New Pilot

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Written by staff
Thursday, 21 January 2010

New Pilot

We Can’t Put It Together; It Is Together.

Nobody likes Southbridge indie rock band New Pilot. Their website quotes Rolling Stone calling them the “worst band” they’ve heard in years, and Spin Magazine is quoted saying “These Guys Suck!” Even celebrities have chimed in. ImagePatriots QB Tom Brady thinks their performances are worse than the Patriots’ D, and Biff Tannen (from Back To The Future) suggests they change their name to “The Shittiest Band I’ve Ever Heard. Pilot!” But they’re all wrong. On “Night with a Ghost,” New Pilot’s rhythm section pumps out tight, rockabilly-saturated indie rock as vocalists Sean McKinstry and Johnny Wheeler date women who disappear like ghosts. A piano line frolics with drummer Seth Loconto’s heart-racing swing beat as one of the vocalists, nearing the end of his night, croons “I don’t know if I’ll hear back from her, am I gonna be the one to show you the ghost?” Later on during “1929,” Wheeler and McKinstry sneak attack Irish gangster Bugs Moran, detailing the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre of Moran’s gang by Al Capone’s henchmen (who were dressed as police officers): “Bugs Moran, you oughta know, we ain’t police, we Al Capone.” Brady, Biff, Spin and Rolling Stone can all shove it; New Pilot’s shit is hot. myspace.com/pilot_the_band - Worcester Magazine

New Pilot doesn’t just play a set of tunes. They provide a soundtrack for the perfect rock-n-roll allnighter. The Southbridge based quintet ~ Johnny Wheeler (keyboards/vocals), Sean McIntyre (vocals/guitar), Derek Anderson (bass), Nick Abair (drums) and Kevin Outland (guitar) ~ arm themselves with a mash up of songs that are slightly buzzed up and charmingly scruffy.

Although the guys were aware of each other through various local bands, the group formed on a last minute whim for a Curry College sponsored Battle of the Bands. Although rehearsing only a handful of times before the competition, New Pilot came out on top with the prestigious grand prize: an opening slot for the “Hey Leonardo” rockin’ Blessed Union of Souls. Since winning that gig, the men of New Pilot have been frenetically writing and rehearsing a mass of material which the group affectionately (and with a grain of respectful salt) compares to that of the Beatles’ White Album ~ eclectic and eccentric, yet honest and unpredictable.

With nasty bar room scuffle beats and raunchy wah-wah guitar licks, “Anything But You” and “Huffin’ Radiation” recall proto-punk at its finest ~ a fabulous blast of black and blued rock-n-roll. New Pilot exchanges black eyed raw power for British Invasion white boy soul on “Mary,” a Fab-Four cum Jonathan Richman waltzly strut, beatifically intoxicating while keeping up a convincing falsetto over the choruses. “Del Vero, “an ode to teenage love lost, possesses youthful singalong charisma and a guitar melody that respectfully knicks the best parts of “I Fought the Law.” Another dirty water gem, “Might Be Dead,” packs the one-two punch of a perfect mid-sixties garage rock 45‘.

Much like their musical influences The Beatles and The Clash, Johnny Wheeler and Sean Mckinstry trade off on vocal duties. Wheeler acts as more of the “McCartney,” soulful and diverse, with Mckinstry playing the part of Lennon, sneering, slightly unhinged, with razor-burned vocals.

Throughout their fan circulated rough demo disc, the band is never short on delivering stellar surprises. “EABOD” screams mid-nineties “Cool Britannia” synth pop assaulted by a heavy grunge-era guitar thump whereas “Thing I Do” has that light, alternarama radio pop appeal ~the same kind of appeal one might find in Tammany Hall wallflowers Jediah or OSB.

Arguably the highlight of the band‘s catalog, “Complications,” emulates the charm of a hazy Sunday morning hang over. Accompanied by drummer Nick Abair on sax, Mckinstry whispers a delicate weep of heartbreak over a sparse arrangement. With soft drops of Wurlitzer piano raining over haunting harmonies in the distance, Transformer-era Lou Reed couldn’t have done it much better.

Catch New Pilot with local favorites Castine at Harper’s Ferry in Boston July 11th. Tickets are available at harpersferryboston.com. Also check out the band at www.myspace.com/pilot_the_band.

Written by Matt Erhartic of Pulse Magazine

July

- Pulse Magazine