{"id":7600,"date":"2012-04-06T12:04:55","date_gmt":"2012-04-06T02:04:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/maytherockbewithyou.com\/mtrbwy\/?p=7600"},"modified":"2012-04-06T12:04:55","modified_gmt":"2012-04-06T02:04:55","slug":"tay-strathairn-of-dawes-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maytherockbewithyou.com\/mtrbwy\/2012\/04\/tay-strathairn-of-dawes-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Tay Strathairn of Dawes"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\n<\/a>\u201cI guess it\u2019s really song oriented music and I think each one of us really takes pride that we work really hard at being able to play our instruments, so there\u2019s a lot of musicality and it\u2019s kind of just four guys playing non synthesised instruments on stage.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Having received the patronage of both Jackson Browne and The Band\u2019s Robbie Robertson, Dawes are seen by many as heirs to the classic West Coast sound of the \u201870s. Others just see them as a great natural rock\u2019n\u2019roll band taking a classic sound and making it fresh and relevant to today\u2019s young audience. Whichever way you look at them, there is no denying the quality of their songs and the warmth of their performance. With gigs at Bluesfest and Boogie as well as shows with My Morning Jacket, Justin Townes Earle and their own headliners, Dawes are set to deeply impress a large audience down under.<\/p>\n

A self-described \u201cAmerican rock \u2018n\u2019 roll band,\u201d Dawes represent everything pure and true about that fundamental delineation, four talented friends making music together, fueled by a shared belief in the power of their songs.\u00a0 With\u00a0Nothing Is Wrong<\/em>, the Los Angeles-based band \u2013 singer\/guitarist Goldsmith, his brother Griffin on drums, keyboardist Tay Strathairn, and bassist Wylie Gelber \u2013 continue to master their blend of singer\/songwriter reflection with folk, country, and AOR-inspired arrangements, all ringing guitars, soaring harmonies, and heartfelt melodies.\u00a0 After spending much of the past two years on tour, songs like \u201cComing Back To A Man\u201d and \u201cTime Spent In Los Angeles\u201d have a restless, unsettled quality evocative of life lived on the road.\u00a0 A collection of songs that expertly builds upon the template laid by 2009\u2019s extraordinary debut,\u00a0North Hills<\/em>,\u00a0Nothing Is Wrong<\/em>\u00a0sees Dawes displaying staggering growth and evolution while still manifesting their distinctive, unforgettable voice.
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\n<\/strong>We chatted to Dawes keyboard player Tay Strathairn about the band, their Australian tour and plans for their new album.<\/p>\n

Welcome to Australia, this being your first time here were you given any indication as to what to expect?<\/strong>
\nJust positive things, everybody just said it was a great place, I haven\u2019t heard any negative reports from other people I know that have toured down here, so we were really looking forward to it.<\/p>\n

How have the shows been going?<\/strong>
\nThey\u2019ve been really fun, you know we\u2019ve just done two shows but the My Morning Jacket guys are great guys and it\u2019s a really good opportunity for us to play to a larger crowd than we would otherwise and it\u2019s been a really good time.<\/p>\n

For those that haven\u2019t seen you perform before, what can people expect at a Dawes show?<\/strong>
\nI guess it\u2019s really song oriented music and I think each one of us really takes pride that we work really hard at being able to play our instruments, so there\u2019s a lot of musicality and it\u2019s kind of just four guys playing non synthesised instruments on stage.<\/p>\n

As a part of the Bryon Bay Bluesfest, you\u2019re on the bill with quite a line up.\u00a0 Is there anyone in particular you\u2019re looking forward to seeing?<\/strong>
\nI\u2019m really excited to see Lucinda play, I\u2019ve seen her play a couple of times and she\u2019s amazing.\u00a0 We did a record with a track with John Fogerty so I\u2019m really looking forward to seeing him play.\u00a0 There\u2019s just a lot of really, I know we\u2019re there for some of the days I know the Jacket guys are going to play, I think today or tomorrow and even though we\u2019ve been playing shows with them their live show is really awesome.
\nAre you going to try and check out some Australian bands you may not have heard of like Cold Chisel?<\/strong>
\nYeah absolutely, we\u2019ve been hearing a lot about Cold Chisel and apparently they\u2019re huge and we\u2019ve never heard of them so I\u2019m really curious to check them out.\u00a0 I hear they\u2019re a legendary band.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>You\u2019ve repackaged your album \u2018Nothing Is Wrong\u2019 here in Australia with your debut album ‘North Hills’ as a special edition release for the tour, what was the idea behind doing that?<\/strong>
\nI think it was just so people can hear.\u00a0 Like in Europe they released \u2018Nothing Is wrong\u2019 first and it\u2019s nice about hearing a progression and how a band starts, so you can kind of get a two for one deal.\u00a0 Hearing our first record and hearing how we progressed to the second one.\u00a0 It\u2019s just about making fans familiar with our material faster.<\/p>\n

