Dredg: Perseverance & Innovation
Words: Scott Jenson
Photo: Courtesy of EastWest
We are living in an unprecedented era of music. With the introduction of new technologies and a continuous,
exponential increase in media for people to communicate, music lovers can be exposed to more artists and genres than ever before. So many, in fact, that it is impossible to process the sheer amount of new music that is being birthed on a regular basis. This availability is a great positive for those who constantly crave new stimuli, but lessens the cultures that are created around certain artists, drastically shortening artists’ careers and weakening the bond between a great band and its fans.
“The industry is just oversaturated, to be honest,” says Gavin Hayes. “There are so many great bands out there. I hear about a new one once a week. It’s just an overload, which I think is great. But I just feel like people are scrambling to latch onto something, but there are so many things to grab, you don’t know what to reach for.”
Hayes has spent the last 16 years of his life with the band Dredg making music that people have continued to grasp, cultivating a fanbase that has followed the group through a continual progression of style and substance.
“We definitely have a lot of fans that I’m really impressed with; seeing the same people for well over a decade,” Hayes agrees. “I think it goes back to progress and not being stale. All of our records, whether people like the changes or not, have some sense of growth. That’s what keeps us involved and I figure translates to the listener as well.”
Where music is concerned, growth can be measured as a marked change in aesthetics and subject matter, but Dredg has never been lacking in substantive creation. The band’s 1998 debut full-length, leitmotif, was a cinematic exploration of man wandering the earth in an attempt to exorcise his internal demons. Through 11 years and the three albums that followed, Dredg has continued to explore subject matter as diverse as sleep paralysis, the interaction of opposing forces, and on their latest, The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion, a heady essay by Salman Rushdie entitled A Letter to the Six Billionth Person. The essay makes some bold statements about the influence of religion in our lives, and the band presents the topics in typical Dredg fashion, through cinematic lyrics set against a backdrop of complex yet accessible rock instrumentation.
Hayes expanded on the connection to the Rushdie essay, saying, “I understand the role that religion can play in people’s lives. I had a grandmother with polio who was very religious and it helped her get through life. On that level it’s a great thing, and a beautiful thing that can help in many ways. I just feel like now, with scientific and medical progress, some beliefs hinder what we can do as humans.”
One theme that makes several appearances on The Pariah is how religious fanaticism incites believers to kill or die in the name of an unseen God. Hayes is quick to decry the act itself, but understands the formation of the values system behind it:
“It’s regional, it’s societal, it’s status levels - there are a lot of different variables that I think play into account of how fanatical someone can be about beliefs. If I grew up in Iran, I would probably have a whole different outlook on life and may have adopted a completely different belief system.”
A very poignant statement, what with the current global social climate being influenced by acts of terrorism committed by religious fanatics. Apparently the statements made on The Pariah were not lost on Rushdie; Dredg is scheduling a show with the controversial author for October in NY. An out-of-the-ordinary pairing for a rock band - and the details of the performance aren’t yet finalized - but the fusion of two very different methods of expression has the entire group energized.
“There’s obviously a lot of respect for him as a person and to collaborate with someone on his level is exciting,” Hayes says. “It’s nice to step out and break the mold a little bit and be spontaneous with what we do.”
The influence of religion and politics is just one facet of what makes Dredg unique and relevant. Sonically the band has been on the forefront of creating new landscapes with every offering, while retaining a definitive sound. Each member brings a distinctive approach to their instrument that somehow meshes into a cohesive whole. Drummer Dino Campanella’s driving backbeat, locked in with sparse but complicated basslines by Drew Roulette, creates a groove that is unquestionably Dredg. Heavy riffs that morph into a wailing tremolo, a style of playing created and perfected by guitarist Mark Engles, somehow manage to flow over the rhythm section and create an undeniably cinematic threshold. Placed perfectly in the result is Gavin Hayes’ passionate vocal delivery. All of these factor in to create a rock band that doesn’t fit any stereotype of what a rock band should sound like, and each successive album has shown Dredg to be a group that builds solidly on an already impressive framework.
That creation is what has kept the band together for 16 years, and continues to attract new fans while retaining those who have been “in the know” from the beginning. In the current industry climate, gaining and retaining fans is vital, and since parting ways with their former label, Interscope, the group has become acutely aware of the importance of reaching out to new fans and keeping relationships solid through constant communication.
“We’re working more closely with traversing.net, our largest fan site, on some contest ideas that maybe wouldn’t have been spoken about if we were still at a major label,” says Hayes. “We’re running our own business, which is a scary thing. I just hope people have an opportunity to hear The Pariah, whether they like it or not we deserve a chance for people to hear what we have created. If no one likes it from there, that’s our fault.”
Maybe they’ve found the key to a long-lasting career in music: the construction of something unique with diverse influences and a commitment to keeping those who “get it” enfolded in their activities.
Dredg in Florida:
July 20 - Club Firestone, Orlando
July 22 - Culture Room, Ft. Lauderdale
July 23 - Freebird Live, Jacksonville
July 24 - Jannus Landing, St. Petersburg
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