Blind Pilot
3 Rounds and a Sound
Play 3 Rounds and a Sound
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AMG Review of 3 Rounds and a Sound
Michael Berick
All Music GuideIs Blind Pilot a folk outfit playing indie rock or indie rockers playing folk music? Singer/guitarist Israel Nebeker and drummer Ryan Dobrowski operate out of an acoustic setting but their mellow yet hooky tunes have more in common with indie rock outfits than folky troubadours. This Portland, OR-based group winds up being something like Beck or the Shins doing easygoing folksy tunes or Iron & Wine with a poppier sensibility. Whatever genre equation you want to use to describe them, it's easy to say that Blind Pilot have come up with a winning music plan. The opening tune "Oviedo" sets the course that they chart throughout the debut full-length. Against some laid-back guitar strumming and gentle drumming, Nebeker warmly sings his hazy but quirky lyrics, which seem like private language of personal confessions ("Four times is once too much for luck and that's how many times the clock struck/I wandered home saying your name"). As the song easies along, the arrangement gets fleshed out with muted horns and banjo picking. Nebeker nicely doubles his voice at times, but his singing maintains his intimate, hushed tones. In "Paint or Pollen," he builds a set of beguiling images ("Milk in your water, black in your primer, wood in your brush") to express that "the best is upon us." While having an interesting way with words, Nebeker isn't one for direct sentiment. He is a bit more overt in his affection on the title track, where he sings "My eyes were dark 'till you woke me." While "The Bitter End" deals with death, it doesn't dip heavily in morbidity as Nebeker expresses his emotions through personal but semi-obscure references to "hounds-tooth coats and vitamins." For all of its off-the-cuff musical vibe, Blind Pilot also exhibits a fine sense of craftsmanship. The vibraphone that weaves through "One Red Thread" subtly expands the song's sonic landscape while subdued horns show up again to bolster the woozy melody in "I Buried a Bone." "Two Towns from Me," meanwhile, feels like an indie pop tune performed at half-speed but works wonderfully in its own right. 3 Rounds and a Sound is one of those discs where the whole is greater than its parts. They may not be creating something wildly innovative, but Nebeker, Dobrowski, and their crew, in their own low-key way, have fashioned an impressive amalgam of rustic folk-pop and indie rock. They definitely have Blind Pilot headed in the right direction.
Incoming: Blind Pilot
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One of the albums I've been listening to incessantly this year is 3 Rounds and a Sound, from Portland's Blind Pilot. Mr. Chair put a song on a mix, I sought it out and just like that, a new favorite record emerged on the scene.The band was in town earlier this year, but I had the flu. So it's great news they're returning - Oct. 25 at Plush, with The Low Anthem.Blind Pilot plays mellow, melodic
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Portland has done it again...Blind Pilot
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Blind Pilot is indeed from Portland, Oregon, someplace I feel like I absolutely need to visit knowing how many great artist come from Portland. Seems almost whimsical when I think of the place - trees, coffee shops, small venues, lots of bands.....a cozy little city :). Now these are obviously just my own thoughts of what Portland would be like, so if you're from Portland, I'd love for you to s
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Blind Pilot: 3 Rounds and a Sound
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photo: Expunged Records Sparse and luxurious at the same time. That's 3 Rounds and a Sound , an album by Portland duo Blind Pilot . With acoustic guitar and drums augmenteed with some keyboards, violin, horns and accordeon this is the kind of music that tastes like good cup of coffee. You can put tons of tags on these guys, but they sound first and for all like a great indie folk band.They took...
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Go on say it... Blind Pilot
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I posted Oviedo by Blind Pilot the other day and loved it so much that I wanted to know a bit more about these guys..A Portland-based duo singer/guitarist Israel Nebeker and drummer Ryan Dobrowski, Blind Pilot seem to strike a balance between mellow folk and West Coast indie pop.The two friends first banded together in college before combining their musical talents and touring the northwestern ...
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Another Present from Portland: Blind Pilot
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I couldn't believe upon looking up Blind Pilot on MOG that there haven't been any posts on this duo. So here I am to share another great music find that has been dropped in my lap. Israel Nebeker and Ryan Dobrowski produce a beautiful sound together. I knew their sound was the sound, my sound, as soon as I heard the first few notes. And then Israel's voice poured out of the...
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Portland has done it again...Blind Pilot
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Blind Pilot is indeed from Portland, Oregon, someplace I feel like I absolutely need to visit knowing how many great artist come from Portland. Seems almost whimsical when I think of the place - trees, coffee shops, small venues, lots of bands.....a cozy little city :). Now these are obviously just my own thoughts of what Portland would be like, so if you're from Portland, I'd love for you to s
More >
Blind Pilot: 3 Rounds and a Sound
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Artist:
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photo: Expunged Records Sparse and luxurious at the same time. That's 3 Rounds and a Sound , an album by Portland duo Blind Pilot . With acoustic guitar and drums augmenteed with some keyboards, violin, horns and accordeon this is the kind of music that tastes like good cup of coffee. You can put tons of tags on these guys, but they sound first and for all like a great indie folk band.They took...
More >
Incoming: Blind Pilot
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Artist:
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One of the albums I've been listening to incessantly this year is 3 Rounds and a Sound, from Portland's Blind Pilot. Mr. Chair put a song on a mix, I sought it out and just like that, a new favorite record emerged on the scene.The band was in town earlier this year, but I had the flu. So it's great news they're returning - Oct. 25 at Plush, with The Low Anthem.Blind Pilot plays mellow, melodic
More >
they're playing our song {August 26, 2009}
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Sis boom baâ€"I just returned from my noon-time gymming session! My body is a machine, dewed with sweat and I am losing minutes like buttons. If I get my permit (fingers crossed), I will be spending a few days this autumn hiking from the Grand Canyon's north rim to the south rim. I think it will be THE BEST THING I'VE EVER DONEâ€"the pleasures of life are infinite! Duly noted, it will be a challen
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Blind Pilot
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Blind Pilot performing tomorrow night here in their hometown, Oh ye! poor boy, why don't you try getting water?poor boy, why don't you try getting sleep?I think if one of us is going to sufferwhy shouldn't it be me?poor boy, your wife is in hard laborthe rhythm you knowis pulsing and drifting to the gravewhen you come toyou'll be asking yourself just one questionwas I always this way?was I alwa...
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The B List: Top Six Of The Last Six
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Earlier this week the HT Staff picked their favorite albums of '08, when we gathered Around The Barbecue . To continue on our year-end house cleaning, we've got another list. Back in early July I dropped my Top 6 Of The First 6 list, and since we're not ones for traditional Top Ten around these parts I figured I'd revisit that format to round out the year's releases.The second half of the year saw
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Interview With Blind Pilot
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Blind Pilot have smashed the international scene far beyond original expectations with their début album '3 Rounds and a Sound'. The duo are also the first band to tour on bicycles, yes you read that correctly, bicycles: steel-framed locomotives powered by pedalling.
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New Video: Blind Pilot - Go On, Say It
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Not too long ago, I reviewed Blind Pilot's debut album, 3 Rounds and a Sound. It's one of 2008's best albums and the band recently released a video for "Go On, Say It." The band is from Portland, Oregon and it looks like most of the video is shot on the Columbia River. I lived [...]
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 "3 Rounds and a Sound")
