Lloyd's Garage

The Black Keys have been on a roll recently. Their 2010 album Brothers debuted at Number 3 on the Billboard Charts, they won a GRAMMY for Best Alternative Music Album and have been featured in countless advertisements. The duo show no signs of slowing down any time soon. They recently announced (via a hilarious video that features Bob Odenkirk) that their new album, El Camino, will be released on December 6th of this year. The Keys’s brand of blues-infused rock is a breath of fresh air to the mainstream music scene that has been dominated by synth pop recently. So, in honor of their recent success, we here at Vs. decided to compare them to one of OurStage’s best blues rock bands, Lloyd’s Garage.
Just like The Black Keys, Lloyd’s Garage is a duo comprised of a guitarist/singer and a drummer. However, having a small band actually works to their advantage, using raw energy to make up for the lack of other instruments. “Blackbird” illustrates a few similarities between the two groups. The song begins with a distorted, bluesy riff that repeats itself throughout the song. Since Lloyd’s Garage does not have a bass player, this riff acts as both the melodic and rhythmic basis on which the song is built. This is a technique that The Black Keys have been using for years, and it is a major factor in how they can write such great songs with only two members. But the biggest similarity between the two bands might be the vocals. Both Seth Heitzmann (Lloyd’s Garage) and Dan Auerbach (The Black Keys) have great rock and roll voices. Heitzmann’s voice shares Auerbach’s soulful bluesy snarl, but with a slightly lower pitch. Nevertheless, Heitzmann still has a pretty incredible rang,e and he always seems to hit the right note.



While “Blackbird” is an uptempo song that leans more towards rock side of things, Lloyd’s Garage knows how to slow it down with some more old school blues. Take their track “The Ghost and The Zombie” for example. If you listen to the intro of this song, you may notice that it bares some similarity in style to The Black Keys’ song “All You Ever Wanted”. Both songs start at almost the exact same tempo, and both feature blues progressions with quiet and subdued guitar parts. However, Lloyd’s Garage switch up the feel about halfway through “The Ghost and The Zombie” by picking up the tempo and changing to a more straight ahead rock approach.

Now, it’s not all just blues licks and rock riffs for Lloyd’s Garage. “Suitcase” is an interesting song that shows that the band has some folk influences. Instead of hard riffs, this song relies on simple guitar chords and Heitzmann’s great vocal performance. Yet, instead of just writing a standard folk song, the band makes their own brand of folk-rock by speeding up the tempo and adding in drums. “Oh Lovely” is another upbeat song that is based around chords rather than riffs. The song is an incredibly catchy pop rock song, but also contains a very raw recording quality that lacks the studio trickery that most modern rock bands employ. Lloyd’s Garage are bringing a no nonsense attitude back to rock and roll, and it’s just what the doctor ordered.

You can download Lloyd’s Garage’s album From the Comfort of Your Home here. - OurStage

This local duo makes hard-hitting rock 'n' roll influenced by classic rock, blues and early punk.

"Lloyd's Garage is probably the most literal band name I have ever heard. It represents our sound so well," says guitarist-vocalist Seth Heitzmann, below right. "Lloyd's Garage is raw, energetic, emotion-filled garage rock. Lloyd reminds me of a name in the '60s or '70s, when rock was at its best. Plus, we started playing in Lloyd's garage."

Heitzmann and drummer-keyboardist Lloyd Llewelyn say that originally they both played guitar and sang, as they cycled through various drummers. They never found quite what they were listening for, so Llewelyn took up the drums; suddenly the band was complete. Now the main focus is recording.

"We have been spending a lot of time trying to figure out how to capture in a digital format the energy we produce live," Heitzmann says. On Friday, see the band live for yourself.

Lineup: Seth Heitzmann, guitars, vocals; Lloyd Llewelyn, drums, keys.
What musical projects have you been a part of?

Seth was the singer-songwriter in Index:A. Lloyd has been playing music in his garage since he was very small. This is the first project he's ever been excited enough about to pour his soul into.
Who are your musical influences?

