by Wheaton Hop
Happy Hour With Tyler Adams of the Lily Livers
This past week, I got the chance to talk to a really rad guy, have drinks and talk music. Not a bad way to spend a Monday afternoon, or any afternoon. It’s always a bonus when that guy is just an awesome human. With the latest release, Sunny Side Up, from Detroit’s Lily Livers slated for a June 6th release on Outloud! Records,I figured it was high time to give Tyler Adams a call.
Tyler filled me in on how the band began and its evolution, we discussed the connections that a scene makes possible, and how life long friendships develop all because of a mutual affinity for one thing. Music.
Music has the incredible knack for creating meaningful bonds for people and that is pretty much how Tyler became the bassist for this Motor City trio. He shared with me that this journey began because he was a huge Lily Livers fan and never missed a show. If one thing got him up in the morning, it was the chance to see one of his favorite bands play live. After the last Lily Livers release, Songs For Plants, the previous bassist Jim moved away and Tyler explains that he saw it as a golden opportunity to become a part of something special. As he put it, “I basically CJ Ramone’d myself into the band.”
The band started out as the brainchild of Fish and JuJu, who have been friends since high school. At the ripe old ages of 22 and 23 now, that means you can find their catalogue on bandcamp going as far back as 2016. Don’t let their ages fool you. Apparently Fish is an extraordinarily prolific creator, living and breathing music and writing virtually nonstop. JuJu can often be seen strolling the streets with a mini keyboard for whenever the mood strikes to come up with something new. As the Grampy of the group at 28, Tyler describes them as “pure, creatively brained people.”
The new formation of the band started gearing up to lay down some new music around March 14, 2020 and then the world stopped. They were finally able to get some studio time in November 2020 with Tom from CowHouse in Hazel Park. And here we are, summer 2021 and Sunny Side Up will likely perk up your taste buds for some snotty, good time punk rock shenanigans.
My favorite track on the new album is definitely Die By Ourselves. The guitars leading into this one remind me of the Prozacs a bit and, to me, that’s the single. Beer In The Window, is a fun paced love song to convenience store libations. Never Let Me Know legitimately had me questioning if it was a cover when it started. The main parts of the song are raucously Lily Livers all the way but the song starts and ends with such a really strong Vaselines vibe that you’ll question if it’s a cover of a Nirvana cover (you know the one) or something Meat Puppets would throw our way.
Tyler, while definitely fond of Die By Ourselves, himself, is particularly psyched for people to hear Googly Eyes, borne from one of his own ideas, and Hide From the Boogey Man, two songs that were a full band collaboration. He said he’s also pretty partial to the backing and gang vocals throughout the album featuring friends Maddie, Justin, and the Punk Rock Van man himself, Mr. Nick Rorick of The Randy Bastards. Once again showing the power of music and the community and friendships it spawns.
Overall, Sunny Side Up has a little bit of everything for a lot of listeners. It’s a summertime smorgasbord of fun. Check it out and support your local scene and spread the love. Who knows where it could lead… you could end up in a band or maybe even get to enjoy afternoon beers with Tyler Adams. Cheers, Tyler and thanks for the tunes and the hang!
Wheaton Hop Out.
