GGOOLLDD regroups before Turner Hall concert
Everything seemed to be going great for GGOOLLDD.
The local synthpop group followed up its second EP “For the Night” with a sold-out show at Turner Hall Ballroom last January, and will headline there again this Friday.
But nearly a year ago, frontwoman Margaret Butler said, “We highly considered not being a band anymore.”
According to Butler and her four bandmates, a creative rift developed with GGOOLLDD’s cofounder and chief songwriter, Tony Hunt.
“We all grew tired of it not being a group effort,” said Butler, who traditionally wrote lyrics over Hunt’s beats. “I think (the songs were) getting too commercial, too cotton candy. And the five of us agree we like the pop world and the electro vibe in there, but we also really appreciate some grit and dirt and rock ’n’ roll.”
Hunt, who was based in Nashville, left the group right after that Turner Hall gig and is writing new music. GGOOLLDD “had to completely revamp the way we communicated,” Butler said. “We had so much success built up to that, but we had to move forward . ... We were scared to (expletive) up.”
GGOOLLDD had so many commitments, including a showcase at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, that “we didn’t have time to sit and regroup,” said drummer Mark Stewart.
Two to three members would match up at a time for songwriting sessions, but it “often felt like work and nothing actualized,” said bassist Nicholas Stuart.
This past April, the band spent a few days at keyboardist Nicholas Schubert’s father’s cabin in Rome in Adams County.
“The light bulb went off and we realized we got this,” Butler said. The epiphany occurred when the band wrote the track “Undercovers,” released in October.
GGOOLLDD’s shimmering synthesizer sound is still front and center, as is the band’s signature optimism.
(“When the fire starts ... we won’t run away,” Butler sings).
But near the threeminute mark, the beat slightly unravels, and a snarling, Prince-inspired guitar riff creeps in.
“We realized that no idea was a bad idea,” Stuart said. “Each new song that we have been doing is its own thing. It’s really, really cool.”
The band has no time frame for a new EP or album, but it will debut a few new songs Friday. GGOOLLDD also recently signed with a booking agent, with plans to do its most extensive tours yet by this summer, Stewart said.
“It’s like a rebirth,” Butler said. “It went from a little bit gloomy to magic and unicorns again.”
Tickets for Friday’s 8 p.m. show are $14, available at the door (1040 N. 4th St.), and in advance at the Pabst Theater box office (144 E. Wells St.), the Riverside Theater box office (116 W. Wisconsin Ave.), by calling (414) 2863663 or visiting