Rolling Stones, Howlin' Wolf, Hendrix, R.L. Burnside, the Black Keys, Miles Davis, Led Zeppelin, the Clash, the Faces, Art Blakey, the Headhunters, Aretha Franklin, everyone on Stax/Volt and on and on and on.
What are the main themes for your songs?

The songs cover a wide range of depressing topics, mainly death and heartache. Seth finds happy songs depressing.
If you could change one thing in the music world, what would it be and why?

We wish music would become raw and relevant again. The last 30 years have seen a slow dehumanization of popular music. With Auto-Tune, the transformation is complete. You can listen to entire albums and never hear anything human. Lloyd's Garage is the antidote to Auto-Tune.
What is the best show you ever played and why?

Our 2010 Southern California tour was miserable. ... The last night of the tour, we played in San Francisco to a house packed with rollicking fans. They screamed and they beat their fists on the stage when we tried to walk off. That was the best.

Check it out: www.lloydsgarage.com.

Next gig: 9:30 p.m. Fri. $10. 21+. With Blackstone Heist, Whiskey Pills Fiasco. Cafe Du Nord, 2170 Market St., S.F. (415) 861-5016. www.cafedunord.com.


- Michelle Broder Van Dyke, bandwidth@sfchronicle.com

This article appeared on page G - 4 of the San Francisco Chronicle

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/02/16/NS061HL06T.DTL#ixzz1Evy5FnvJ
- San Francisco Chronicle

Lloyd’s Garage is what happens when Adam Duritz rides a time machine back to 1973 to lay down some tracks for Neil Young’s Tonight’s the Night. It’s what happens when R.L. Burnside lunges out of his grave to cut a postmortem record with Pearl Jam. It’s Steve Earle jamming in his living room with Jimmy Page as Chris Robinson shows up at the door with a new song scribbled on his palm. And if Seth Heitzmann is to be believed, Lloyd’s Garage aims to be the “WTF?” inside the text cloud that blooms in the brains of people who go to Richard Thompson shows and hear that 60-something guitar god drop acoustic covers of tracks like Brittney’s Spears’s “Ooops! I Did it again.”

“You hear people say, ‘That song sucks.’ But usually it’s not the song that sucks. It’s the producer that decided to treat the song like a 6-year-old beauty contestant,” Heitzmann says as he explains the reasoning behind his cover of “California Gurls” by–(cough)–Katy Perry. “The frustration comes from sensing that there is something beautiful in there, but it’s been covered in goop by some bozo with bad taste. Well, we’ve done our best to strip away the bad taste to give you a chance to hear “California Gurls” performed by actual human beings.”

On the “California Gurls” cover and just about any Lloyd’s Garage song you can find, Heitzmann’s vocals indulge the warbling vulnerability of a Counting Crows ballad (think “Goodnight Elizabeth“) laced with a bruising, stripped-nude and rootsy brand of rock ‘n roll. And with drummer Lloyd Lewelyn hammering out his unending homage to John Bonahm on track after track, this San Francisco duo’s songs swing by like bloody fists in an old-fashioned ass-kicking contest. That appears to be the point, after all–to beat the shit out of bad taste, one song at a time. And if that is indeed the objective behind Lloyd’s Garage, then consider bad taste as Rocky Balboa begging Mick to cut a slit in his swollen eyelid so he can see what he’s swinging at. The only difference is that in this version of the movie, Rocky is pronounced D.O.A. at the hospital.

“With Autotune, it seems like the transition from music to noise is nearly complete,” Heitzmann laments. “We can now take all of the humanity out of a voice. WTF is going on?”

The band says that the video for their Katy Perry cover–which really is less a cover than it is an ambulance summoned to rescue the song from its fake plastic jailers at Capitol Records–is storming the internet like a wind-swept fire threatening the mansions of Malibu. But even if the video hasn’t quite done all that just yet, one thing is almost certain: you will watch it more than once, and you may even hear it sneak through the backdoor of your mind as you’re slurping down another low-budget lunch of Ramen and Fritos in your cubicle tomorrow. Check it out; I dare you to prove me wrong: - Culturespill

Lloyds Garage hails from our own bay area and could possibly be the best 2-piece rock band in the city. They also put out a monster album, From the Comfort of Your Home and peeps have told us that they sound a lot like the Black Keys and The White Stripes, and we agree. - Front Porch Musings

Adnams Artist of the Month
August 2010

Lloyd's Garage

Lloyd's garage hail from Napa, in the San Francisco Bay area of California.

