So Many Dynamos
Paul Peters | Nov 10, 2009 | Comments Comments
So Many Dynamos (from left) Griffin Kay, Aaron Stovall, Nathan Bernaix, Clayton Kunstel. (Leanna Kaiser photo)
by Paul Peters
After getting into a van wreck while on tour just a few weeks ago, So Many Dynamos keyboardist and singer Aaron Stovall asked himself, “When are these things going to stop happening?”
So Many Dynamos got its start in Edwardsville in 2002, where the band shared a home until this past summer. They’ve gone from playing The Stagger Inn Again to playing sold out shows at places like the Riviera Theatre in Chicago. They’ve played hundreds of gigs around the country and have released three full-length albums. Death Cab for Cutie guitarist Chris Walla produced their last album, The Loud Wars
But “these things” keep happening. They include Guitarist Griffin Kay’s near-fatal staph infection in 2004, a gear theft that nearly brought down their 2006 tour, and another van wreck in 2007 that could have easily killed the entire band (but left them with only minor cuts and bruises). Between these bigger problems, there have been stage collapses, gear malfunctions and other more typical road band problems.
And things are still happening. When the band returned from tour this summer, guitarist Ryan Wasoba quit (find his explanation here).
Despite So Many Dynamos’ resilience to date, losing Wasoba seems like something that could seriously impact its ability to continue being the same band.
The problem is, they have a particular sound. So Many Dynamos manages to pack songs with electronic bleeps, guitar and keyboard riffs, vocals ranging from near-chanting to screaming, odd time signatures and break beats, without ever seeming like it’s just making a bunch of noise to cover up some fault.
It’s quite clear, in fact, that beyond the effects pedals, drum triggers, lack of a bass player (Stovall provides the low-end on keys), and other aspects that would be novelties in some bands, the members of So Many Dynamos really know how to play their instruments and write good songs.
They use this ability (which, in an ideal world, would be the standard for any band) to write songs that change in unexpected ways from beginning to end, that manage to be both technically sophisticated and danceable, with lyrics that manage to be serious but still funny at times.
So Many Dynamos live (story continues below video)
But Wasoba was an integral part of the process that created this music. In fact, Stovall says, “[Wasoba] primarily did most of the song writing, and would kind of bring it into us, and the rest of us would kind of piece it together.”
So Wasoba’s leaving would seem like a heavy blow. But what may ultimately save So Many Dynamos is that, throughout their seven years of playing together, they’ve practically had an understudy waiting in the wings.
Nathan Bernaix sat in during one of the Dynamos’ first practices back in 2002.
His band, Target Market, has toured with the Dynamos on multiple occasions. There was even some mixing between the bands in the past, with Stovall sitting in on keyboards during Target Market shows, and Bernaix filling in for Kay when he got the staph infection.
When Wasoba began talking about leaving during the summer tour, Stovall says Bernaix was an easy choice.
Even Wasoba was in agreement, writing in his goodbye post on the band’s blog, “They asked how I felt about Nathan Bernaix from Target Market replacing me, and I said, ‘I feel great about that.’”
Stovall notes that he and Bernaix went to kindergarten together in Granite City, and have been friends ever since.
“Some bands post ads on Craigslist for auditions. There’s no way we could function like that,” Stovall says. “It’s just as important, if not more important, that the person fit with you socially and emotionally and psychologically. You don’t get the musical chemistry without all of those other things first.”
Bernaix will have to hit the ground running. The band is scheduled for a European tour this spring. It then hits the studio to record a new album next summer.
And, although he still has a tic of occasionally referring to the band as “them” rather than “us,” Bernaix seems ready to jump into his new role. He filled in for Wasoba on the band’s East Coast tour this Fall, which seems to have went smoothly.
And, he says, “We’ve written a little bit already,” he says. “It’s exciting.”
He’s also honest about the effect swapping him for Wasoba will have, “Ryan [Wasoba] had a strong voice in the song writing, so it will definitely be different.”
For his part, Stovall is positive about the potential changes Bernaix brings.
“The really neat thing about Nathan, is that he has always been – and in a weird way still is – the one person who has the most inside point of view, while still being an outsider,” says Stovall. “He has a good idea, from a fan’s point of view, what would be a natural progression.”
That Bernaix’ addition to the band would ultimately turn out to be a good thing would fit with So Many Dynamos story so far.
From each of their setbacks, Stovall says good things have sprouted, the most tangible example being their relationship with Death Cab for Cutie.
When the band’s guitars were stolen in Seattle during their 2006 tour, Death Cab for Cutie guitarist Chris Walla lent them gear so they could finish the tour, after that he invited them to come record The Loud Wars
“It almost gives me even more drive,” Stovall says of the band’s misfortunes. “It tests your will power.”
He comes up with a metaphor befittingly silly for So Many Dynamos: “It’s like dudes that surf and get attacked by sharks, and they’ll go surfing the next time, and they may have an arm missing.”
Check out So Many Dynamos in St. Louis this Friday (more here). Also, Bernaix continues playing with Target Market, whom you can catch November 19 in Edwardsville (more here).
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