when you can be ‘that guy’ and overplay just to get your point across. That isn’t to say that I don’t get to have fun; the strategy is to add ear candy in parts that matter, and hold down the fort for the rest. I have a lot of friends who don’t listen to the lyrics in music, and I’ve always been the opposite. Look, every bassist wants to be Les Claypool when they are falling for the instrument, but that guy is a fucking wizard, so when I dial it back, I love a James Jamerson approach where if I’m supporting the vocal line, you might not notice what I’m doing. And on that note, when you love the band you’re in, you leave space to soak in the talents of your mates.”

“we were on a high and then the world came crashing down.”

The direction for Freaking Out was significantly shaped by the band’s experiences during the pandemic. “The pandemic decided a lot of this direction for us. I know that’s a bullshit answer, and as a generation, we are all coping with a collective trauma, but for this record, it is literally in your face. The first song and title track is called ‘Freaking Out’, and while that song existed before the pandemic hit, we were on tour in Europe as the pandemic was happening, so it lands differently with us. We had been going through a rollercoaster of ‘music business’ highs and lows, we were on a high and then the world came crashing down. We had to cancel our final date of the tour, which was supposed to be Milan as cases were extreme there, and we landed back in LA one day before the international border closed. All of that hype and excitement we had built was stifled, and the desperation in us drove the writing process. Even recording, we weren’t allowed to go anywhere because we were forced to quarantine at Chapel Studios for two weeks (ironically the exact length of time in England), so we were forced to go on an ‘island’ with each other, with nothing else to do but be four friends in the studio making a record. There was no other option to do anything else; literally, we received a daily phone call from the UK Government asking us our whereabouts, if we had ventured out, and a constant threat of them showing up to check on us. But after all of it, one thing we learned is that we are (in fact) humans making real music that is loud, expressive, and evolving. LOWLIVES is a physical band. Most nights, one of us leaves the stage bleeding from one reason or another. There’s no choreography, there’s no backing tracks because that’s not who we are. We are the large amp that gets the cops called because you dared to see if you could stand in the room at Level 5, and we fucking go to 11.”

The album Freaking Out by LOWLIVES is available for pre-saving.