2 Seattle bands sizzle through pandemic

SEATTLE — The pandemic and live music’s stumbling recovery have not been kind to working musicians (to drastically understate it). The inability to safely and reliably convene has been a drag on the bottom line as much as the soul, depriving bands of their primary way of building an audience, not to mention pay the rent.

The internet is a powerful tool, but for many artists there’s no substitute for the stage, stepping in front of a crowd and letting the music speak to listeners in ways social media “gurus” never could. This is especially true for artists like The Dip and Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio, two must-see Seattle bands who had heads full of steam when the world turned upside down.

Back in 2020, seven-piece soul brigade The Dip planned to take its second lap around the country supporting its sophomore album, “The Dip Delivers,” which featured Lamarr and DLO3 guitar wizard Jimmy James on standout scorcher “Advertising.” Especially meaningful, the Seattle favorites had landed their first headlining date at the Showbox, a longtime benchmark for local bands on the rise.

“It was a huge bummer,” recalls baritone saxophonist Evan Smith, “it being such an iconic venue and this yardstick in the musical community. And then seeing in recent years all the discussion of whether that property was going to be redeveloped, too. I remember thinking at the time ‘Oh, great, I’m never going to get to play there.’”

Before the shutdown hit in early 2020, the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio was gearing up to release its second album with Colemine Records. The boutique soul label helped the hard-grooving soul-jazz ensemble make a splash on the jazz charts with its debut album — a strong but hastily recorded set — just a year earlier. The band’s more fully baked follow-up, “I Told You So,” was initially pushed to October, but as fall approached “it seemed like everything was starting to get worse,” Lamarr says.

Nevertheless, when the record finally dropped in January 2021 — with club gigs still largely extinct — it similarly ascended the charts, even though they couldn’t give the smoldering collection the proper touring push it deserved.

“People weren’t able to get out and see live music, but naturally people crave music,” says the ace organist, crediting his wife and manager, Amy Novo, with keeping them visible online. “I think that helped with the sales of the album, because people desire music. You always do, whether you realize it or not.”

Focus on writing

While the omicron surge has thrown another bump in live music’s recovery, both DLO3 and The Dip are picking up where they left off, emerging from a largely grim two years with some of the most potent music of their careers and big hometown gigs springboarding into ambitious tours. Against the odds, all the pre-pandemic momentum they built hasn’t seemed to wane.

When their primary tour plans were sacked, both DLO3 and The Dip turned their focus toward writing, squeezing in mini runs, festival dates or one-off shows as surges and restrictions allowed. (Dip frontman Tom Eddy’s first comeback show was in a makeshift band with DLO3’s James, whom Eddy cites as an inspiration.) After a carousel of part-time drummers, DLO3 finally found a full-time kitminder in Dan Weiss of Nevada band The Sextones, a steady-handed drummer who emerged from a pool of 160 applicants. “When he came onboard, I kind of felt bad for the guy,” Lamarr says of the timing. “He quit his job and everything and we played four shows and everything got shut down.”

With their small but mighty lineup solidified, DLO3 were eager to crank out fresh material to introduce the new guy. Despite a pandemic and geography making in-person rehearsals at Lamarr’s Pullman home trickier (Weiss was living in Reno before joining James in Seattle a few months ago), Weiss quickly jelled with the tight-knit group, originally born out of jam sessions Lamarr and James once anchored at Seattle’s Royal Room.

A number of tracks on the band’s forthcoming album, “Cold as Weiss,” named for the drummer, weren’t written until the prolific trio hit the studio in late 2020. “When we go to the studio it’s really fast,” Lamarr says. “We’ll knock out 10, 12 songs in a day.”

The new album sees the funked-out groove riders fine-tuning many of the things they do well, while introducing a bluesy slow-cooker in “Big TT’s Blues.” On opener “Pull Your Pants Up,” Weiss holds down a free-swinging hip-hop beat over which Lamarr and James trade melodic leads.

“For me, the ‘Cold as Weiss’ album is ourselves — it sounds like us,” Lamarr says. “It’s like we’re getting more defined in our sound.”