Jake Karlik Band to Release Debut Album via Horton Records
The Tulsa quintet recorded the LP at Closet Studios with engineer Kendal Osborne and mastering by Mat Leffler-Schulman.
Tulsa-based Jake Karlik Band will release its self-titled album October 23 via Horton Records. The band's title track, out now, was premiered by Blues Rock Review.
'The Mountain' is a haunting Americana story about sacrifice, longing and the things we carry with us through life. The song follows a hardworking drifter and a woman left behind, two people dealing in different ways with duty, pride, family expectations and the distance that can grow between people. The mountain hanging over them becomes a symbol of all of it—the obstacles in the way, the things they're reaching for and the peace that always seems just out of reach.
''The Mountain' is really about the things we all have to climb in life,' says Jake Karlik. 'Sometimes it's a real struggle, sometimes it's something we've put in front of ourselves. We wanted the song to feel like you're following these two people and slowly realizing that they're carrying a lot more than they let on.'
The new album brings together the different sides of the band's music—rock, blues, funk, Americana and the Tulsa Sound. At the center is singer, guitarist and frontman Jake Karlik, but all five members contribute to the songwriting and arrangements.
'I've always loved records where you can hear the people playing,' Karlik says. 'That was really important to us with this album. We wanted it to feel like a band in a room playing together, not like everything had been cleaned up until there was nothing left.'
That chemistry comes from the group itself, with the collective writing songs about perseverance, love, redemption, hope and the shared experiences that connect people from all walks of life. The band features Jake Karlik on guitar and vocals, Ian McGuire on guitar, Paul Latta on drums and background vocals, Sky Slater on bass and Greg Zink on keys. The album was recorded at Closet Studios in Tulsa, with Kendal Osborne engineering and mixing and Mat Leffler-Schulman mastering.
The band formed around a shared love of the music that came out of Tulsa and the American South—records where the songwriting matters, the musicians know how to stretch out and the best moments aren't necessarily the ones you can plan. You can hear echoes of the Allman Brothers Band, Gov't Mule, Joe Cocker and Lynyrd Skynyrd, but Jake Karlik Band's sound is very much its own.
The album is a snapshot of where the group is right now: five musicians who have spent time playing together and are getting more comfortable taking chances. Their live shows are built around that same sense of interaction, with room for improvisation, tight harmonies and the occasional unexpected turn.
With an ever-growing catalog of original music, the band continues to build momentum throughout Oklahoma and beyond. Their songs explore familiar territory—love, loss, family, hope, pride, redemption and trying to keep moving when life gets complicated.
Rooted in honesty and fueled by exceptional musicianship, the Jake Karlik Band is dedicated to creating music that resonates long after the final note has faded.
Track Listing
The Mountain
Break of Day
Where Did You Sleep?
Take Me Back
Wicked Love
All I Need
Over Now, Babe
Arabella
Photo Credit: Sky Slater
Photo Credit: Sky Slater
