Michael Lloyd Band's piano-driven album rock is an island. You swam a thousand miles through an ocean of glazed, tired balladry to get here. Now enjoy some fresh fruit and our attractive natives.
MLB is my solo singer-songwriter-producer project. Who am I? That's revealed below. All the songs are available for free download or on the free podcast. Tips and donations from kind listeners like you support the continually growing catalog. I think the future of music actually looks more like the past - when musicians relied on the generosity of fans and attractive, wealthy patrons like you. For example, imagine I'm Mozart and you're Hieronymus Graf von Colloredo.
I also like to use this site to pass along the "best" of the Internets. I promise I'll do my damndest to keep you entertained or tip you off to something cool or useful. Web nerds can subscribe to this site via RSS, while others can join my email list. Everybody wins. Dreams do come true.
I especially like it if you contact me to yammer on about stuff, or ask me to write a song for you or someone you know. You can leave comments all over this site, too.
More About Me + The MLB's History
I was born in Anchorage AK and grew up in Morristown NJ playing ice hockey and baseball. I became a musician after I moved to Colorado for college, eventually spending time in the jazz and jam band scene around Denver and the University of Colorado where I studied with Grammy winner Chip Stephens. Unbelievable player and a great teacher.
After school I created the Michael Lloyd Band, and in September 2005 me and guitarist/bassist/producer/toughguy Jim Ruberto completed the band's debut Highwaters EP. Drummer John Nelson and bassist Jonathan Barkin rounded out the core group, and we played a busy schedule of shows and festivals in 2006. In '07, Jared Banta played bass and Matt Beckemeyer played guitar. You can see our old web site here. All in all, we got great reviews in the press and became very, very wealthy.
We did get great reviews, but we did not get wealthy. While the group has disbanded, I'm continuing to write new stuff, sometimes collaborating with old friends and releasing the songs here. Some previous reviews to prove I'm not lying:
Indie-Music.com Top 25 CDs of 2006
"Unpretentious creative fusion between funk, jazz, and rock, all centered on Lloyd's rhythmic keyboard work. If mainstream radio was playing this kind of music, I'd tune in." - Jamie Anderson
2006 Marquee Magazine Front Row Center Award Winner
One of Colorado's Best Bands (9/06)
"The only way to describe the Michael Lloyd Band is through its members. Mike Liguori, 29, was born in Anchorage, Ak., grew up in Jersey and was knee deep in the Front Range scene throughout his stint at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Jim Ruberto, from western New York, rocks the hell out of steel guitar on cue and is a pretty killer producer and musician. The drummer, John Nelson, has backed Al Wilson, and bassist Jonathan Barkin has studied with Kai Eckhardt of Garaj Mahal. Face it, they’re cooler than you. Plus, the noteworthy artwork on the website is almost as unique as the deliciously bad-ass jazz-gone-jam that, once it’s stamped its place in your skull, will make you preemptively groove."
"Denver’s Michael Lloyd creates music that is easy to like from the catchy, piano driven funk grooves to the soulful vocals. Almost like a jazzier Ben Folds Five, you can tell Michael pays attention to song-crafting while not writing over your head and keeping the enjoyment factor intact. Songs like 'Wildfire,' '45 At A Time' and the Harry Connick-ish ballad 'So Easily' are subtly brilliant." - Mark Waterbury
Smother.net Music Reviews
"From the first moment on 'Highwaters,' I was thoroughly impressed with their piano-centric pop-rock songs. Imagine Ben Folds with Jamiroquai’s smooth vocals and groovy basslines. Denver, Colorado is their home fort and if they know what’s good for them they’ll be supporting this band and helping them achieve the national exposure that they deserve." -- Smother.net, 11/2005
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