Ike of Eichlers
Can you tell us about one song that has activated some deep emotions and influenced you as a songwriter?
Believe it or not, the first song that comes to mind is “A Murder Of One” by Counting Crows hahaha. I remember my parents playing ‘August & Everything After’ and ‘This Desert Life’ all the time on car trips and our home stereo when I was a little kid. As I grew up and developed my own music taste & got into punk/alternative, I forgot about the band and re-discovered them while thumbing through my parents' CDs during a visit. I remember walking around my neighborhood in SLC, listening to August and having a “near-religious" experience under the cover of the oak trees as the album came to a close. Tears welled in my eyes and my arms erupted in goosebumps hearing Adam Duritz croon “we were perfect when we started / I've been wondering where we've gone." Since revisiting the record I've realized how much it's influenced some of my favorite lyricists (namely Craig Finn) and I can only hope to write a song half as engaging and meaningful as “A Murder Of One”.
BONUS ANECDOTE: I worked at a corporate liquor store a couple years ago and this song was on their playlist. It would randomly come on throughout the day, sandwiched between throwaway pop/rock songs by Nickelback and the like, causing an incredible emotional ricochet in yours truly. Why they picked the heart wrenchingly hopeful closer and not more pop-friendly radio hits like “Round Here” or “Mr. Jones” is beyond me hahahahaha.
What is one song that you’ve written that you feel a unique connection to-something you’re damn proud of?
I gotta go with “Buddy Icon” from ‘My Checkered Future’. I've been on a real “first thought / best thought" kick lately and while I'm not sure if “Buddy Icon” is the best answer, it was the first song to come to mind so that's gotta be my subconscious telling me something, right? This is one song that still gives me the shivers when I listen to it, despite hearing it countless times during the writing, recording, and mixing process. I wrote it about a falling out I had with one of my closest friends during a particularly tumultuous time in my life. I was having a real hard time balancing my friendships with my love life and both with my music career. My friend & I were able to save the friendship and reconcile, but for a second there I was worried it would be the end. I guess I'm mostly proud of how perfectly the song distills the emotion of that part of my life into a cool 2:23. I love how the “little ike" voice works to illustrate the fear and disappointment in adult failures; situations like that make me feel like a stupid little kid and using that voice really helps take it to the next level.