Veteran L.A. musicians blaze their own proudly old-fashioned musical path, tour with Neil Young

“This whole thing has been really fun,” said singer-guitarist Russell Pollard of L.A.-based folk-rock band Everest while at a pit stop just outside Portland, OR. “Just being able to play for our fans and be on the road with some really great guys, it’s just the kind of experience we were hoping for.”

“Fun” is quite the understatement to describe the recent run of success Everest has encountered since releasing their debut album Ghost Notes on Vapor Records back in May. An amalgam of musical creativity and instrumental talent from a number of SoCal bands, such as Sebadoh, Earlimart, the Folk Implosion, and the Watson Twins, Everest got together as most bands do; a group of friends just trying to make music that appealed to them.

“We all knew each from the touring scene in L.A. and along the west coast,” Pollard explains. “I had played drums in Sebadoh and I had talked with some of the other guys [guitarists Jason Soda and Joel Graves] on tour and jammed with them at some point or another, and we kept in touch. And when it felt like the bands we were in wanted to go in a different direction or didn’t work out for whatever reason, it just felt right to go out and try our own thing.”

Everest certainly had no preconceptions of what they were trying to do when it came to figuring out their new sound. “The recording process was really a blank canvas,” Pollard said. “We came in there with some material that I had been working on and other songs we just kind of bounced off each other. We all played different roles in our previous bands so it was cool to branch out.”

While Pollard professes a love for ‘60s psychedelia and groovy kraut-rock, Ghost Notes calls to mind more of one of Pollard’s favorite contemporary bands, My Morning Jacket. From the Southern-rock tinge of the haunting opener “Rebels in the Roses” to the rollicking drive of “Trees” to the almost hymn-like qualities of “The Future,” Ghost Notes’s blend of Americana-roots rock, soul, and simple burning guitar rock is the kind of record that only comes out once in a while, and the band knew it.

“There was a really good vibe during recording, and the studio [the late Elliott Smith’s personal New Monkey Studio] was just the perfect atmosphere,” Pollard said. Plenty of Ghost Notes’ vintage guitar-rock feel can be attributed to Everest’s proclivity towards more old-fashioned recording methods.

“Nothing digital,” Pollard swore. “It wasn’t really a conscious choice, but analog, tape machines, etc. is just what we’ve grown up using. I wouldn’t know how to even use Pro Tools,” Pollard laughed. “But we think it really helped let the personality of the band come through. Instead of working everything out a million times and making sure every drum hit was just on or whatever, we just captured the essence of a band playing live.”

Everest’s big break came, however, when Neil Young’s manager caught a listen to one of their demos, visited at recording, and decided to take the record within only a few days. “It was surreal,” Pollard said. “He [Young] invited us to come on his European tour, and from there the whole process was just very organic, very natural. But at the beginning it was pretty crazy, because I think I speak for the whole band when I say Young was such a hero to us.”

 All veterans of the music business, they’re not letting their run of good luck interfere with what they set out to do: play for themselves and for their fans. “I think the heart of what we are is when we play live,” Pollard said. “So just the chance of being able to play in front of some major audiences music that really shines live, it’s awesome. We’re a live band first.” Everest should have no trouble getting in front of people anytime soon; they are currently again on the western leg of a U.S. tour that started September 14th with Young and Death Cab for Cutie.

“Honestly, I feel like we’ve been blessed,” Pollard said. “This has just been everything we could ask for and more, and we’re just excited to be playing.” For a band with as much musical savvy, creative chemistry, and such determination as Everest, it looks as if they’re not going to need much else anytime soon.