Lotus

While reinventing the wheel may not be an option, revamping it just may be. After the release of Nomad and the resulting success from the album and supporting tours, Lotus has resurfaced with The Strength of Weak Ties (released April 4th on Harmonized Records). As the live-electronic or jam-tronic scenes continue to thrive, bands in the increasingly clustered genre must vie to further distinguish themselves from those who came before and will soon arise.

Evident throughout, The Strength of Weak Ties offers the listening public a more mature, well-rounded Lotus. The Philadelphian quintet ventures deep into a plethora of vibes, ranging from down-tempo driven to full funk forays. With an eclectic mixture of synthesized beats, male vocals (Steve Yutzy-Burkley guests on several tracks), quick, funky guitar and textured harmonies, the album delivers a punch that Nomad may have lacked on the whole.

Highlights include the album commencing, slickly synthesized “Tip of the Tongue,” a reworked “Bubonic Tonic” that enjoys the certain raw smoothness of Mike Rempel’s guitar work and “Drunken Giraffe” which brings Lotus back to their Phish influenced rock n’ roll roots.

Taken as a whole, The Strength of Weak Ties is Lotus’ most balanced studio effort yet. The pieces flow well from start to finish and one can only notice that the band has finally produced a crossover album that will appeal to the faithful and newcomers alike.