Front Porch Lights

The newest single from Cleveland based Front Porch Lights, “Go On Ahead” traffics in the kind of mid-tempo Americana that we’ve been sorely missing. While the whole track has an air of light buoyancy – it’s front man Conor Standish’s linen like voice that makes the song magic. His soft melody pushes the track forward, adding emotional depth and surprising softness at every turn. Of the track Standish says:

“‘Go On Ahead’ was written right before I took a road trip to California to record the first Front Porch Lights EP. It was the first time I was going on a long trip for music. Obviously, a music career relies heavily on traveling and there are so many stories and songs of bands going on the road. There aren’t any songs that I’ve heard about the other side of the story – the loved ones who are staying at home. This song is about that perspective and how, as difficult as it is to send a loved one away, if it’s for the right reason, it’s important to be supportive.”

‘Go On Ahead’ is off the band’s new EP of the same name and if it’s anything like the song, it will be some comfort rock you cannot miss. - The Wild Honey Pie

Fronted by Conor Standish the indie rock quintet of Front Porch Lights have just released their new EP Go On Ahead, produced by Jim Stewart (Welshly Arms, Lighthouse, The Whaler) in Cleveland.

The new music of Front Porch Lights is much more humble, reflective and intimate than previous crowd funding campaigns that saw a whole lot of underpant action. This is singer-songwriter work in a pretty high order, as Americana and smooth tempos explore themes of small scale, that carry the burdens and blessings of the world at large. Smart, incisive and incredibly melodic, Front Porch Lights are a band worth keeping an ear on.

ARTISTdirect invited Conor Standish to introduce the new EP, and to offer some perspective on the inception, construction, and delivery of the project. Here’s what he said...

Conor Standish:

“This EP is a tribute to togetherness – being with friends and family, thinking you’re completely alone when you’re not, being another sheep in the herd, standing together for what’s right, letting a loved one go for a while but knowing you’ll be together again, allowing someone in that can push you to be better, or simply cracking open a cold one with your boys on a Saturday. We all have struggles and it’s a constant battle telling ourselves that we’re not the only ones going through something. Social media constantly reminds us of how “perfect” everyone else’s lives are and that can tend to bottle us up and question our entire existence. That’s a crock of shit and we’re out to prove it.

The first Front Porch Lights album was done with hired guns in California in 2015, so this is the first EP with the new band. We all hang out a bunch outside of playing music and have become great friends, which we think comes through in these songs and in our live shows. We look at this group of songs as a fresh start in a direction of what we want our music to sound like and what we want it to stand for. We recorded this EP with Jim Stewart at his brand new studio, Superior Sound. We were the very first band to record there, with the smell of paint and cedar wood in the air. It added another level of new beginnings and we couldn’t be happier with how it all went. “

Article written by Trix Ahmad - ARTISTdirect

Sometimes, you need a little spring kick to start your summer, and Front Porch Lights newest EP literally say, “Go On Ahead”. They completely hail back the alt-rock of the 90’s that was all about summer, friends, and good parties. They have, basically, made a spiritual pre-game that lightens your soul to move past the door to a ‘good time”, you have been begging to have. but have never gone to.

Instrumentally, Front Porch Lights are purely light. They truly want to be like front porch lights, and laminate how you enter the home of your heart and mind. Tracks like, “IFolk”, which, according to lead singer Conor Standish, is about questioning whether “ you doing are something to sculpt your beliefs and become a better person or are you just waiting for someone or something to do it for you?” With the internet being such powerful tool, do you uses it make yourself more empowered. His questions of empowerment are valid and important to how he emotes his lyrics as prompts and pleas to the listeners to truly observe how he or she is staying motivated to be the best person he or she can be. It is a sincere cause, and explains why there is not one song that will not have their concert audience singing along and clapping. “Go On Ahead” has a hook that just begs for a round of people to cheer in repetition, and “Waiting For A Miracle”, simply, feels good. Frankly, the whole album, even “Down Baby” or “It’ll Pass” has this unbridled optimism to it that makes their darkest lyrics feels like a gray hue rather than pitch black. Hence, my stern belief that their record was made with performance in mind. Some artists, intelligently, think of their music before a crowd, and wonder how they can best convey what is in their heart and mind to share with an audience. Front Porch Lights do not believe in music as an insular, intimate affair unless it includes a mass collective, which might be the most empowering thought to have. - Diandra Reviews It All

Being involved in the Columbus music scene, you hear about bands that come through town and leave a impression on the crowd. Front Porch Lights is one of those bands.

I had heard about them first through a Facebook invite to a show at Tree Bar. Then again, from a friend who wanted to travel up to Lakewood, OH for their Release show. So, when I was asked to review their EP, I was definitely excited.

Front Porch Lights is a Cleveland band just getting into their stride with their upcoming EP "Go On Ahead."

