Every once in a while we could use some good old jazzy music in our lives, which makes Everything Is Noise so happy to present Lilly Legit today! The trio from Osnabrück plays a smooth, yet stylish mix of jazz, emotional, piano-driven rock and mathy, jangly tunes. Consisting of Benjamin Günther (piano), Nils Weber (bass), Aaron Deux (drums), these folks haven’t been a band for long, but the project has existed for some time now.
To start off, Lilly Legit is quite an interesting name for a band, but the reason Benjamin chose it is rather simple: he liked the sound of band names that sound like a real person’s name.
Growing up, Benjamin listened to his father playing the guitar at night and composing all kinds of different music. At the age of six, he began taking piano lessons, though he was always more interested in creating his own music than just repeating existing works. As a teen, Benjamin discovered the wonderful world of math rock and later on got into music production. These events helped shape the sound of what Lilly Legit has become. You can easily hear those influences in the odd grooves, melancholic atmospheres, and grandiose changes in their music, but there is more to it.
There is certain grit to their tunes, even though their music lacks any kind of distortion. This may be due to Nils and Aaron, who both count myriads of metal bands among their influences. Nils played trumpet in school and took piano lessons, but also got into DJing and producing music. In school, he would also meet Benjamin, who’d ask him to play some parts on his early releases before joining full-time. Aaron on the other hand took drum lessons early and went on to play in every band he could while still in school. After graduating, he met Nils who eventually introduced him to the band.
But what does Lilly Legit‘s music actually sound like? It’s an elegant whirlwind of noir jazz and forward-thinking math rock. While earlier works consist more of electronic music, their current records sound more analog and warm. Oftentimes, their music has a certain twist to it, evolving in patterns one could describe as strange or unforeseeable, but this makes up a lot of the charisma the band has.
I would liken their music to a stripped-down approach of Tigran Hamasyan with some early 2000s math rock bands thrown in here and there, like TTNG or And So I Watch You From Afar. The band commented that most of these songs come together in little improvised segments at the start of every rehearsal, though some tracks have been in the making for a long time and have seen multiple iterations over the years.
When asked about their favorite experiences during live shows the band members answered:
Benjamin: ‘I like seeing people moving to our songs. Especially if they don’t know them. We can surprise them with parts you maybe wouldn’t expect.’
Aaron: ‘Having the whole room sing one melody and experiencing the music together would be my favorite moment.’
Nils: ‘The best concerts are those with a focused audience. It’s funny when people dance to our music because of the odd time signatures. But it’s a good sign!‘
We thank Lilly Legit for their time to answer our questions and for making some great music.
