The reason Dawes’ music is so genuine seems very simple: It’s a reflection of the band mates’ guileless approach to songwriting and playing. As the festival season heats up and more folk rock wanna-be bands trod the boards, music such as that created by Dawes becomes even more precious. In a sea of folk rockers who are sometimes musically proficient but spiritually barren, Dawes is a throwback to true folk rock, in the best possible sense.
“It’s really great for us,” said Dawes’ frontman and chief songwriter Taylor Goldsmith. “I feel like in music today, all kinds of things are shifting from what is cool to what is not. I feel like in the folk community, that music is embraced by the whole work.”
| Onstage |
| Dawes |
| Where: 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW |
| When: 8 p.m. Friday |
| Info: $25; 877-435-9849; 930.com |
As British folk rockers Fairport Convention celebrate 45 years, Neil Young releases his latest sure-to-be-classic album “Americana” and Woody Guthrie is continually celebrated, Dawes’ growing fan base gives hope that folk rock will rebuild the following that it enjoyed in years past.
Like most virtuoso musicians, Goldsmith’s musical roots run deep. His father is Lenny Goldsmith, a former member of Tower of Power and a former singer of the Sweathogs. Goldsmith and his brother and band mate, drummer Griffin, were raised on classic rock, blues and jazz.
Perhaps it’s not surprising that when they formed Dawes they almost immediately won acclaim from critics including those at Rolling Stone.
But rather than kick back and enjoy the laurels, Dawes — which includes Wylie Gelber on bass and Tay Strathairn on keyboards — has continually worked to sharpen the band’s sound and hone its own songwriting and musicianship.
“I think musicians are learning how to lower their expectations [of multimillion selling albums] and get on board,” said Goldsmith. “That’s cool because it’s sort of in line with the folk way of life. No one is expected to buy a mansion or drive around in [ultra expensive] cars. Our thought is ‘How do I do what I love and get by?’ ”
And that attitude, of course, is why the band continues to push ahead with new sounds. You’ll hear that on the band’s last release, “Nothing is Wrong,” which has a bit of a new sound thanks in part to Strathairn’s keyboards, which replace former member Alex Casnoff’s guitar.
The funny thing is that by following its muses rather than its chart listings, the band continues to innovate and win critical and popular accolades. Listen for some new songs and arrangements at their upcoming show. Goldsmith said the band continues to write and is hoping to begin work on a new album perhaps late this year.
“I know it sounds cliche, but we do this because there’s nothing else that we can do,” said Goldsmith of the artistic drive to create music. “It’s not a matter of doing this because I have no other options. I do this because I have options. I wouldn’t know the first step how to live my life without this.”
