Lauren Wahl & Simply Put photo credit: Randy Rasso
In less than ten months, Lauren Wahl has watched her dream grow from a seed simply put in Santa Cruz all the way to Seattle. Having chased down, given up and now re-braving the adventure of being a professional musician, Wahl is releasing her music video for a brand new song called “Don’t Go Too Far.”
The song opens with bouncing yet ominous sounds from drummer Zen Perry and bassist Mike Kelly. Enter twin harmonies from Wahl and fiddler Mariah Roberts, whose intensity rides the song into the verse. By the chorus a bit of musical resolution is within reach, but they drop back into the driving carry of the intro harmony. From there, the band soars alongside Wahl’s rich vocal melody.
March 2018 saw the group recording and releasing a handful of Wahl’s material on the five song EP Hello, Baby. Quickly the band was making a splash in the city, putting successful gigs at Hotel Utah and Bar Fluxus under their belt.
It didn’t take long for people to notice. One friend in particular was Andy Zenczak, the owner/operator of Gadgetbox Studios in Santa Cruz. Andy invited Lauren Wahl & Simply Put to visit his new home recording studio nestled in the redwood forest. Here, the band reworked new arrangements into old songs and tried new things. The end result? Two completely new songs recorded, mixed and mastered on the spot. “Walk on Water,” the debut single from the aforementioned EP, got a complete overhaul at Gadgetbox.
But for the brand new song “Don’t Go Too Far,” releasing it just before the band leaves for their furthest performance to date was too ironic to pass up. Coinciding with The Bay Bridged‘s premiere are a pair of shows booked in the PNW. For their first official “out-of-town” gigs they are reaching all the way north and hitting Seattle, WA for two nights.
Simply Put plays today, Wednesday, August 15 at St. Clouds Resturant and Lounge, and tomorrow, Thursday, August 16 at The Triple Door. The performance at St. Clouds is being billed as an acoustic evening with Simply Put, featuring only Wahl and Roberts. Interestingly, the band originally formed out of this duo’s random playing together.
Thursday at the Triple Door, however, is a full band feature that starts at 9PM. Both shows are free, but The Triple Door is 21+.
