Greta Van Fleet brings classic rock sound to Atlanta for Shaky Knees Fest | Arts & Culture
Greta Van Fleet, a rock band from Frakenmuth, Michigan made up of Jake Kiszka on the guitar, Josh Kiszka on vocals, Sam Kiszka on bass and Danny Wagner on the drums, rocked the Peachtree stage Saturday at Shaky Knees Fest. The band drew in fans to listen to hits off its EP “Black Smoke Rising.”
The band grew up in an environment that encouraged their creative expression leading to them pursuing their passion for music early on. Jake Kiszka said he picked up the guitar when he was around three years, beginning with only a plastic guitar, and was awarded with better and better guitars whenever he was able conquer songs by guitar legends like Bob Seger and Jimmy Hendrix.
“It occured to me when I was around 10 years old that this was something I had to do as a mission,” Jake said. “Josh and Sam followed shortly after.”
Since forming, the band recorded its EP at Rust Belt Studios with producers Al Sutton and Marlon Young and performed the songs off its EP at its electrifying performance on Saturday. The tracks performed included hit single “Highway Tune” and the somewhat inspirational anthem “Black Smoke Rising.” Also a hit with the crowd was the track “Flower Power” which is a softer song that adds a folk genre feel to the EP.
The band has big things ahead for them in the future with around 20 tracks already recorded in the studio and an album coming out this summer. They have written songs for their album while on the road and also working in the studio.
“We went down to Chattanooga where we rented a cabin in the mountains for about a week and wrote about 5 songs,” Jake said. “Everything’s been going really quickly, and there’s a lot of pressure but its good pressure.”
The band said they are excited about the release of their album and plan on there being a lot more diversity and variety in their tracks. They also have also seen themselves and their music evolve and mature within the last year between touring and working in the studio.
“We’ve taken songs from a couple years ago and also have some songs that were written while recording in the studio, so they are varying degrees to the album,” Jake said. “I think there is a lot more dimension.”
Along with the new album coming out, the band is also in the middle of a major U.S. tour with performances scheduled for Europe and Japan as well. Their complete touring dates can be found on their website but the band will be performing in Germany, Denmark, The Netherlands and France during the month of June and will tour in Japan during the month of August. They will also be playing at other major U.S. festivals including Hangout Music Festival, Summerfest and Lollapalooza.
“It’s going to be busy as hell,” Jake said. “We’re going to Europe, and there is a lot of festivals, it is pretty packed.”
They have already played at a couple festivals before Shaky Knees, including Coachella and Rockville, and found that one of the cool things about the festivals is that you cross paths with other bands. They have also enjoyed their time performing at Shaky Knees and would love to come back.
“It’s been pretty great. We’ve been walking around checking out some of the acts,” Jake said. “We absolutely love the sound and would definitely come back.”