There's a fundamental integrity in these passionately delivered songs. The energy is, fortunately, matched by songs that retain interest both lyrically and in their arrangements. This energetic two-piece band delivers more watts of energy per song than you'll hear in many a larger setup.

- Suffolk n Cool

Move over White Stripes, Lloyd’s Garage is in the house. This kickass duo from Napa knows how to raise the roof. One guitar, one very basic drum kit, and no shortage of sound or great music which sticks to the basics. This is a musical renaissance that is more than welcome at a time when popular music is all about theatrics and special effects. Remembering rock of days gone by, such as early Kinks, and even Led Zeppelin will give the seasoned listener a chill down their spine when you hear Seth and Lloyd bang out their great rock songs. With lyrics like”… No time for sweet talking … you’re gonna hate me tomorrow…”, and 1 time, 2 times, 3 times walking out that door… better break my body…” , why Robert Plant himself could not have penned better lyrics. With the three right chords, crisp vocals and real drum playing, it was impossible to sit still even after a long day at work. Just as E=MC2, Lloyd’s Garage have a formula for real rock music which is talent, plus energy, plus sticking to the basics.

Review and photos by Mark Trout - All Access Magazine

From the Comfort of Your Home is a quintessential rock album that can help you pop that can of beer open and get that party started.

It’s the debut album from the California based band, Lloyd’s Garage. A rock duo consisting of Lloyd Llewelyn (drums) and Seth Heitzmann (guitar, vox). The record meshes a classic rock sound and alternative rock of today’s rock world. It’s got 11 tracks that takes you through a rock and roll journey of broken friendships, trouble with your love, and evading the authorities.

For those who’ve never heard of Lloyd’s Garage, they just might sound like your favorite band. On “Suitcase” they sound a lot like Credence Clearwater Revival. On “Factory Town” they’ll remind you of the Black Keys. On “The Devil, The Matchmaker,” they sound a lot like the White Stripes.

Copycats? Anything but, the lyrics are original and they add their own taste to all their instrumentals. They bring it heavy and hard.

One of the great tracks on the album is “A Casualty Friend.” They speed it up on this track. If the riff doesn’t get your head banging, I don’t know what will. “Warmth” is another good track on the LP. This particular track doesn’t get any more rock and roll, it’s about loving a girl but not falling prey to her rules or regulations, she’s going to have to love him on his terms. The lyrics speak volumes /you can’t keep me locked up, you know it’s wrong/I know you’re feelings are hurt/my feelings are gone/ I need love like a whole to the head/I’ll give you what I need my sugar-queen.

Many supposed ‘rock’ bands don’t last because they’re one dimensional, not Lloyd’s Garage, they’re a three-dimensional two-man band. - Indie Media Mag

blog me - http://thinkdeep.be/rusty/?p=1163

Lloyd’s Garage is near-pure homage to the uncomplicated rock of the late 60’s and early 70’s, kept real with the influence of soulful hill-country blues, some southern rock for good measure, and offers something that reels in all discerning listeners.

They have a lo-fi approach to what they do and that is what makes it different while also making it work. This group is good, old-fashioned rock and roll, heavy on the layered, fuzz-box/acoustic sound of the sixties but still able to put a modern, alternative spin on the old-school rock.

In this first full-length CD, LG dishes up their own distinct brand of down and dirty musical grit that keeps every track fresh.

