After becoming a full-time musician in 2018, Lewis Knudsen found himself on the edge of a precipice. The Covid Pandemic forced him to try other avenues that were not live music.
“After the shutdown, I looked around and asked myself, “how can I make music if I never get to play a gig again?” Knudsen said. “I began taking serious steps to write and produce music for commercials for international brands and, again, it was a lengthy process but have made inroads in that world since then.”
After more than a year of no-shows, he debuted his newest album, ‘In My Wildest Dreams,’ on Sept. 10 at the Redstone Room.
“It’s such a high amount of anticipation. I can’t remember a time I wasn’t thinking about this album and this show,” Knudsen said. “ At the end of the day, I want everyone at the show to have a great time, and I want it to be a beautiful shared musical moment of everyone in that room.”
In a room filled with family, friends, and fans, Knudsen took the stage adorned in a suit, signature bolo tie, glasses, and his big smile. Accompanied by a full band, Knudsen opened the show with his old music before moving into several James Taylor songs. His sister, Leah, also known as Ohleahleah, is a singer/songwriter who joined Knudsen for several songs. She even helped design the art for the new album.
“My sister Leah did the dreamy line drawing set, which I love. I texted her a list of physical objects mentioned in all the songs, and that’s what she came up with,” Knudsen said. “I’d say I wanted to convey a pretty simple visual representation of the album at a glance in one piece of art.”
Knudsen then played his newest album, ‘In My Wildest Dreams,’ from start to finish to close out the night. Backed by All Sweat and locals musicians, his music drowned out the night as people became lost in his lyrics.
The album draws from eclectic inspiration from jazz to folk to even blues and modern pop. Knudsen’s imaginative creativity and songwriting prowess showcase various emotions from track to track.
“When I step back and look at a lot of my songs, I see prayers,” Knudsen said. “Expressions of desire. The process of prayer changes our desires. This album begins with a sort of not so sincere desire and ends in a better place, a place of humility.”
Lewis Knudsen is a singer/songwriter based in the Quad Cities. After spending much of the pandemic honing his production and trying weird stuff in the studio, Lewis presents a brand new full-length album, “In My Wildest Dreams.”
Check out his new album on Amazon, Spotify, Apple Music, or check out Lewis’ website at https://lewisknudsen.com!
Callahan Herrig was born, raised, and currently inhabits the Quad Cities. He is a writer and an author of Roswell: A Literary Collection. He also enjoys a glass of bourbon, old records, and waiting for the wave to finally break. You can see more of Callahan’s work on IG @CallahanCreative.