Lotus Child was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band formed in 2003 from

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. The band members were notable figures in the Canadian music scene after the release of their second record "Gossip Diet" in 2006. Zachary Gray, the singer/guitarist and Tom Dobrzanski, the keyboardist/producer/singer were the founding members of Lotus Child, but the group’s increased popularity came with the addition of Peter Carruthers on bass and Miles Bruce on drums.

History

Zachary Gray and Tom Dobrzanski have been collaborating since they were teenagers in the British Columbia Boys' Choir. Gray and Dobrzanski were inspired by artists like

Smashing Pumpkins Smash may refer to: People * Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler * Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above. * DJ Smash, DJ and music producer Art, ...

Jeff Buckley Jeffrey Scott Buckley (November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997), raised as Scott Moorhead, was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. After a decade as a session guitarist in Los Angeles, Buckley amassed a following in the early 1990s by ...

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, and

Muse In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in the ...

. In 2003 Gray and Dobrazanski joined Shaun Connery, Karl Von Beckmann, and Bradley Dean and started performing in local Vancouver venues. They released their first record – a self-titled EP in 2004, and continued to play local sell-outs at venues such as: the Mesa Luna Nightclub, The Backstage Lounge, and The Media Club. Audience reaction was very positive, and Lotus Child became a popular part of the Vancouver indie scene that began to spread across Canada. Lotus Child had a rearranging of band members, and so with the addition of Carruthers and Bruce to the original duo the band began working on their second album.

''Gossip Diet''

In 2006, they released ''Gossip Diet'', which sold thousands of copies and garnered positive reviews. A ''

Georgia Straight ''The Georgia Straight'' is a free Canadian weekly news and entertainment newspaper published in Vancouver, British Columbia, by Overstory Media Group. Often known simply as ''The Straight'', it is delivered to newsboxes, post-secondary schools, ...

'' review stated that, "this intelligent, immaculately arranged, piano-infused alt-pop…befits a disc put out by a major label (or at least a decent-sized indie), so it's surprising that this is a self-released effort". A major contributor to this album was producer

Howard Redekopp Howard Redekopp is a Canadian Juno Award-winning record producer, mixer, writer, musician, and recording engineer best known for his work with Tegan and Sara and La Gusana Ciega. Redekopp's production work has received two Grammy Award nominat ...

, who has worked with groups such as Tegan and Sara, The New Pornographers and 54-40. This album was recorded in two Vancouver based studios: Warehouse Studio and Vertical Studios, and it features a blend of sing-along harmonies, piano interludes, and catchy guitar riffs. Many of the tracks on ''Gossip Diet'' include politically charged lyrics, which Dobraznski explains is because the album is "about the gossip industry and their consumers manipulation of famous people for their own satisfaction… and it’s a frustrated hissy-fit in reaction to government nepotism" (Mah, 2006). The album’s single, "The Archaeologists" has an upbeat tempo that carries through the entire track; however the lyrics take on a more serious and political tone. Following the release of ''Gossip Diet'', Lotus Child went on a busy Canada-wide tour that included openers for bands like Apostle of Hustle, Mother Mother, Memphis and events such as NXNE and Canadian Music Week.

Band members

Zachary Gray and Tom Dobrzanski began their musical careers in the British Columbia Boys' Choir. Together they started writing simple guitar and piano songs, and recording them on Gray's father's 4-track player. Tom Dobrzanski has a degree in business and has studied audio engineering. Dobrzanski is the pianist and vocalist in Lotus Child. He is also a musical engineer, producer, composer, and multi-instrumentalist. Dobrzanski owns and manages Vertical Studios, where parts of ‘Gossip Diet’ was recorded. Lotus Child have opened for such Vancouver-based bands as

Marianas Trench The Mariana Trench is an oceanic trench located in the western Pacific Ocean, about east of the Mariana Islands; it is the deepest oceanic trench on Earth. It is crescent-shaped and measures about in length and in width. The maximum known ...

Hey Ocean! Hey Ocean! is a Canadian indie alternative rock and synthpop band formed in 2004 in Vancouver. David Beckingham and Ashleigh Ball had been friends since grade 6, joining with David Vertesi in the 2000s to form the band. The band consists of Ashlei ...

and The Painted Birds. Gray and Dobrzanski are now part of the band

The Zolas The Zolas are a Canadian indie rock band based in Vancouver and are signed to Light Organ Records. The band was formed by duo Zachary Gray (vocals/guitar) and Tom Dobrzanski (piano/keyboards/backing vocals), with various session musicians support ...

Discography

Singles

*"Marlboro Friday" ''Lotus Child EP'' (2003) *"

Archaeologists Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...

" (2006)

EPs

*''The Lotus Child EP'' (2003)

Albums

*''

Gossip Diet Lotus Child was a Canadian indie rock band formed in 2003 from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The band members were notable figures in the Canadian music scene after the release of their second record "Gossip Diet" in 2006. Zachary Gray, th ...

'' (2006)

References

External links

''The Georgia Straight'' album reviews

Beatroute Magazine – Lotus Child

Gossip Diet Track List

'Can't Buy Love' Music Video
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lotus Child Musical groups established in 2003 Musical groups disestablished in 2009 Canadian indie rock groups Musical groups from Vancouver 2003 establishments in British Columbia 2009 disestablishments in British Columbia