LG will be touring in support of From the Comfort of Your Home in late spring/early summer 2010.
http://www.scrink.com/2010/03/19/not-your-average-lloyds-garage-band/ - Scrink.com

From one of my new favorite bands, Lloyd’s Garage, a bluesy, swampy, stripped-down rock duo from Northern California, here’s the debut video from their upcoming album, From The Comfort Of Your Home.
The fruition of a year’s worth of writing and recording new material, From The Comfort Of Your Home is set to rock the indie music world with frontman Seth Heitzmann’s swamp-blues-inspired riffing and Lloyd Llewelyn’s impeccable timekeeping, bringing some much needed dirty-classic rock to the scene.
The band’s minimalist two-piece approach is refreshing and their southern-fried sound has way more life than your favorite emo band or euro-electronic new wave rehash. Heitzmann’s growling vocals combined with the band’s raucous intonations will make you feel like alligator wrestlin’, workin’ on the ol’ Studebaker, or maybe just chewin’ tobacco in the back of a 4×4 while shootin’ tin cans off of fence posts. Serious rock, broken down to the bare essentials, guitar, drums and vocals. It don’t get more Garage than Lloyd’s Garage.

http://www.riders-union.com/index.php/category/blog/

- Riders-Union

Literally originating from the recesses of drummer Lloyd Llewelyn’s garage, this force of ’60s inspired garage-rock evokes a raw yet sophisticated sound that strongly resonates with a palpable energy, adamance, and polished songwriting that is hard to ignore.

Unsurprisingly, this Bay Area power duo, fronted by Seth Heitzmann and his burning soul, have established a solid following and are looking to continue this trend north of the California border.

Touring in support of their debut album, From The Comfort of Your Home, this up and coming twosome brings a gritty energy that keeps every performance fresh and original, making them a must-see act. If you are having trouble getting into the swing of spring, a night with Lloyd’s Garage will reinvigorate the budding and blooming going on inside your brain, and will no doubt indulge your inherent need to get wild.


http://oregonmusicnews.com/blog/2010/04/16/60s-garage-rock-duo-lloyds-garage-in-ashland-eugene-and-portland/ - Oregon Music News

Lloyd’s Garage Continue to Climb at Ash St.
by Sam Sanborn on April 21, 2010.

"...As they broke down their set, the game came to an end, perfectly timed for the beginning of Lloyd’s Garage’s set. After a thrilling win for the Blazers, there was no way to keep the energy up. I was mistaken.

From the first thunderous clap of the bass drum and the emphatic strum of the guitar, it was clear that this power-duo plays with an energy comparable to the Large Hadron Collider. Considering LG’s talent and material, at certain points in the set I was convinced that were there enough people present, bodies would have been colliding in a manner that would’ve greatly interested the physicists currently working on that massive scientific behemoth.

Playing songs off of their debut album, From The Comfort of Your Home, Lloyd’s Garage demonstrated a command of tempo changes, catchy melodies, and the stage presence necessary to pull off such energetic material with just two people. Reminiscent of The White Stripes, except with talented and innovative drumming alongside skillful songwriting, the pair ripped through a set that included their telltale tracks ”Factory Town” and “Return to Sender,” along with arguably the best running song on the planet: “Warmth.” Combine this with the rest of their album–a solid collection of ’60s garage-rock shred tinged with elements of Blues and Soul–and you have the recipe for a band that has earned the title “up and coming.”

With a two-piece band, both members must be multiple cogs of the music, constantly churning in order to produce a high-quality sound. These guys have this down in spades. Lloyd Llewelyn is a wild beast on the drums–the immediate comparison being Animal of Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem–and occasionally shows off solid skills playing keys. Seth Heitzmann pulls double duties as a lead guitarist/singer and has compiled a volume of interesting guitar riffs aptly addled with original fills and solos that bring the overall guitar work to a second level, a necessary to overcome the absence of a rhythm guitar. Then Heitzmann adds vocals that exhibit a great range of timbre and pitch, ultimately lending his lyrics a blues-y, soulful element that tears out of the speakers as fast as the notes off of the fretboard.

As the old adage goes: “Quality over quantity”. While the debate may rage for centuries, one thing is certain: Truer words have never been said about Lloyd’s Garage.

