Hotel of the Laughing Tree and the gorgeous wanderlust rock of "Ducks in the Flood"

 

"like diamonds in the water falling from above..."

Against 80's synth tones, urgent pushing bass and drums rhythms, Americana folk rock guitar shapes and wanderlustful vocals creating heartland rock and artful sonic panoramas to gaze at, "Ducks in the Flood" from Hotel of the Laughing Tree, the collaborative collision of New York born and raised songwriters AJ Estrada, Brandon Peterson and Jonathon Streker, feels vast and dreadfully romantic.

From their upcoming full length "Faraway Friends" (their 5th album since 2008), "Ducks in the Flood" feels exquisitely nostalgic and soaked in the heaviness of storytelling that reveals just enough emotional and culture cues to make you want to know the song's back story in total. I am loving AJ Estrada's artful vocal aesthetic that reminds me a bit of Michael Hutchence (R.I.P.). I love this lyrical passage and the lovely tangential mention of Springsteen:

"Make it nice, on Christmas night / I demonize it in his letter / Like prophesying more bad weather / Come back to life tonight / Yesterday, running late / Blame my memory

Like suspiciously on cue, they play 'Dancing in the Dark' / And for no apparent reason, it's tearing me apart. (I fucking love this line)

Like diamonds in the water, falling from above / So who's the lucky one who you're running from?"

The heartland rock thing, the 80's / 90's-ness (in terms of storytelling and sonic cues) are giving me vibes that draw me to a gorgeous amalgam of artists like INXS, Springsteen, Icehouse, Broken Social Scene, The New Pornographers, at least based on this one song. I need to delve into more from Hotel of the Laughing Tree. There is so much to do.

This talented trio, once all together, now do what they love remotely as press notes indicate:

[With a history spent sharing the stage together throughout countless venues and DIY dungeons up the East Coast, they now reside in their respective states of New York, Tennessee and Massachusetts, working digitally to create new records.]

Hey, as long as they keep expressing themselves.

-Robb Donker Curtius

THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM 

https://hotelofthelaughingtree.bandcamp.com/album/ducks-in-the-flood

https://soundcloud.com/hotelofthelaughingtree

https://twitter.com/hotellaughing

https://open.spotify.com/artist/7FTEM6Uub5G2A33mZMWhPX

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC85e4XhvJQom9r-K11ilCrg

https://www.instagram.com/hotelofthelaughingtree/

https://linktr.ee/hotelofthelaughingtree


New York born and raised songwriters in love with the power of storytelling. Hotel of the Laughing Tree is the musical collaboration between AJ Estrada, Brandon Peterson and Jonathon Streker.

With a history spent sharing the stage together throughout countless venues and DIY dungeons up the East Coast, they now reside in their respective states of New York, Tennessee and Massachusetts, working digitally to create new records.

”Melody is King” has been the groups guiding mantra, and north star. You’ll be sure to find dynamic riffage, lush soundscapes and unique instrumentation sprinkled throughout, but always in service to the song. At the end of the day, Hotel has crafted a treasure trove of catchy melodies to discover, bounce around in your head, and hopefully make you lean in to see what’s happening just beneath the surface.

Established in 2008 with the release of Old Dominion, they now prepare to release their fifth full length album in the spring of 2023.

Hotel of the Laughing Tree, indie rock, dream pop, Americana rock, heartland rock, alt pop, broad strokes, depth of storytelling, dreadfully romantic, "Ducks in the Flood", upcoming album "Faraway Friends",