Dan Kaplan

"A Cambridge folk singer with a keen ear for pop hooks." -The Boston Globe

Led by singer-songwriter Dan Kaplan and longtime friend and guitarist Judson Abts, six piece indie folk project Magnolia has gone through several incarnations—taking twists and turns along the way. Starting out as a traditional folk, alt-country infused Americana band, Magnolia has finally settled on a sound that is all their own. Dan has described it as "more like what I've always wanted a band to sound like - taking pieces of all of our influences and ideas, and stitching them together to make something new, but still familiar - something that you can't quite place...In any one song that we've written, I can hear so many different things going on."

Garnering comparisons to everyone from the anthemic rock of Coldplay and Kings of Leon to the indie pop of breakout bands like Phoenix, Magnolia indeed wears many hats. Kaplan has remarked, "I’ve always been drawn to the idea of not being constrained by any preconceived ideas of what music has to be. The goal has always been to figure out how to break the patterns that are so easy [for me] to fall into - to constantly challenge myself to write better melodies, better songs". And with an extensive back catalogue already, including over 250 songs and a plan to release a full length album later this year, it’s clear that there's no end to their creative potential.

The project is an ever evolving one, and has played in several states throughout its existence - sometimes in an all acoustic form with backing vocals and violin, sometimes as a hard hitting band with drums, bass and piano. Whatever form they take on, Magnolia has been playing at venues throughout Boston, getting some steady press buzz and a growing local draw.