by Janelle Engle
If you take one part whimsical, two parts nerdy and a whole lot of love you get a good idea of what ‘The Ones You Loved are all about. This husband and wife pairing, Tyler & Camille De Larm from Dallas, Texas have a way with playful electronic rhythms combined with lyrics that are both soft hearted and honest. What’s really special about this band is their dedication to their fans, music and staying true to their self proclaimed nerdy selves. All of which I discussed with one part of the married couple, Tyler De Larm who writes and sings for The Ones You Loved.
On their most recent album, Night Owls, De Larm tells us the sound takes on a much happier direction than their previous release of The Siren, The Spectre from about two years ago. “The Siren, The Spectre, I wrote when Camille was away. We’ve been dating for a couple years and it was a really depressing time for me. Looking back on it, I was writing about my future spouse being gone all the time. It wasn’t a very happy album,” he says about the band’s first release. “Night Owls is a reinvented sound, I use a lot more synthetic instruments on the album and it has a much happier feel to it.”
While it definitely is a uplifting album, Night Owls is also a unique indie-electronic album that develops in various stages. Don’t be fooled by the pop opening number that makes you want to dance, Night Owls will take you through a dreamy mix of emotions with rhythms and unique vocals as the couple blend harmonies. Personally, my favorite on the album is ‘All I Can Say’ which is an uplifting track that shares theatrical elements with that of fun. The album would appeal to fans of The Postal Service and Tegan and Sara but overall, The Ones You Loved stand out on Night Owls with a signature refreshing sound from the start to finish.
(credit Alisa Volpi)
The band is also doing their part to give back, whether its with 70% of the proceeds of their first album The Siren, Spectre going toward St Jude’s Children’s Hospital or simply being a positive reinforcement to their fans. “I am a huge fan of positivity through music, I think bands need to take their message very seriously and a lot of bands out there don’t realize people take their lyrics to heart. I am always very conscious of that while writing,” says De Larm. Even though The Siren, Spectre was written during a not so happy time of his life, he still focuses on the positivity coming out from that experience. “People should understand everybody has their high times and low times but overall, life is good and it all comes full circle.”
In case you are in the middle of one of your low times, The Ones You Loved are always here to talk to you about the good and the bad after their show, something that De Larm considers learning the stories their fans have a valuable part of being on the road as a musician. “I think that artists who don’t take the time to talk to their fans don’t take the time to enjoy what they do,” he says. His favorite part of tour oftentimes is hearing stories from the fans.
If you’d like to chat or dance with The Ones You Loved at their next show, you’ll be happy to know that they will be hitting the east coast shortly with exciting projects in the works, including several national tours this summer. But be warned, if you plan on going to their show, you should expect some “really nerdy dancing,” says De Larm. “I take it to the extreme and expect others to do the same.”
If you are having a good time, that’s what it’s all about…which is pretty much what the band itself seems to stand for- having fun, staying positive and being yourself.
