Autumn de Wilde
Michael (left) and Brian D’Addario.
Some kids listen to the tunes Dad spins in the rec room and the family car, and eventually move on to different musical pastures. For Brian and Michael D’Addario — a pair of teenage brothers known as the Lemon Twigs — Dad’s record collection became the foundation for a burgeoning musical career of their own.
While much of the modern music landscape looks back to the ’80s and riff-samples the ’90s, the brothers, who actually began their showbiz careers as child actors (Michael appeared in both Sinister movies) have set the dial of the wayback machine just a little further. “We’re rooted in the ’60s,” says Brian D’Addario, calling from Long Island in advance of the Lemon Twigs’ free Jan. 27 gig at the Sett in Union South. “That’s the first music we were obsessed with when we were 8 and 9.”
If the Jagger/Bowie hairstyle and the Ziggy Stardust bodysuit Michael sports in the video for “As Long As We’re Together” weren’t enough to make the point, the Beatles-esque harmonies, the layered glam-rock orchestration and the heavy use of harpsichord on Do Hollywood, the Lemon Twigs’ debut album, are all dead giveaways.
But in addition to these ’60s touches, their music draws from multiple time periods. “It’s more about the melodies and chord progressions than it is about the style,” says D’Addario. “We’re just writing songs.”
Alongside the more obvious influence of the Beatles and Brian Wilson, D’Addario offers some surprising influences for Do Hollywood. Gilbert & Sullivan? And Kendrick Lamar?
“I don’t think we’re going to start rapping anytime soon,” D’Addario jokes. “But there are various ways in which Kendrick’s music speaks to us.”
The brothers are both multi-instrumentalists, which creates a few logistical challenges when the Lemon Twigs perform live. To combat what could quickly become a constant swap-fest, the live set list is split in half based on each brother’s songs. The first half features Brian playing guitar and keyboard on the songs he composed, and the second finds him switching to drums to play on Michael’s songs. And the brothers need to come up with a way to perform their complex vocals. D’Addario admits that it’s challenging to hit some of the falsetto stretches on tracks like “Baby, Baby” when performing live.
After spending last year rocking the opening-act spot on a tour with lo-fi darlings Car Seat Headrest, 2017’s all about big gigs and headlining. In addition to the U.S. tour, the Lemon Twigs are also slated to perform with the Pixies in Japan and are on the docket for Coachella.
After listening to Do Hollywood, you’ll want to see what these brothers can do live.
