Formed in 2019, Lifeguard are Asher Case (bass, vocals), Isaac Lowenstein (drums, percussion), and Kai Slater (guitar, vocals). At its core, Lifeguard is a punk band. Their music is loud and energetic. It’s also, at its core, visceral and hypnotic. For the Chicago-based trio that can include repetition and blasts of speaker cone-shredding feedback. Their songs adeptly balance melody and chaos, rhythm and drone. Hooks and noise are held to the same standard. Both have to stick.
They’re a young band, but they’ve already found a place at the forefront of an important emerging music community in their hometown. They are quite prolific. In just three years, Lifeguard has put out a full-length, two EPs, and two 7” singles.
With two EPs out, one a reissue and one featuring original material—via their new label home of Matador Records, the Chicago rockers share some of their favourite bite-sized jams. So far in 2023, Matador Records is really proving the scope of their mission by releasing albums by one of the biggest contemporary rock outfits in the world and a pair of oddball New Yorkers who are probably more surprised than you are at the contract they signed with the massively influential indie label. Similar to that latter group, local-hero Chicago youngsters Lifeguard inked a deal with Matador at the beginning of the year, joining their friends in one of last year’s biggest breakout acts Horsegirl on their roster.
Taken from “Dressed in Trenches,” the new EP from Lifeguard out now on Matador Records.
As their first order of business, Asher Case, Isaac Lowenstein, and Kai Slater are re-issuing last summer’s “Crowd Can Talk” EP (originally released by local faves Born Yesterday Records) along with a new collection of material in the form of the five-song “Dressed in Trenches” EP, both releases conveying the band’s penchant for the type of messy, driving noise rock Matador built its reputation on in the ’90s.
“Crowd Can Talk” and “Dressed in Trenches” are closely related. They were recorded in separate sessions, but at the same studio (Electrical Audio) and with the same engineer (Mike Lust) and within the space of 12 months. Each finds the band refining its voice – honing songs that are succinct, hooky, and propulsive. There’s a newly disciplined attention to detail. Lifeguard write together through collaboration and improvisation, but they’ve learned to streamline their sound, to make each hook, beat, and gesture purposeful.
On each record, there are echoes of underground guitar bands from decades past. This is not record-collector music, though. It’s the product of a present-day community. Lifeguard are, first and foremost, a performing band and the songs are written to stand up in that moment.
The Fat Angel Sings 