Straight from the gates of a mythical labyrinth plagued with goblins, yetis and David Bowie, comes St. Louis' own time-jumping concept artist Ludo. With a sound that takes rock opera literally and adds playful synth creepiness to tongue-in-cheek lyricism, it's no surprise that Island Records has made them their next unique act on the brink of breaking.
???Stepping into the spotlight while omni-hyper and strikingly animated frontman Andrew Volpe was away is Tim Ferrell, the band's longhaired, tried and true lead guitarist. Addressing Volpe's theatrical nature, alongside keyboardist Tim Convy's unpredictable live performances; Ferrell gives insight into the inner workings of a band that likes things to be epic, even if they're not on that label.
???"[Andrew] did some drama stuff early on, like when he was a kid and stuff. And he definitely likes that aspect of things. He likes things to be epic and kind of, I guess you could say over-the-top, but dramatic," said Ferrell.
???For those who have seen Ludo live, they may have noticed keyboardist Tim Convy's knack for making things sexual while beating his keys. Ferrell says this is unintentional.
???"I think Tim even wouldn't know that he was being sexual. I think he just kind of acts out as he always has, at least for as long as I've known him. In terms of how he performs live, I'm pretty sure he would say 'I didn't even think I was being sexual, I was just playing,' " Ferrell said. "Everybody's kind of got their own quirks in terms of how they play. Timo used to be a lot more stiff and now he's goofier and he's more active and like kinda free and does weird things during the shows and whatever. It kinda depends on who is watching at any given point in the show."
???As Ludo is back on the road, rested, and ready to play, Ferrell feels like more touring is in line before any serious sessions take place in regards to following up their successful and continually rising major label debut, You're Awful, I Love You.
???"I don't see us slowing down much in terms of touring, but we do kinda need to make room for writing again. And it's tough because sometimes, again when a tour starts, its easier to start the tour with 'OK I'm gonna write all the time while we're on this tour' and whatever, and by the end of it, depending on how worn out you are, you know, it gets tricky," Ferrell said.
???As the band has seen its draw grow significantly over the last year while on tour, they've also seen their pterodactyl logo take on a life of its own. Confused?
???"If you know, we did an EP called Broken Bride, it was like the second thing that we put out. It was a rock opera, this crazy story about this guy-his wife dies in a car accident in like 1989 and he's a physicist and he builds a time machine to go save her and he screws up and he ends up in the Jurassic period and then he goes too far forward to like the end of time and stuff like that and you know, it's plenty out there and bizarre," Ferrell said.
"The first song on that record is called 'Part I: Broken Bride' and in the chorus he crashed the time machine, pterodactyls swarming. And so it became just kind of uh, a quirky, like, it was a joke, it was a rip on all of those 'I heart New York' and whatever random thing T-shirts. So, 'I pterodactyl Ludo' just kind of stood out."
??? Another thing that stands out is their song "Love Me Dead," which was featured on all of those House spots on Fox. Is Mr. Ferrell a fan?
???"Honestly, I've never seen it. My parents love it - they were thrilled. When I saw the end product with what they had done with it I was - I can say I was impressed. I was not thinking that it would turn out as good as it did."
???At home and on tour, Ludo continues to make a name for themselves and climb the Island ranks. One might fear that success may get to them and they may start wearing feather-clad uniforms ala The Killers, but Ferrell is quick to dispel those assumptions.
???"You know, I've never really considered making feathers a part of, well, any aspect of my life. I don't think we'll be looking like The Killers any time too soon. If it works for them, whatever, but I'm not particularly interested. And besides, a couple of us are vegans, so I'm not going to be wearing any fur or crazy boas or anything," Ferrell said.
???Humble, creative, and ever growing, Ludo brings quirky theatrics and the ability to tell a tale and make it stick to a genre normally noted for repetition and mirror acts.
The band will be playing at Xtreme Wheelz at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. Go check out a band truly worth your time.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
