Lumagrove, a duo made of UNF students, set the stage June 14 at the 1904 bar motivated to change the way people view electronic music.
Ryan Tinney, an electronic media senior, contributes the drums and Max Zargon, an advertising senior, adds the programming and guitar. With their electro-ambient music, the two try to maintain a balance between organic and inorganic music, including their laptop as well as live instrumentation.
“A lot of people say if you play this type of music, you’re just pushing buttons and pushing play,” Tinney said. “We don’t want any confusion about that. We want to be as organic as possible but still have it inorganic.”
Lumagrove stands for balance, said Tinney. The name was created with the words illuminate and grove and symbolizes earthy-organic things, emphasizing the blend of electronic and live music.
Lumagrove began in late 2011 when Tinney and Zargon met from mutual friends and began to jam together.
“His friend lived three blocks from my house and I played down there,” Tinney said. “They had an electronic drum kit and we messed around for a while and it clicked.”
Tinney began playing guitar in middle school and drums in high school. Zargon played bass in jazz band, and has dabbled in guitar and drums as well.
“I’m more deep rooted in bass and keys and I guess what I provide in the band is more of like a melody and a lead, and Tinney’s definitely a rhythm guy,” Zargon said.
The set up for their practice can be very intricate and it can take multiple days to work on a chorus. Zargon uses three of four different softwares and can spend hours sitting in front of computers editing effects, filters and plug-ins.
“I’m bad with computers, but when it comes to music programs it’s like I’ve found my niche,” Zargon said.
Although Tinney and Zargon sometimes jam out to make their music, from time to time they work separately, then come together to critique their music.
Zargon said Tinney is the “idea man” and the voice of reason in the band.
“I can’t function without Ryan,” he said, adding that the two would make terrible music individually, but balance each other “like a ying and yang.”
In an attempt to qualify to play in Jacksonville SuperFest, Lumagrove performed their first show January 24 at the Mellow Mushroom in Southside. Although Lumagrove placed second, they didn’t let that discourage them.
“We had probably 60 of our friends there and it was great support for the first show,” Tinney said. “From then on it just kind of got some momentum.”
Lumagrove released their first EP, “High Hopes,” in January, experimenting with rhythm, dub step and ambiance.
Although no one had heard their first batch of songs, Tinney and Zargon felt confident about the releasing their first EP and decided to make another one after receiving positive responses, said Tinney.
Before moving to Jacksonville in November, Zargon lived between Orlando and Miami. He stayed in Jacksonville because of the variety in music and venues.
Tinney said there is a good music scene in Jacksonville.
“If you’re good at it, they’ll take you anywhere here, which is pretty nice,” he said. “The downtown scene seems to be getting pretty popular so it’s just cool to be a part of it.”
Lumagrove has played in Landshark Café, Jack Rabbits, 1904, and hope to play at Suwannee music park.
Tinney said Lumagrove is going to concentrate more on their performance on stage with lights and stage props, but they are now in the process of defining their sound.
“Cyclicity,” Lumagrove’s first album, is expected to come out in the spring of next year, and Lumagrove anticipates their second EP to be complete by the end of the year.
All of the music Lumagrove makes is free and available online on Sound Cloud and their website, Lumagroove.com.
Lumagrove’s next show is August 18 at Roosevelt 2.0 in Tampa with Red Feather and Poetry ‘n Lotion.
