SPOILER: my first negative music review in a long time

Blind Pilot has opened for two of my favorite bands: The Decemberists and The Shins. It is also opening for Dave Matthews Band which makes way more sense to me. I went to a Dave Matthews show about a decade ago to see opener Beck. My galpal and the crowd sang and danced away to the white bread music of Dave Matthews Band [okay, I admit I liked that song “Circle”]. I digress, back to Blind Pilot. It’s a six-piece ensemble with Oregonian band founders Israel Nebeker (vocals, guitar) and Ryan Dobrowski (drums) plus Luke Ydstie (upright bass, backing vocals), Kati Claborn (banjo, dulcimer, backing vocals), Ian Krist (vibraphones) and Dave Jorgensen (keyboards, trumpet). And we all know that Portland, Oregon is the indie/ cool capital of the United States [Portlandia anyone?]. So this all makes for quite the impressive indie pedigree. Unfortunately I feel that Blind Pilot suffers from drowsy, cliched orchestration and sloggy songwriting. It might be quite the dullest, most vanilla album I’ve heard so far this year, if ever. Reminds me a bit of folksy boy band in its harmonizing. Also a lot like Boston favorites Guster [I don’t understand the appeal]. Blind Pilot is on auto pilot and not particularly memorable. Listen if you have trouble sleeping and want whitewashed dreams.

Label: Expunged Records
PR: In Music We Trust PR

–review by Amy Steele

purchase at Amazon: We Are the Tide

BLIND PILOT CONFIRMED TOUR DATES
4/26/12 – Bear Tooth Theatre – Anchorage, AK
5/25/12 – Les Schwab Amphitheater (supporting The Shins) – Bend, OR
5/25/12-5/28/12 – Sasquatch! – George, WA
5/28/12 – Red Butte Garden Amphitheater (supporting The Shins) – Salt Lake City, UT
5/29/12 – Red Rocks Amphitheatre (supporting The Shins) – Morrison, CO
5/31/12 – Harrah’s Council Bluffs (supporting The Shins) – Council Bluffs, IA
6/02/12 – Molson Amphitheatre (supporting Dave Matthews Band) – Toronto, ONT CANADA
6/03/12 – Blossom Music Center (supporting Dave Matthews Band) – Cuyahoga Falls, OH
6/05/12 – Webster Hall – New York, NY
6/06/12 – The National, Richmond, VA
6/07/12 – Neighborhood Theatre – Charlotte, NC
6/07/12-6/10/12 – Bonnaroo – Manchester, TN
7/06/12 – The Fillmore – San Francisco, CA
7/07/12 – The Fonda Theatre – Los Angeles, CA
7/08/12 – Belly Up Tavern – Solana Beach, CA
7/10/12 – The Crescent Ballroom – Phoenix, AZ
7/11/12 – Santa Fe Sol – Santa Fe, NM
7/13/12 – La Zona Rosa – Austin, TX
7/14/12 – Kessler Theater – Dallas, TX
7/15/12 – Fitzgerald’s – Houston, TX
7/17/12 – Mercy Lounge – Nashville, TN
7/18/12 – 20th Century Theatre – Cincinnati, OH
7/20/12-7/22/12 – Firefly Music Festival – Dover, DE
7/23/12 – Interlochen Center for the Arts – Interlochen, MI
7/25/12 – The Opera House – Toronto, ONT CANADA
7/26/12 – Corona Theatre – Montreal, QC CANADA
7/27/12 – Port City Music Hall – Portland, ME
7/28/12 – Newport Folk Festival, – Newport, RI
8/12/12 – Mishawaka Amphitheatre – Bellvue, CO