The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

Isakov reflects on career ahead of Englert performance

Isakov+reflects+on+career+ahead+of+Englert+performance

By Claire Dietz

[email protected]

 

Music has been part of Gregory Alan Isakov’s life since he and his brothers started a metal band in their basement. However, he never anticipated how much those bands in the basement would have an effect on his life later on.

“I never thought I would get to do it like how we’re doing it now, [as] a job,” Isakov said. “[I] get to actually have these ideas and see them come to fruition. I’m still blown away by that.”

Isakov will perform at the Englert, 221 E. Washington St., at 8 p.m. on June 11 alongside the Ghost Orchestra, which includes members of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra.

His newest album is a collaboration with the Colorado Symphony. With every album, Isakov is convinced it’s the “weirdest thing I’ve ever done”.

“I feel this record is different,” Isakov said. “I’m with 80 people playing on it, and I think it was such an experiment for us … We are after the energy we get that shows what you know our shows are a little bit bigger and darker.”

He said while he believes that while it is one of his stranger projects, it’s also one of his coolest to date. For him, it’s a culmination of three years of work along with collaborations with the Colorado, Seattle, and Oregon Symphonies. The album is for those who couldn’t make it to the shows or, Isakov said, is “something extra for the people that have been supporting us”.

“We just really want to make [this] kind of stuff,” he said. “Honor this moment we have and all the work that we’ve done… I feel like a super nerd and proud dad about it.”

Looking back at his début in 2003, Isakov said he isn’t sure how he has grown. He often wonders about his journey as an artist and feels at times like he now knows what he’s after “a little bit more,” all the while unsure if he will “get there any quicker.”

“I don’t think it’s like an evolutionary process,” he said. “I don’t know if anyone gets better; I just think we kind of try different things. We’re kind of just looking for new grounds, new curiosities that we’re exploring.”

Above all else, Isakov hopes his music inspires his audience to create.

“I want people to leave inspired, to go make their art, their version of whatever they do,” he said. “A good song to me is one that can take you someplace.”

 

MUSIC

Gregory Alan Isakov and the Ghost Orchestra

When: 8 p.m. June 11

Where: Englert, 221 E. Washington

Admission: $28

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