A true underground phenomenon, Lotus has built an army of fans worldwide with their show stopping performances and the international success of their three albums (Nomad, Germination, Strength of Weak Ties). Lotus, Steve Clemens, Jesse Miller, Luke Miller, Chuck Morris and Mike Rempel, formed in 1999. Through non-stop touring, Lotus’ astonishing instrumental tracks quickly garnered a huge and loyal fan base. This lead to their 2002 debut album, Vibes, recorded live in concert during the fall of 2001. The first pressing of Vibes sold out the same year. Follow-up albums released on Harmonized Records – Vibes (2003) and Nomad (2004) – cemented Lotus’ close-knit relationship with their fans and provided a taste of what was soon to come.

The Strength Of Weak Ties (released April 2006) went deeper exploring where the familiar meets foreign – glitch-hop programming with rock ‘n’ roll drums, overdriven guitars with overdriven synths, primitive drum machines with funky backbeats, and post-rock with electronica.

“Musically, we wanted this album to contrast raw and dirty sounds like guitar feedback, roomy sounding drums, with obviously electronic sounds like drum machines, and analog synths,” says Luke Miller. “We worked to give it a loose yet tight feel; have the details of a headphone trip, but still rock out.”

“Lotus has always tip-toed the tight rope that is drawing on multiple genres – slip one way and it’s a haphazard melting pot; fall to the other and you get a diluted derivative; but hang on and you can find something new,” Luke adds. “I think The Strength of Weak Ties digs deeper into musical connections than ever before; it is simultaneously more introspective and more of an unbridled rock out.”

Lotus’ The Strength of Weak Ties Tour 2006 hit most major markets in USA and earned the band sold outs show across the country. As in summers past, Lotus hit the festival circuit and performed in front of thousands of music fans at some of best festivals in the country including High Sierra, Wakarusa, WXPN’s All About the Music Fest in Philadelphia, as well as the Green Room Festival in Yokohoma, Japan. Using this momentum Lotus’s fall tour saw the band moving into bigger and better venues and crowds amassing from coast to coast. Lotus capped off a stellar year by playing an impressive four day new years eve run that included 2 shows in Denver, a set at String Cheese Incident’s Sea of Dreams event in San Francisco, and a proper year ending show in Pittsburgh.

Never a band to slow down, Lotus debuted 12 new songs since the release of The Strength of Weak Ties building on the ideas of the album while still pushing into uncharted musical waters. Sold Out shows in 2007 include NYC’s legendary Bowery Ballroom

About the New Album
Culled from multi-track recordings on Lotus’s 2006 fall tour, Escaping Sargasso Sea captures the band’s explosive sound and exploratory improvisation. Featuring classic fan favorites and some of the most recent Lotus compositions this 2-disc album takes a snapshot of an ever evolving band fusing post-rock, dance, and jam.

Escaping Sargasso Sea includes electrifying live takes on three tracks from Lotus’s studio albums: “When H Binds to O” from The Strength of Weak Ties and “Jump Off” and “Greet the Mind” from Nomad. Disc One is comprised of newer Lotus compositions including the live powerhouse “Wax” and the guitar and electric piano driven “Wooly Mammoth”. Disc Two focuses on classic Lotus tracks anchored by three song sequence of “It’s All Clear to Me Now” into “Sunrain” into “Flower Sermon” and back to “Sunrain”.