DCist Interview: Dawes
Dawes
Their sound has been compared to all of the above, plucking hallowed characteristics from each. Consider the guitar solo at the end of their song, "Peace in the Valley," which bows-out with dramatic, fuzzy, Young-like arpeggios, or the bass line on, "God Rest My Soul," which could have been lifted from any number of CCR tunes. Their multi-part vocal harmonies, of course, have drawn comparisons to CSN. The list goes on. But don't be fooled or quick to dismiss them as a thieving, derivative bunch who are stuck in the 1970s. They skillfully pull each influence into a new and gorgeous sonic landscape, where warm days teeter on the verge of a cold snap, and a beer is best consumed in golden fields on the roof of a car or in the bed of a pick-up. The lyrics too are carefully wrought, flecked with soulful lamentations and imperfect beauty. It really is feel-good music for a summer that won't seem to end.
We chatted wtih lead singer Taylor Goldsmith ahead of their performance tonight at the Rock and Roll Hotel, where they'll be opening for Langhorne Slim.
How did the current record come about? When did you start recording it?
We were a band before Dawes (Simon Dawes) and that band broke up about 2 years before the Dawes record came out, so we had that time to write the new material and get it ready.
And the previous band was a completely different sound?
We were just younger, maybe a little bit more angsty. I was like 18 when were writing this stuff and really just wanted to be in a rock band. I didn't think much about what we were actually producing.
How is the current tour going?
It's going great. We've been playing for a lot of really receptive people so it's been cool.
But you had some snags recently - some canceled dates?
Yeah there was a highway, Route 80, that was closed in Nebraska because of terrible snow storms. So we had to cancel our Denver, Salt Lake, and Boise shows.
Did you play in D.C. before on any of your tours?
Yeah we played there on a tour with Ben Lee. Our piano player couldn't make it so we had to play as a trio. And we did play in Arlington before.
At Iota?
Yeah, that was a really fun show. We did a headlining show and a good amount of people came out.
Have you noticed anything different about the crowds this time around?
Definitely, you know it seems like people come out who know our songs and it's been a really awesome process this time around. Some people know the words, not really like the whole room is singing along, but certainly people seem more familiar with our material. Actually at a show in Boston, we did play a song where the whole audience seemed to know the words, which is a great feeling.
How do you feel about the comparisons to other bands like CSN, CCR?
I mean with my musical tastes, those guys are legends so it's an honor to be compared to them. I really hope that people don't look at us as like some retro throwback sound, but at the same time those bands are big influences and we have no problem with that being apparent. But as long as... if people aren't seeing it as a fresh sound we'll try harder to make that the case. Or not, we just do what we do and hope for the best.
Are there artists out there currently who you'd like to emulate in some way? Or bands you follow?
I've been listening a lot to the new A. A. Bondy album. He's great. And then Bill Callahan's latest record; the guy from Smog.
Your sound seems rooted in a rural, laid-back country/southern aesthetic but you guys are from LA? How did you manage that?
Yeah, my dad and my brother listened to Otis Redding, James Brown, and a little bit of the Beatles. And then when I got older I started venturing off to find things that they hadn't shown me, like David Bowie. My first band broke up and I was like 21 years old and I was like, "why am I doing this?" "Why do I want to start over?" And that's when the priority changed. The first band was sort of a "I just want to be in a rock 'n' roll band and be a young guy without responsibilities," but after that I wanted to write songs that helped me the same way that other songs by artists I liked helped me like, Bob Dylan or someone like that.
Do you have a favorite track from the new album? A favorite to perform live?
I don't know. I sort of think about the process. I guess I think of, "Love Is All I Am." I look back at the other songs and I can see the process and think about this part of the song being made better. Not that "Love Is All I Am," is some great piece of work, but it just seemed to come out clearer and easier than some of the other material.
Live, it's always fun to play "My Time Comes." The crowd always responds even if they've never heard the band. It seems to be the sort of deal-breaker or deal-maker song. People say "OK I like this band, or OK I don't." And another song we like to play is "Peace in the Valley" because we extend the ending. We take it a lot further live.
Can we expect to hear any songs that didn't make it to the album?
There are songs that are new that will be on the next record. There are a couple of those that we had written that are cool songs, but we only had a short time in the studio so we had to pick and choose what we wanted to have on the album. So some of them need a little more time to come together so we play them on the road and tweek them a bit.
Dawes performs tonight at the Rock and Roll Hotel, opening for Langhorne Slim. Doors are at 8 p.m and tickets are $14.