My first verbal interaction with Meric Long was accidentally waking him up. One third of San Francisco psych-folk group the Dodos, he answered the phone with a groggy "Hello?" Then, in reply to my introduction as his interviewer, expressed confusion: "The PR said you would call around eleven."
It was noon in Baltimore, which meant that where Long was located, on the road in Arizona, it was 9 a.m. This is far too early for a musician to function, so we agreed to talk at a later hour. "I really appreciate you letting me sleep," Long said before hanging up.
An appropriate number of hours later, I called Long back. His voice upon answering was much more alert and focused. "Now is the perfect time to talk," he said. And talk we did ?- about the significant changes and events that his band has recently gone through.
The Dodos, formed by guitarist/singer Long and drummer Logan Kroeber in 2005, released their third studio album, Time To Die, on July 28 through their label Frenchkiss Records. It's their second album on a label, and the first with the new addition to their group: vibraphone player Keaton Snyder.
"I wanted a vibraphone on this album, so we just bought the thing and then we met Keaton during the recording process," Long said. "We wanted to simplify this record: On [our last album] Visiter, we had a bunch of instruments come in and this one, I just wanted a solid band of three instruments on every song, and just to focus on the interplay between every instrument."
From their meeting, Long and Kroeber aimed for drumming to have a central role in their music, and to blend Long's training in West African Ewe drumming with both of their previous experiences in metal bands to create a distinct, progressive sound.
The syncopated rhythms from Long's acoustic guitar and Kroeber's innovative drum style (he uses no bass drum, and has a tambourine taped to the bottom of his foot) fuse perfectly together, both instruments sharing roles in rhythm and melody. The vibraphone was thus a fitting addition, because "it can be both melodic and percussive."
On Time To Die, Snyder's presence is neither abrupt nor forced. The album moves from a low-key, melodic start with "Small Deaths," to the romping briskness of "This Is a Business," to the dark but tender "Troll Nacht."
One can hear for themselves how well the vibraphone complements each song. Sometimes it's more subtle, such as on "The Strums," where it almost completely blends in with Long's percussive strumming, but on songs such as "Two Medicines" and "Troll Nacht," it assumes a dominant position and one can hardly believe that only three instruments are present on the song, rather than an entire orchestra.
This is Snyder's first experience in a band setting. Previously, he played in orchestras and ensembles (one has to wonder what the demand for vibraphone players is these days).
"It's been fun to show him the ropes of touring and playing shows," Long said. "He just had no idea - he was like this band geek before."
Indeed, Long recounts that the first time Snyder joined the Dodos onstage, the chord was pulled out of the vibraphone, "And he had no idea what was going on. He had just never been in a position where he needed to plug anything in before."
Long and Kroeber, however, are old pros. Both had previously played in metal bands, although at the time of their meeting, Long was gigging steadily in San Francisco as a solo artist and Kroeber was experimenting with progressive metal drumming.
They were introduced through Kroeber's cousin, who happened to be Long's college roommate, and bonded through mutual appreciation of bands such as Andrew W.K. and O.M.D., along with the innovative finger-picking guitarist John Fahey.
When asked about the abrupt change from metal to the Dodos' clearly more indie-folk style, Long replied "We still have the same sort of energy. The minimal instruments and content give it that indie feel, but our energy on-stage and how we use our instruments is the same [as in metal]."
The Dodos are definitely a band to see live. They generally spend about half the year touring, although Long thinks they might slow down after this tour. "People seem to like the record a lot more after seeing us live. I think it makes them understand us a lot better."
When asked about their last experience in Baltimore, Long recalls, "The fans were great. I was really sick when we were last there, and my voice gave out during our set. That's never happened before, but everyone was really understanding, which was nice. I'm excited to be back there."
They will be playing at the Talking Head at Sonar in Baltimore on Saturday, hopefully with everyone healthy and ready to rock (no catching Swine Flu, guys, you hear?).
If one watches the video for "Fables," the first single off Time To Die, they get a clear view of what the Dodos are all about. It's a simple video of the trio recording in the studio with the camera zooming in and out on each member, panning the room and focusing on each detail of their musicianship.
Near the final breakdown of the song, confetti starts to fall from the ceiling and cover the band. The image encapsulates the band's ethos: simple, feel-good, yet undeniably well-crafted. "We're just having fun," says Long.
Their unique music and fantastic live act leave no doubt that they'll be doing this for much longer than the unfortunate birds after which they're named.
