Drew Grow & the Pastors' Wives
Gresham, Oregon, United States | INDIE
Music
Press
"...In the late afternoon sun, with a few guests including Kelli Schaefer and the Portland Cello Project, the quartet delivered an impassioned testimony that stood head-and-shoulders above the mellow folk-rock that made up the bulk of the festival's lineup." - Portland Mercury
"...In the late afternoon sun, with a few guests including Kelli Schaefer and the Portland Cello Project, the quartet delivered an impassioned testimony that stood head-and-shoulders above the mellow folk-rock that made up the bulk of the festival's lineup." - Portland Mercury
"Two weekends ago, I had one of those rare, game-changing live music experiences, the kind when you're watching a band and your chest swells up big and red and raw like a great frigatebird during mating season and there's a lump in your throat and an ACME anvil could fall on the person next to you and you probably wouldn't even notice the blood spatter because HOLY FUCKING SHIT this band is amazing.
These are the sorts of experiences that turn people from casual listeners into lifelong music fans." - Seattle Weekly
"Two weekends ago, I had one of those rare, game-changing live music experiences, the kind when you're watching a band and your chest swells up big and red and raw like a great frigatebird during mating season and there's a lump in your throat and an ACME anvil could fall on the person next to you and you probably wouldn't even notice the blood spatter because HOLY FUCKING SHIT this band is amazing.
These are the sorts of experiences that turn people from casual listeners into lifelong music fans." - Seattle Weekly
"I firmly believe that this man is a musical genius in every respect...It’s an album that has obviously been thought out in perfect vision and molded into a seminal work that brings memories of Pink Floyd, Bright Eyes and Bill Calahan." - Lost At E Minor
"I firmly believe that this man is a musical genius in every respect...It’s an album that has obviously been thought out in perfect vision and molded into a seminal work that brings memories of Pink Floyd, Bright Eyes and Bill Calahan." - Lost At E Minor
"... that looseness is something that exudes from the band's debut. It's a collection of songs that are imbued with a spiritual yearning but crackle with energy that pours out of the band both on record and especially on stage." - AOL Spinner
"... that looseness is something that exudes from the band's debut. It's a collection of songs that are imbued with a spiritual yearning but crackle with energy that pours out of the band both on record and especially on stage." - AOL Spinner
"Drew Grow and the Pastors' Wives veer from bluesy, off-kilter piano ballads to straightforward garage rock." - The New Yorker
"Drew Grow and the Pastors' Wives veer from bluesy, off-kilter piano ballads to straightforward garage rock." - The New Yorker
"Their music melds together a scuzzy, squally blend of rebellious gospel/folk that at times possesses the radiant buoyancy of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, and in quieter moments the seeping warmth of M Ward or intelligent, lovely meanderings of Elvis Perkins. It's wild and sharp and smart." - Huffington Post
"Their music melds together a scuzzy, squally blend of rebellious gospel/folk that at times possesses the radiant buoyancy of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, and in quieter moments the seeping warmth of M Ward or intelligent, lovely meanderings of Elvis Perkins. It's wild and sharp and smart." - Huffington Post
"A softly soul-stirring, harmony-laden hymn for the less-than-perfect who yearn to do better while struggling to get by, it's a tender, gorgeous ode to hope that everything will work out okay in the end, regardless of the circumstances." - NPR
"A softly soul-stirring, harmony-laden hymn for the less-than-perfect who yearn to do better while struggling to get by, it's a tender, gorgeous ode to hope that everything will work out okay in the end, regardless of the circumstances." - NPR
Discography
Full Lengths & EP's:
The Comfort Feel EP - 2010
Drew Grow & the Pastors' Wives - 2010
Sow to Sow EP - 2008
ONE EP - 2008
Next Lips LP - 2007
Singles / B-Sides:
Up In Smoke / Shake A Leg 2010
Do You Feel It / Bon Voyage Hymn 2010
Company/Premonition - 2009
Bootstraps/Friendly Fire - 2009
Photos
Bio
Across the globe, there are hundreds of young men and women who have taken up acoustic guitars, inspired by the grand folk and country tradition, and set about put their sleeve-worn hearts into musical form. But the result is often feather light and wispy and all too easily forgotten amid the din of the modern age.
Not so with the music of Drew Grow and the Pastors Wives.
The music on the band’s self-titled LP (released on their own Amigo/Amiga label) shares the influence of many current indie artists, but carries with much more meat and gristle to chew on. It feels like it was molded after a long life of ups and downs, all set a soundtrack of the curlicued songwriting of Bob Dylan, the drowsy despair of Bill Callahan/Smog, and a thick stack of dusty Motown and Stax 45s.
There’s a spiritual side to Grow’s work here as well, pulled from what sounds like a life bruised by growing up in a Christian household. Songs like “Hook” and “Bootstraps” carry with them the imagery of the religious life, but aren’t weighed down by it. When Grow sings, “I’m born again!”, the conviction he imbues that sentiment with is undeniable.
Grow is aided here by a crack backing band that features Jeremiah Hayden on drums, Kris Doty on bass and vocals, and Seth Schaper playing keyboards. Together, they bolster Grow’s emotional anthems with a slow burning style reminiscent of Basement Tapes-era The Band or Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s current chosen backing band, The Cairo Gang.
It’s a surprisingly cohesive collection considering their scattered beginnings. Many of the songs were originally released on a series of singles over the course of 2009 and 2010 before being gathered together with some extra material for this vinyl/download-only LP. On their own, they were powerful enough, but in one lump sum like this, it is positively breathtaking.
Don’t just take our word for it. Casey Jarman, music editor of Willamette Week, said of Grow’s song “Company”: “This is the kind of thing you want to pop on the stereo at your favorite dive, right after the whiskey hits you and you’re feeling bold enough to actually talk to that girl.” And the Huffington Post had this to say of Grow’s music: “Their music melds together a scuzzy, squally blend of rebellious gospel/folk that at times possesses the radiant buoyancy of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, and in quieter moments the seeping warmth of M Ward or intelligent, lovely meanderings of Elvis Perkins. It’s wild and sharp and smart.”
Band Members
Links
