Blind Pilot soaring to all new heights
It's always refreshing when a musical act stands out because of the quality of its music.
That might sound like an obvious goal for any act, but in these days of being famous for wearing a dress made of meat on stage or scoring a record deal based on the popularity of your reality series, music sometimes takes a backseat to spectacle.
Fortunately, there are still musicians out there, such as the ones in Blind Pilot, who put music first.
The Portland, Ore.-based band, which plays The Pour House on James Island tonight, strikes a delicate balance between harmony and power on albums such as "We Are the Tide" and "3 Rounds and A Sound." Sounding like a mix of David Byne and Death Cab for Cutie on one track, and Arcade Fire fronted by Rufus Wainwright on the next, half of the fun of hearing a Blind Pilot song for the first time is trying to pick out that tune's influences.
Drummer Ryan Dobrowski, who started Blind Pilot with singer and guitarist Israel Nebeker in 2005, chalks up the band's unusual sound to the variety found in the band member's listening habits.
"I think everyone in the band comes from pretty different musical backgrounds, so the songs take on a little bit of all of these influences," Dobrowski said. "We're careful not to make it too cluttered though. We're more interested in making a good song than showing off as individuals."
In addition to striving to make its music as interesting to the listener as possible, the band also has an ecological streak. In 2008, Dobrowski and Nebeker completed a tour from Bellingham, Wash., to San Diego by bicycle. The band's gear was carried in bicycle trailers that they built themselves.
"We really had no expectations for that tour, which was great," Dobrowski said, reminiscing about the trek. "We were so happy if there was anyone at all to play for. That was definitely some of the greenest grass I've been on. I'm excited with how much our audience has grown, but it's nice knowing if it all went away, we could still get on our bikes and have a pretty great time."
When asked about the musical acts out there that influence Blind Pilot's music, Dobrowski again refers back to the importance of variety. "We all have different musical tastes, so it's hard to say exactly. Gillian Welch, David Byrne, Fugazi and Miles Davis are the ones that come to mind."
When asked what item in his record collection one might be surprised to find, Dobrowski replies, "I personally have a soft spot for super poppy dance music, but I might be alone on that."
When it came time to record the follow-up to Blind Pilot's debut, "3 Rounds and a Sound," Dobrowski and Nebeker recruited bassist Luke Ydstie, banjo and dulcimer player Kati Claborn, vibraphonist Ian Krist, and keyboard and trumpet player Dave Jorgensen. Going from recording as a duo to being a full-fledged band was a satisfying transition, according to Dobrowski.
"With '3 Rounds,' it was primarily just Israel and I in the studio," Dobrowski said. "We worked pretty quickly, and I think the record had a certain vulnerability because of that. With 'We Are the Tide,' the whole band was in the studio almost the entire time, and so the songs became much more expansive.
So is there a particular Blind Pilot song that Dobrowski enjoys performing live? "It changes from night to night," he said, "but being the drummer, I always have fun playing 'We Are the Tide.' I like having Kati come back and play drums with me."
Dobrowski said the band is having a great time on its current tour, which took them through Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina before tonight's stop at the Pour House.
The band also was recently invited to perform at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn., in June.
With the way things are going for Blind Pilot, tonight's Pour House show may very well be the last time the band plays a venue that size, so catch them while you can.