I found myself smiling as soon as "Waiting on a Miracle" started up (the first track on the album). It comes in smooth and builds beautifully into a rocking chorus and bridge that kicks hard. I can hear this as a sound track to a top-down cruise of High St or a sunny patio brunch in the Short North.

The title track, "Go On Ahead," is pleasant, sweet and sits well as the second track on the EP. A very mature song of patience in love that makes you feel all the hope and light that it carries.
"Down Baby" is a rocker with a bounce to it that makes you wanna shake and bob your head. "iFolk" is one that really shows the width of the bands musicianship with a change style which, if the name didn't give it away, dips into what I imagine are the roots of some of the bands influences.

Lastly, my favorite track is the enormous, heavy and monumental, "It'll Pass." I can't really express how much I appreciate this one. After listening to the EP a few times over, I found my self stuck. If I am completely honest, I listened to it five or six times.

Front Porch Lights is able to leave you hanging onto each musical moment and pull you up with a solid vocal note consistently throughout the colelction of songs. It's solid and sounds of a band who understands themselves as well as their instruments.

"Go On Ahead" EP will be released digitally on Friday, June 9th.

Article by Alex D - In The Record Store

Rising Cleveland indie Americana rock group Front Porch Lights will be releasing their second EP Go On Ahead this June. The band consists of six members, one being the official mascot of the band Chuckles, the laughing garden gnome. “Waiting On A Miracle” is one of the singles leading up to the anticipated EP, and we’ve got the exclusive premiere

This single is a folk rock anthem – leaning more toward that classic rock feel – calling upon frustration being experienced because of society’s current instability. Frontman Conor Standish had this to say about “Waiting On A Miracle”: “It’s a strange time for human beings. Even with the age of the internet there is so much that’s unknown – partly because of misrepresentation of the truth and partly because people are too lazy to utilize the internet properly and do their own research… This doesn’t just relate to what’s going on politically but it relates to our every day lives. Are you doing something to sculpt your beliefs and become a better person or are you just waiting for someone or something to do it for you?”

Article by Ian Schneider - Impose Magazine

Cleveland, Ohio quintet Front Porch Lights have released a little folksy-alternative EP gem that will have a substantial impact as the band moves forward. Go On Ahead, a crowd-funded five-track EP, is composed of feel-good, stomp-your- feet, and drink-a- beer singles that are quick to make a fan out of even the most casual of listeners.

Led by lead-singer and rhythm guitarist Conor Standish, Front Porch Light’s Go On Ahead is a small collection of what’s genuine about indie-rock. A 20-minute EP brimming of deep thought-out lyrics channeled through dynamic strings and horns and an optimistic sense that everything will be just fine.

The EP, though only 5-tracks deep, takes the audience through a rollercoaster of emotions that range from upbeat and danceable on “iFolk” – which invites one to drop all cares in the world and party like no-one is looking – to laid-back namesake “Go On Ahead” and wearing your heart on your sleeve, without sounding cliché or cheesy.

Collectively Go On Ahead is the work of five guys that seem to truly care about finding a constructive balance between artistry and mass appeal. Front Porch Lights has released an attention-grabbing EP; and inserted in us a yearning for what’s to come from the ‘Rock-n- Roll Capital of the World’ quintet.

By Andres Alvarado - Volume Magazine

Front Porch Lights’ name evokes a comforting familiarity, and their music is appropriately warm. - Sawdust & Gin

Front Porch Lights’ new single, “Waiting On A Miracle,” is about modern American life and how, despite facing tremendous adversity, we always stay hopeful that better things are around the corner. Bad economy, can’t find a job, troubles at home? Don’t give up, keep waiting on a miracle! The song is catchy and upbeat, featuring plenty of piano and guitar riffs to keep things interesting, all being led by a strong vocal performance from the band’s front man Conor Standish. It was tracked and mixed entirely at the bands home studio, Red Attic Studios, in Lakewood, Ohio.

Front Porch Lights vibe register as an emo track riddled with the midwestern scenery. The single, “Waiting On A Miracle”, is partially inspired by recent Cleveland events like the Cavaliers winning a Championship for the first time in over 52 years, and the Republican National Convention being in town, and the current political climate that is following. - New Noise Magazine

This new music project was launched by Conor Standish of Burning River Ramblers renown. Front Porch Lights leans into the moodier side of Standish’s songwriting. (You may recall the contemplative “Where We Were At” > “I’m No Ghost” pairing from the Ramblers’ 2013 album. Take those feelings and light them gently like a candle; Front Porch Lights is music for dim lighting.) The EP’s opening track, “Blue Eyes and Red Poison” casts Standish’s voice across washes of guitar and deep keys. From there, the album dances across a dynamic range of moods and colors; “Kill ‘em with the Kindness” borrows from the poppier side of today’s electronic music, and “On a Little Screen” sounds like it could be a more soulful cover of a Ramblers tune. (Eric Sandy) - Cleveland Scene