What lies beneath: The Get Right Band to play Grey Eagle live stream
The Get Right Band is JC Mears, (from left) Silas Durocher and Jesse Gentry.
Before the pandemic and eventual shutdown, The Get Right Band was one of the hardest work musical acts in Western North Carolina. Based out of Asheville, the power rock trio is a cauldron spilling over with indie, folk, reggae, soul and pop influences — a unique mixture that’s become its melodic signature.
And yet, even amid uncertain times currently in the music industry (especially for ensembles that thrive in a live setting), The Get Right Band hunkered down and honed its already precise chops even more. Onstage, the group flows as one vibrant entity, something that’s a true testament to the depths of skill, musicianship and unspoken communication between the bandmates.
But, with most venues and stages remaining dark for the foreseeable future, musicians have to resort to the ever-growing popularity of live streaming. It’s not only another avenue of revenue, but, more importantly, as a way and means to once again connect with an audience — to harness that singular back and forth energy of human connection through the universal catalyst of melody.
Smoky Mountain News: Next month, it’ll be a year since the shutdown. Personally and artistically, what has surprised you — and rest of The Get Right Band — the most through “all of this”?
Silas Durocher (lead singer/guitarist): Not touring is a very weird thing. I haven’t taken any substantial time off touring for probably 15 years. So, it’s very odd. I really miss the experience of playing shows.
And I also just miss the experience of touring. I miss the people we get to visit when we tour and seeing new cities, that kind of time spent with my bandmates where we are still seeing each other, but it’s mostly for work.
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It’s fun to be on tour. It’s fun to have that time together — the downtime, the fun time, the creative time, the work time. On the flip side, it has been really cool to be home, more time home with my girlfriend and my pets. Just be in my own space and in my own bed and not dealing with some of the headaches that come from touring.
SMN: Like yourself, I get a lot of inspiration from social interaction and wandering around. But, what have you been finding to provoke the creative fires when you’re stuck in small circles these days?
SD: My biggest creative inspiration is usually the music itself. And other people’s music [lately, too]. For example, this album that we’re working on right now, I’m drawing a lot of inspiration from Pink Floyd. I’m also drawing a lot of inspiration from Gorillaz, Soul Coughing, Broken Bells.
It’s stuff that really inspires me a lot, because I get so excited about what they’ve done and it jazzes me up to do something exciting. You love the feeling of this Gorillaz song [and think], “I wonder if we could do something that’s kind of in that vibe, but with our own style” — that’s very exciting to me. And then just the actual act of recording and producing is a major source of inspiration.
SMN: You mentioned Pink Floyd. That’s a band at the core of all of us music freaks. It’s music that’s always been around, whether consciously or subconsciously. What are you discovering about them lately when you’re digging deep? What are you finding that you didn’t hear or realize before?
SD: Man, I do feel exactly like you’re saying — it is a constant evolution. I’ve been a hardcore Pink Floyd fan for 20 years probably. I’ve listened to “The Wall” more than any other album, and I still hear new things. I still learn new things.
This new album that we’re working on right now is the first time that we’ve ever done a concept album. And so, obviously Pink Floyd is the ultimate when it comes to constructing an album as a full piece — that’s really written altogether, that flows. And it’s their psychedelic approach to production and songwriting. I’ve always appreciated those things about them.
With “The Wall,” I’ve been reading a lot of the lyrics along with listening, as opposed to just listening. And you catch new lyrics that you didn’t catch before. But, I’m also catching a lot of ways that the concept album ties in with itself, these really subtle, little musical ideas.
It’s the way [Pink Floyd] ties it all together. The way they tell a story, but they don’t hit you over the head with it, you know? They really struck a perfect balance.
SMN: Well, it’s one of those things, especially with Pink Floyd, where if you didn’t want to dig deep, it’s still enjoyable music for your head. But, with Pink Floyd, it was this bait and switch — these really catchy rock songs, but then, if you really looked behind the curtain, there was a lot of depth in there.
SD: And that is 100 percent what we’re going for. [Our album] is a long way from coming out, but it’s what we’re working on right now. And the goal is for it to be that you could listen to it and not even know or care that it’s a concept album, that it’s just a collection of bunch of great songs that you can rock out to.
Then, there should also be the multiple layers of a concept album, where you listened to it the first time and you catch certain references within each song and how it relates to the rest of the album. But, then you notice these other things on the twentieth listen, other things on the hundredth listen.
There are all these little references and little things — it’s a really fun puzzle to put together.
Want to watch?
The Get Right Band will host a special performance via live stream at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 19, broadcasted from The Grey Eagle in Asheville.
The live stream is free to access and view. Donations are accepted. A virtual tip jar will be available: www.paypal.me/thegreyeagle. To watch the stream, click on www.facebook.com/greyeagleasheville.
For more information about the concert and/or other upcoming shows, go to www.thegreyeagle.com and click on the “Calendar” tab.