The Blazers may have stolen the limelight last Sunday, but the playoffs are fleeting (hopefully not too fleeting) and bands only come to town so often. Considering this, make sure to note the Bay Area duo’s next appearance, you’ll be glad you did."

http://oregonmusicnews.com/blog/2010/04/21/lloyds-garage-continue-to-climb-at-ash-st/ - Oregon Music News

If you ask most folks, the best thing from the Napa Valley is the wine. Especially around here where people like to sniff their own farts out of wine glasses while talking with their eyes closed, Napa means wine. If you didn’t get that, you need to watch more South Park. I’m not a big wine guy, so I could give two craps, but if you ask me, these guys are way better than any bottle of wine I’ve ever tasted.

Formed quite literally in Lloyd’s Garage – cool way to come up with a cool name – this two-piece consists of Seth Heiltzmann on guitar and vocals, and Lloyd Llewelyn on the drums and keys, sometimes together. I know that you’re thinking that since this is another two-piece they’re going to sound like The Black Keys, and The White Stripes, and I’d be a liar to say that they don’t have some of the same qualities. But LG has some different sounds that really set them apart from their aforementioned counterparts. My favorite thing about these guys is that they remind me a lot of another local favorite, Leopold and His Fiction when they were just two doods, roughly 4 years ago. They’ve got a little retro feel, a little extra attitude, smart and meaningful lyrics, and a little fuck-off garage band mixed in there that really gets my motor running.

“From the Comfort of Your Home” was released in January of this year, and it starts out with the title track that is a short, mellow number. Just some simple scratchy guitar, and some great lyrics about unwinding, and sitting comfortably at home.
From The Comfort of Your Home

I mentioned a few other bands earlier to whom these fellas have earned some well deserved comparisons. On “Suitcase” I hear some cool folky influences (probably the mandolin in the back) and some vocal passion that reminds be a bit of The Avett Brothers. This is a great track about hitting the road and not looking back.
Suitcase

Up to this point I’ve mostly mentioned slower, folkier tracks, but these guys are capable of some serious face meltage in the form of rock ‘n roll. Such talents are quite beautifully displayed in “the Devil, the Matchmaker.” Like a lot of the bands that we enjoy, this song is about a man going to great lengths to please a woman, and a bad woman at that.
the Devil, the Matchmaker

This next track I’m gonna feature is the last one on the album, and it’s definitely my favorite. “Goodbye” is a fitting title for the last track on the album, and the tune has such a rad feel. The keys in this one combined with some awesome guitar work and a catchy beat just combine to make some kind of a crazy molotov in my ears that explodes and spreads throughout my body. That’s what molotov cocktails do, dummy. This one will definitely get some hips shaking at a live show, and Seth really busts out some heavy vocals that make the hairs on the back of your neck stand-up. Let’s be honest, most Sundays suck, but the ones in the Summer time are actually pretty cool.
Goodbye

So if you can’t tell, I’m pretty stoked on this whole album. As I sat down to write this review I had a really tough time fighting the urge to write about every song on it. Each track has something different to offer, all taking different avenues to arrive at the same place – the corner of awesome and badass. That exists, googlemap that shit.

Okay, so see the links below to find out more about the band, buy the album, and catch a live show or two. I’m bummed to be out of town for next weekend’s show at the Red Devil Lounge, but you can bet your bottom dollar we’ll be at Cafe du Nord on September 11th.

But first, check out the kick-ass video they made for “Oh Lovely.” This is a great rocker about a car wreck and how it screws this dood up bigtime. - Front Porch Musings

Album: From the Comfort of Your Home
Artist: Lloyd’s Garage
Label: N/A
Released: January 29, 2010
Genre: Rock
*Sub-genres Blues-rock, garage rock
Sounds like: A lil’ bit of Black Keys, a little bit of Grateful Dead, with a touch of Jet. Maybe some Stone Temple Pilots too for good measure.

It’s always cool when we get to highlight a band fresh off their debut and just beginning to pick up steam. So this week is a particularly special week for yours truly as I get to introduce you all to Lloyd’s Garage, a band out of California with a surprisingly defined sound and some pretty promising aspirations.

