Songs of Eli

Set to release their first full-length record in April, 2013, Sioux Falls, S.D., Songs of Eli, has been peppering Midwest radio stations with their light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel anthems.

Some musicians are just naturally talented.
The front man of Sioux Falls, S.D., rock band, Songs of Eli, wasn’t. “My older brother had a band and they always practiced in our basement,” Eli Klimchuk said. “So I grew up around musicians, watching them and wanting to be like them.”

After a three year stint on the violin in elementary school, he started learning drums. Then at 15 he picked up the bass, and eventually graduated to guitar. However, even though he grew up around musicians, Eli said he wasn’t influenced by their encouragement but rather their discouragement.

“They motivated me in a different way because they told me I was terrible,” Eli said, then paused. “And I was terrible. But it was just this dream I always had. That only motivated me to work hard and get better.”

Fast forward five years, and add a couple of buddies from church brothers Andre and Vadim Sushchik, on drums and bass. Songs of Eli initially starts as a three-piece, church band-turned-rock band. It became a four-piece in winter, 2012, with the addition of Paul Pinos.

Their single, “Brace Yourself”, gives the listener redemption in external conflict, while their single, “Save me”, reflects internal conflict. It gives a slight nod to his initial fight to rise above.

“It’s a theme everyone can relate to,” Eli said. “We all have struggles that we fight, but I think part of the victory comes, not so much in achieving your dream, but in rising above what’s trying to stop you.”