Who Are Safe Boating is No Accident?
It would be easy to write off a band with a name like Safe Boating is No Accident as intentionally obtuse or esoteric and arrogant, but you’d be wrong. They’re just being honest. Theirs is a sound and attitude that could only be produced as a sum of their individual experience. Folksy but forward thinking, righteously indignant yet charmingly absurd, Safe Boating is No Accident is a study of extremes – yes, but more importantly they’re just a lot of fun.
Singer/Songwriter Leighton Peterson writes from the unique perspective of a young man born to a former Catholic Nun and a disabled gas station clerk. Leighton left his hometown of Norfolk, NE in a state of desperation. At the age of 18, he was already an alcoholic and a crystal meth addict. After graduating the Art Institute of Colorado he quickly became disenfranchised with the art scene and decided to take his songwriting seriously. Fortunately, this is when he met Neil McCormick, a young stand-up bass player and talented arranger. They instantly bonded over their shared love of old-timey folk music and the work of the Elephant Six collective. Safe Boating is No Accident was soon birthed in a warm bathtub surrounded by friends and a caring Doula.
Joined recently by Mike Golas on lap steel and guitars and Tim Russel on drums, Safe Boating’s live sound is roots-influenced but also big, noisy, and powerful. Think Woody Guthrie fronting Pavement. While playing mostly originals, their sets have been known to include re-interpreted Appalachian folk songs and covers of entire scenes from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
“Something Wicked” by Safe Boating is No Accident from Leighton Peterson on Vimeo.
GUYS! The Westword said some nice stuff about us!
“We don’t know if the members of this quartet were imagining what it must have been like to be inside Noah’s head as he built the Ark, or if they were having a private giggle at the cosmic joke of the journeys of Odysseus following the Trojan War. Whatever inspired their moniker, Safe Boating Is No Accident sounds a bit like George Gershwin trying his hand at indie folk with a little help from Lou Reed and Pete Seeger. Gentle rhythms and filigrees of clarinet characterize the outfit’s songs, yet none of its material seems the product of mellowed sensibilities. Leighton Peterson’s easygoing vocals are deceptively relaxing, because there’s something inherently subversive and sly about his delivery. Safe boating is indeed no accident, and neither is this band’s rustic charm.”
-Tom Murphy, Westword
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