Local band Fox Harbor stands apart not just for their sound, but their attention to songwriting.
The group is new among Toledo bands, but after winning three 2014 Best of Toledo awards by vote—Best Band, Best New Act and Best Singer—they’re primed for serious success.
Fox Harbor’s vocalist, Nathan Cogan, is a touring guitarist for post-hardcore group Taking Back Sunday, and currently resides in Nashville—this is why the band’s Facebook page lists the city as their hometown. But despite their connections to the Tennessee scene, Cogan, guitarist Matt Beier and vocalist Claire Cooper are Toledo natives.
“We want to bring something more to the table in our region,” Beier said in a February 16 interview. He emphasized the importance of Toledo’s collaborative music scene, citing local musicians Joe Woods and Calen Savidge as examples. “We don’t compete, or try to take over a stage . . . musicians are here to help each other, and that’s the new school of thinking,” he explained. “We just want to be in front of people who are there to play, or listen to the music, and not just drink and watch the game . . . Toledo is getting close to that, and it’s the tipping point.”
The band’s February album release party at Martini and Nuzzi’s brought attention to their newest effort, Because of You, I. The five-track EP showcases Claire Cooper’s bright vocals and the laid-back, folky harmonization—a spot-on pairing of Cooper and Cogan—that defines their sound. It’s listenable and accessible, but with intelligent songwriting. Beier perhaps put it best when he described Fox Harbor as “a modernized Fleetwood Mac.”
As for their songwriting, it’s an effort shared by Cogan and Beier. “[Cogan] writes great pop songs with pop structures, and usually I step in with something weird . . . so we kind of push each other in both directions,” he said. The songs on Because of You, I are pop songs, in every sense of the word, but they’re also love songs. Tracks like “A Bad Case of You” and “Sweetest Regret” are reminiscent of Ryan Adams’ take-your-time, alt-country tempos, Tom Petty’s simple chord structure, and the kind of thoughtful instrumentation you’d find on an Emmylou record. It’s emotionally charged, and they mean every word.
Fox Harbor will return to the studio in April.
Get Fox Harbor’s newest release here or via iTunes.