When you first tune into their debut album From the Comfort of Your Home you’ll be greeted with the title track which sets a really particular tone for the album. It simultaneously leaves the road wide enough to make way for the various styles the group will cycle through in the following 10 tracks while giving the audience enough of a feel for the band that you know what kind of a ride you’re in for. It’s actually quite a catchy little tune, presented with a “tuning into the radio” twist, that is one of the highlights of the album.

The composition of the album, simple as it may be (we’re talkin’ blues-rock duo a la The Black Keys) does enough to set itself apart while not straying so far away as to become abstract. The guitar can be very loud and crunchy as heard in Warmth and very bass-y and blues-y as heard in Factory Town. Meanwhile the drums follow suit in a wicked display of coordination and rhythm. When appropriate the drums are loud and thunderous utilizing a lot of simple bass hits and cymbals almost reminiscent of Meg White of The White Stripes. Other times they are more restrained and defined utilizing the bass, toms, and snare to put emphasis on the beat. And finally the vocals play between a very laid back and melodic tone to the intense delivery of a garage rock jam session. When it’s all said and done there’s something very interesting at work and while it may sound familiar to any fan of blues-rock it’s still performed well enough to excite the senses.



Overall From the Comfort of Your Home is an extremely promising beginning for the band. While the territory isn’t uncharted the manner in which the territory is covered is what makes the album worth checking out. Lloyd’s Garage is a duo with a unique ability to cover a caveat of sounds and styles without losing anything in the process. Something that even the modern legends like The Black Keys and The White Stripes had to work several years and put out several albums to attain. With any luck the duo will take this skill, find their stride, and gain all the attention they deserve. Definitely recommended.

Personal favorite tracks: Factory Town, Goodbye, From the Comfort of Your Home

TLDR: Exceptional bluess-rock from an exceptional blue-rock duo. Give ‘em a shot why don’t ya?

Shameless promotion fun time!: You can find more about Lloyd's Garage as well as buy their album for a mere $8 at their official site. Special thanks to Chrysti of Platform One Entertainment for tipping us off to them and hooking us up! - Destructoid - Stereotoid

"It’s amazing what you can do with a good-ol guitar, trusty drum set and some killer vocals. The White Stripes have done it before but, damn, the results you get from such minimalist instrumentation never cease to impress don’t it?

Off-handed yet heavy, From The Comfort Of Your Home is revamped 60’s rock, all hair-raising boisterous and beer-soaked gritty garage music with the punch of a Southern rock twang. Frontman Seth Heitzmann’s pipes - intuitively carnal and sharply commanding, with a swaggering panache of a Caleb Followill growl – greases the woofing guitar lines and rollicking drummings (courtesy of Lloyd Llewelyn) like coupling mayhem to mischief. Mixing garage and Southern rock is the predominant vibe in their debut album, played to fan-boy ecstasy in a plethora of tracks like “The Devil, The Matchmaker”, “Return to Sender”, “No Victim” and “Factory Town” all of which display Lloyd’s Garage’s knack for amplifying rock melodies and letting them go wild, as one note chases another in a rapturous firework of crackling mettle.

There’s also a welcomed deviant in the form of The Gaslight Anthem styled country punk in “Suitcase” with some interesting string work that breaks away from the sonic texture of previous numbers, unveiling a lighter, carefree side of the album. One of my personal favourites is “Warmth” - an ode to classic hard rock, made pure and simple as theatrical, syncopated guitar lines head-bangs to the ferocity of Heitzmann’s naturally magnetic snarl. While From the Comfort of Your Home works as an entertaining assortment of genres, it shows little promise of a defining sound; in other words, what it’s truly lacking is – here comes the much-dreaded word – originality. The good news is this: the boys are clearly serious about their music and they do this with a good rhythmic balance of light and heavy, fast and slow, executed with a versed hand; and in the midst of it all, they seem to be having a helluva time going at it.

From The Comfort Of Your Home is available on iTunes and
Lloyd’s Garage has already got a list of tour dates in support of their debut album, so check them out if they're playing at a location near you."
- Noah Toh - Blogger.com