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GILBERT BREAKS HIS SILENCE TO DISCUSS NEW 'QUIET LIFE'

July 24, 2008 3:43 am

BY STEPHANIE BOSCOVITCH

North Carolina indie-folk musician Dylan Gilbert is nothing short of brilliant. It is inspiring to hear someone, at the young age of 20, create such beautiful, unique melodies. On his third album, "The Quiet Life," Gilbert's tunes are crisp and natural, and his songs do not include a ton of sound effects or foul lyrics--just pure music.

Gilbert spoke with it! recently as a preview for his two performances tonight at The Loft. The edited transcript follows:

Stephanie Boscovitch: Growing up in Charlotte, N.C., how did you get started in the music business?

Dylan Gilbert: My parents were musicians, so I was around music while I was a kid. They were playing in bands when I was growing up, especially on my mom's side [because] it goes all the way back through the generations. When I started high school I joined a band, and it started going from there.

SB: Has your style changed since your younger days playing music?

DG: I'm always trying to do new and different stuff. First it was kind of noise, then it was kind of "punky," then it was a little more melodic rock. Now, it's kind of developed into this style now--this kind of folky indie-pop.

SB: Who are your biggest musical influences?

DG: OK, this is going to be a long list. The Beatles are probably going to be No. 1, especially Paul McCartney. Brian Wilson [of the Beach Boys] would be a big one. People like Sam Cooke and Radiohead--I don't know, there's a lot.

SB: What made you choose track one, "The Quiet Life," as the title of your new album?

DG: Well, I don't know--I guess there is a bit of a story behind that. "The Quiet Life" is probably the oldest song on the entire record. It was around the time when I first made my first solo record, around 2005-2006.

It's about seeking peace in yourself. Even though you are growing up and are not a kid anymore, it's about being OK with that. The title of it [conveys] this feeling of serenity. It gives a feeling of like "chill." I'm always running about 90 miles an hour, so it was good for me to name it that.

SB: Looking back, is there anything on the album you would have done differently?

DG: Some famous filmmaker said, "No films are ever finished, they are just abandoned." Art can never be finished: There is always something that you could have changed. But I definitely think it is the best-written and -produced album I have ever done.

SB: Being 20, where would you like to see yourself years from now?

DG: I've never wanted to be a millionaire rock star or anything like that. But I've always been like, "If I can do this without getting a day job and live off it and be able to support some kind of family and, you know, have fun with it "

SB: My favorite song on the album is "I'll Plant a Seed." Is there any special meaning or story behind it?

DG: It was the last song written for the album--it barely made it. I wrote it all in about 15 minutes, while I was on the medication after getting my wisdom teeth taken out. Usually, there is some type of revising. But there was no revising--it was the first stream of consciousness, and I just left it. I am very proud of it--I don't know if I can take much credit for it, though.

SB: What is your favorite track on the whole album?

DG: "No Mystery." That was the second-to-last song that was put onto the album. I don't know--I just love that chorus so much, which is funny, because usually I get tired of my music pretty quickly. But I'm usually always humming that little melody in the beginning. I'm proud of how it all came together.

SB: Besides playing at shows, what are your other plans for the summer?

DG: That's pretty much my whole summer. I won't get home till Aug. 2 or 3. I'll probably, as soon as I get back home, sleep for some time and take a break for about a week. Then the shows kick back up. I'm working on [shows] in Greensboro [N.C.] and Richmond for late August.

I'm really going to start working on a multimedia project. I'm filming this entire tour for YouTube--a documentary series. I'm going to use a lot of unreleased songs as the soundtrack for the documentary. Also in August, I'm going to start recording a new album with some friends--the same batch of kids that helped me do the last couple of albums. I've already got about nine songs that would be pretty good for a new album.

Stephanie Boscovitch is a rising junior at Riverbend High School.