What is that inspires the band to create the songs for Dawes?<\/strong>
\nI don\u2019t know, Taylor our lead singer writes the lyrics and comes up with the chord progressions on the guitar and then he brings them to us and we arrange them.\u00a0 As far as lyrical content, that\u2019s something that I think he draws from his experiences from life, I think he\u2019s an amazing lyricist and whether or not we\u2019re writing, we all can kind of connect with what he\u2019s saying.\u00a0 As far as the sound of the band I think it\u2019s just a natural progression, where we all come from and how we all work together, you know we all have different backgrounds musically but it all seems to coexist nicely.<\/p>\n

Listening to the album it is so easy to listen to, it\u2019s so good.\u00a0 With comparisons to artists such as Jackson Browne and some Springsteen in there, how do you take that kind of praise?<\/strong>
\nI mean, being compared to guys that are iconic and legends and some of our biggest influences is quite humbling. It\u2019s kind of hard to wrap your head around that Jackson, not only do we sound like him but he\u2019s a friend of ours and we\u2019ve played some of his songs with him, it\u2019s nothing short of a dream come true.\u00a0 You\u2019ve kind of gotta rub your eyes and look around and think is this really happening.<\/p>\n

The one song that is stuck in my head is \u2018When My Time Comes\u2019 from your first album, is there a story behind that one specifically?<\/strong>
\nI don\u2019t know, that\u2019s on the first record and we\u2019ve been playing that song for a long time.\u00a0 I don\u2019t know, that would be a question better suited for Taylor, but I remember when he brought it in though and this was before we had even recorded anything or even really toured as a band and we were like wow, this song is great.\u00a0 We\u2019ve been playing that one for a really long time ha ha.\u00a0 It\u2019s always fun to play actually and it always gets a really good response out of the crowd and it\u2019s one of our more cathartic songs.<\/p>\n

\u2018Nothing Is Wrong\u2019 has been out for a little while now, are you already working on new material for another album?<\/strong>
\nYeah, Taylor\u2019s got some songs and we\u2019ve been trying to get the arrangements at sound checks here and there and working them out.\u00a0 I think we\u2019re trying to get a record out by the end of this year, or at least finished recording it.\u00a0 It\u2019s kinda hard, we\u2019ve got a busy summer, we\u2019ve got to finish the cycle of this record and then I think we\u2019re going to take a break in the fall and get some stuff recorded.<\/p>\n

What are the plans for the rest of the year once you head home?<\/strong>
\nYeah we\u2019re going to tour through the Summer, and then try to, who knows, stuff always pops up, we say we\u2019re going to have time off and then some good opportunity comes, but I think the idea is to have a record out by next spring, so hopefully\u2026<\/p>\n

Well, thanks for your time Tay, hopefully we can see you back in Australia on the next album cycle.<\/strong>
\nI hope so, I was just saying to the bass player this morning that this is one of my favourite places I\u2019ve ever played.<\/p>\n

Essential Information<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n

From:<\/strong> USA<\/p>\n

Band members: <\/strong>Taylor Goldsmith \u2013 Vocals \/ Guitar, Griffin Goldsmith – Drums, Tay Strathairn \u2013 Keyboards, Wylie Gelber – Bass,<\/p>\n

Website:<\/strong> http:\/\/www.dawestheband.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Latest release:<\/strong> Nothing Is Wrong Tour Edition (Warner Music Australia)<\/p>\n

Remaining Australian Tour dates:<\/strong>
\nAPRIL 6 \u2022 BOOGIE, TALLAROOK, VIC
\nAPRIL 7 & 9 \u2022 EAST COAST BLUES AND ROOTS FESTIVAL, BYRON BAY, NSW
\nAPRIL 11 \u2022 TOFF IN TOWN, MELBOURNE, VIC \u2013 HEADLINE SHOW<\/p>\n\n

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