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June 30 • 2016 45 arts & life m u s i c W atching the music video for Midtown- based trio Taxon Clade's "All the Time Here Again" may evoke a strong sense of nos- talgia for summer camp. The video features Daniel Ericksen, 23, the indie rock band's lead singer/guitar player/songwriter, singing and strumming the mellow tune all around Belle Isle. Ericksen, who grew up in Huntington Woods, spent 11 sea- sons at Wooden Acres, first as a camper and later as a counselor before eventually being named the camp's song leader. He cites his early musical experiences there as being especially formative. "I got a lot of confidence at camp to play songs," he says over iced chai teas at Midtown's Avalon Bakery. The first song he per- formed there was "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted" by Jimmy Ruffin during a camper talent show. "Then I also sang 'You Shook Me All Night Long' by AC/DC," he says. "It was awesome. I ripped off my shirt." Losing his shirt mid-show has become a tradition carried into his performances with his current band, Taxon Clade, beginning with their first-ever-show together, in July 2014, at Ferndale's Found Sound. "It was a super-hot summer day and there's no air conditioning in there. We were going to play 40 minutes, and I have a tendency to sweat a lot," he says. Describing their sound as soul pop groove, the band might be compared to fellow folk-leaning indie outfits like My Morning Jacket and Fleet Foxes. Ericksen, who had his bar mitzvah at Temple Emanu-El in Oak Park — where he attended preschool and religious school through high school — says that Jewish culture plays a role in his life every day, and he is especially fond of matzah ball soup. "My papa used to say that if you throw the matzah ball at the wall and it goes through, then it's perfect." Two years after their first per- formance, the band is preparing to release their first full-length album, the eponymous Taxon Clade, which Ericksen says will more closely resemble how they sound live than last year's six-song EP We Could Do That. The band, includ- ing Ericksen and grade-school friends Drew Bartosik (on bass/ backup vocals) and August Leo (on percussion), started recording the album a year ago, after first per- fecting the songs in live settings. "I have a thing for debut albums. I think debut albums should be awesome," Ericksen says. "There's just so many bands that come out with these amazing first albums. The Doors came out with The Doors, Rodriguez came out with Cold Fact. It wasn't popular in America but [in] South Africa and Australia it was. To me it's just a flawless album." He counts Rodriguez, and his raw, organic sound, as a major influence, par- ticularly on his band's forthcoming album. Fortuitously, Ericksen shared an unexpected afternoon with his idol last summer, right in the middle of the recording process. While out on a bike ride with Nick Sapounas, a member of Ericksen's other band, Gray/Bliss, they happened upon the Motor City music legend sitting with his sister at the Trumbullplex. Naturally, he had a guitar in his lap. "I told Rodriguez I'm a musician and that I am a huge fan of his. He gave me his guitar and told me to play a song, so I started playing his song 'Hate Street Dialogue.' He invited us back to his house. It was completely surreal," he says. Ericksen feels that experiences like this one, especially while in the midst of recording his own album, are sure signs he is on the right path. Beshert, even. Taxon Clade had the opportu- nity to work with another local music legend, Jim Diamond, on the self-titled forthcoming album. Diamond, a music producer and studio engineer, is perhaps best known for his work on the first two White Stripes albums and for playing bass in Detroit garage rock band the Dirtbombs. "I messaged him a year ago to see if he could record our album," Ericksen says. "It was right when he was about to move to France, though, because he lost his property Downtown, so he had to move his studio." Although disappointed, Ericksen sensed that Diamond was inter- ested, so a year later he followed up to see if he might be available to mix and master it. The timing was right this time. "We [met him at] Assemble Sound in Corktown, which hap- pens to be right by our practice space," he says. "We went there for two different sessions and mixed six songs or so. It was awesome. He was really down to earth, super humble, really cool to work with." Walking around the band's Midtown stomping grounds, the group has a tangible presence. Look up and you are likely to see street posts with Taxon Clade stick- ers or bulletin boards plastered with posters announcing their upcoming album drop and release party. "That's the town we're in — you have to be a go-getter if you want to make stuff happen," Ericksen says. "There're a lot of bands that put out new music but nothing happens. You can't expect things to just happen to you. If you want something, you have to go out and get it." * PHOTO BY IRISH JURVIS Local musician Daniel Ericksen has a thing for debut albums — and adds his own indie-pop band's to his list. Ready For Their Close-Up Reisa Shanaman | Special to the Jewish News details Taxon Clade's debut album, Taxon Clade, comes out July 5. The band will celebrate with an album release party 8 p.m. Thursday, July 7, at the Loving Touch in Ferndale. $5. (248) 820-5596; thelovingtouchferndale.com; taxonclade.com. Daniel Ericksen, August Leo and Drew Barosik Taxon Clade, the band's epony- mously titled debut album