Bonny Doon release “Let There Be Music,” the jovial title track from their recently announced new album, out June 16th via ANTI- Records.

“We’re really attracted to simplicity. We’re always trying to reduce an idea to its essence, but this one was so simple that it felt like it was pushing that practice farther, which was exciting to us,” Bobby Colombo explains. “We’ve rarely had as much fun tracking a song, and I think that’s probably how it became the title track. It just felt like the energetic center.”

“Let There Be Music,” is perhaps the most unabashedly affirming song Bonny Doon has created to date. Driven again by piano and Kmiecik’s elated drumming style, the song pairs a simple melody with a simple sentiment – the power of music. While there is plenty of humor and nuance to be found in the lyrics elsewhere on the record, Colombo and Lennox treat this matter with childlike earnestness. By the end of the song, the band is playing it fast and loose, cutting friend Michael Malis free on the piano to crescendo in joyful exuberance. In both its sincerity and simplicity, “Let There Be Music” reflects the essence of Bonny Doon. 

In the past five years Bonny Doon has shifted from being a Detroit band to an outfit spread between California and Michigan, and now Michigan and New York. Despite the new challenge of distance, members Bill Lennox (guitar and vocals), Bobby Colombo (guitar and vocals), and Jake Kmiecik (drums) leaned on their friendship to sustain the collaboration, which has blossomed more than ever on their third album. While many songwriters work in solitude, the back and forth magic of Colombo and Lennox’s process is what gives Bonny Doon their unique voice. The two write and compose each song together, planning writing retreats throughout the year – to gather ideas, edit songs, and give each other feedback, continuing to dedicate themselves to the collaborative effort of being a songwriting team.

On their long-awaited third album, we get a glimpse into the pure joy of Bonny Doon. The album serves as less of one conceptual story, and each song as their own Individual offerings of putting words to the ordinary experience of being alive. The band is at their most dynamic and the songwriting deftly explores new terrain. Let There Be Music is brimming with small truths – both profound and mundane, comforting and difficult – and we are invited to revel in them all.

Photo Courtesy: Andi Kerr