Lost in the Trees
Lost in the Trees was an American orchestral folk pop band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The line up consisted of Ari Picker (writer/vocals), Emma Nadeau (french horn/vocals), Drew Anagnost (cello), Jenavieve Varga (violin), and Mark Daumen (tuba). Lead singer Ari Picker cites diverse influence such as Beethoven, Radiohead, Vivaldi, Neutral Milk Hotel, Saint-Saëns, and OutKast, among others.[1]
Lost in the Trees  | |
|---|---|
![]() Lost in the Trees performing at the 2011 Hillside Festival  | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Chapel Hill, North Carolina | 
| Genres | Folk, indie, orchestral | 
| Years active | 2007–2014 | 
| Labels | Anti, Trekky | 
| Website | www.lostinthetrees.com (archived) | 
| Members | Ari Picker Emma Nadeau Joah Tunnell Mark Daumen Peter Lewis  | 
| Past members | Will Hackney Scott Carle Leah Gibson Jenavieve Varga Andrew Anagnost Daniel Westerlund  | 
History
    
Lost in the Trees formed in 2007 when lead singer/guitarist Ari Picker, a native of Chapel Hill, assembled a group of musicians to record the EP Time Taunts Me on Trekky Records.[2] Picker had previously been a member of The B-Sides. After studying at Berklee College of Music, he decided to attempt a more orchestral effort. Following the release of Time Taunts Me, Picker moved back to North Carolina and assembled a band drawn from the University of North Carolina's orchestral program and the pool of players connected with Trekky Records.[3]
All Alone in an Empty House and signing to ANTI-Records
    
All Alone in an Empty House was originally released on Trekky Records in 2008.[4] The band signed to ANTI-Records on March 1, 2010[5] and their new label re-released the album on August 10 that year.[6]
Reviewing the record, Bob Boilen of NPR said, "Take a pinch of the brilliance found in classical music and mix it with [Picker's] own. Lost in the Trees is orchestral folk where the "orchestral" part isn't an afterthought. This is mighty potent stuff."[7] Keelan H. from Sputnik Music said, "Right from the swelling strings of six-minute opener “Empty House”, it’s clear that Lost in the Trees don’t take their “orchestral folk” label lightly."[8] 
Time Taunts Me was reissued by Trekky Records on February 4, 2011 with the addition of previously unreleased tracks.[9]
A Church That Fits Our Needs
    

On March 20, 2012, ANTI-Records released A Church That Fits Our Needs, Lost in the Trees' second record with the label.[10] Picker based the album largely on his mother's suicide in 2008, stating that "I wanted to give my mother a space to become all the things I think she deserved to be and wanted to be, and all the beautiful things in her that didn't quite shine while she was alive."[11]
Rolling Stone said of the album, "Ari Picker tries to make sense of his mother's suicide against a backdrop of rich orchestration, piled generously atop a base of delicate acoustic folk like heaping spoonfuls of vanilla frosting."[12] PopMatters said "A Church That Fits Our Needs bursts with the same melodic interplay that makes later Radiohead extraordinary."[13]
A Church That Fits Our Needs peaked at number 9 on Billboard's Heatseeker's Albums.[14]
Discography
    
- 2007 - Time Taunts Me (EP)
 - 2008 - All Alone in an Empty House (reissued 2010)
 - 2012 - A Church That Fits Our Needs
 - 2014 - Past Life (album)
 
References
    
- Horowitz, Steven. "Lost in the Trees Interview: SXSW 2010". spinner.com. Spinner. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - Ruhlmann, William. "Lost in the Trees". Billboard.com. All Music Guide. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
 - "Lost in the Trees". All Music Guide. 2013-04-11.
 - "Lost in the Trees". Discography. Trekky Records. Archived from the original on 2012-10-07. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - "Lost in the Trees Signs With ANTI Records". anti.com. Anti- Records. Archived from the original on 2010-12-12. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - "All Alone In An Empty House: Liner Notes". Lost in the Trees albums. Anti- Records. Archived from the original on 2012-04-19. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - Boilen, Bob. "First Listen: Lost In The Trees, 'All Alone In An Empty House'". NPR Music. NPR. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - H., Keelan. "Lost In The Trees All Alone In An Empty House". Music Reviews. Sputnik Music. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - Golden, Grant. "Album Review: "Time Taunts Me" by Lost in the Trees". The Bottom String. The Bottom String. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - "Lost In The Trees A Church That Fits Our Needs". ANTI-Records. Archived from the original on 2012-05-05. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - "Lost In The Trees: A Golden Memorial Of Orchestral Folk". NPR. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - Keyes, J. Edward. "A Church That Fits Our Needs". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - Majorins, Philip. "Lost in the Trees: A Church That Fits Our Needs". PopMatters. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 - "Lost in the Trees". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
 
