Regardless of relationship status, family bond is forever. With Dawes’ latest record “Oh Brother,” brotherly love goes deeper than its title. Taylor and Griffin Goldsmith have fronted and drummed respectively in their band for the past 15 years, but discovered a newfound dynamic on their 2024 record “Oh, Brother” as the co-founders of Dawes lead their band alone after losing two consistent members.
The American folk rock band has created nine records featuring elements of progressive rock as well as folk through harmonic vocals and their lyrical components. The sudden lineup shifts have challenged the Goldsmith brothers to continue the Dawes sound through a new avenue.
“Oh Brother” is not about counting losses. As Taylor puts it, the record is about “progression” that each Dawes’ record aims to achieve.
“We always try to push ahead and do something we haven’t done before or take something about what we liked and press a little bit harder on that ingredient,” Taylor said. “We take from all the records thus far and try to feel like what is true to ourselves and go forth with that sound.”
The refined era of Dawes will arrive at Roadrunner on Friday, Nov. 22. The performance will emphasize the new record but also include music from the rest of the brothers’ extensive discography.
“Oh, Brother” feels slightly less lyrically witty than other Dawes projects, trading out some of the quips in its choruses for more raw and emotional choices in the hooks—which create songs that bounce between clever situational rhyme schemes and random emotional gut punches when the listener lets their guard down, like their song “Front Row Seat.”
“As slowly as a yogi stretches at an unsafe park / I tiptoe toward the gravity of the predicament we’re in / I’d prefer leaving tomorrow sitting firmly in the dark / instead of facing one more tired vision of the end.”
Taylor says that his love for writing has been present throughout his career, while enjoying artists who keep a consistent energy lyrically, listing examples like Weezer. Taylor aims to write music reflective of his mental state.
“[I’m influenced by] John Prine and Kris Kristofferson, writers who aren’t afraid to tell the 40-year-old story as well as the 20-year-old story,” Taylor said.
Coming to terms with his age has seemingly elevated Taylor’s writing to a new level, shifting his focus from a first-person narrative and branching out into more dynamic storytelling.
“I’m not afraid to write a song about being six years into a marriage or being three kids into a marriage, but also I realized you can’t tap that vein too often and have it round out a record,” Taylor, 39, said. “As time goes on, I find myself wanting to occupy other people’s perspectives, and I’ve also found as I’ve gotten older as a writer that I see that as kind of the trademark of a good one.”
This comparison of his work at different ages does not mean one phase is better than the other, it is simply a realization of the changes as a lyricist that come with growing older and gaining experience.
“I think when we’re all younger, and writing from this kind of ‘airing on our dirty laundry’ and kind of just like sharing our exact experiences,” Taylor said. “I think that there’s a talent, there’s a skill set there too.”
“Oh Brother” does not just touch upon a new lyrical frontier, it dives into a new instrumental frontier. With bandmates Wylie Gelber and Lee Pardini departing from the band in 2023, Taylor fills multiple new roles while in the studio.
“The fact that it’s two of us now contributes a lot to the sound because now not only am I the guitar player and the singer and the songwriter, but I’m also the keyboardist and the bassist,” said Taylor. “I miss the guys we played with for so long, but it’s been really tough because I’ve always loved playing those instruments but never got into it with Dawes [before now].”
Taylor’s newfound roles feel natural to him despite his uncertainties.
“It was scary when we started the record,” Taylor said. “I didn’t know if it was good enough.”
Taylor creates classic warm and jam-centric instrumentals on “Oh Brother” that emulate the intimacy of other Dawes records, making the new roles he picked up in the studio feel seamless.
This easy transition is also due to Taylor being more than the average frontman; his chops as a seasoned musician have earned him opportunities like playing with Joni Mitchell at her recent show at the Hollywood Bowl, and performing with the late Phil Lesh, the legendary bassist of the Grateful Dead.
“Every artist we’ve gotten to play with, it’s always been a different lesson,” Taylor said. “But with all of them, especially the older folks, it’s just like this glimpse of what a lifelong dedication looks like.”
Over their years of experience and their sit-ins with musical greats, the Goldsmith brothers picked up tricks and techniques that have sharpened their ability to create innovative yet encapsulating instrumentals and build a captivating live performance.
