A Chat with Chris Pellnat (09.04.24)
Memorable, melodic and moving, singer-songwriter Chris Pellnat captivates listeners’ mind, body and soul. Alongside his solo project, he plays guitar in the rock band The Warp/The Weft and is one half of the duo Teeniest; but we’re taking a stroll through his solo project. We speak with US-based Pellnat about his album Cairn, what music means to him, upcoming plans and much more!
OSR: What drew you to music? Why did you decide to become a musician?
Pellnat: I’ve been involved in music since childhood. Like many people, I got my first real exposure to music-making in school. I played violin in the school orchestra. Even then I was moved by music in a profound way and was open to different musical genres. I turned to guitar as a teenager and began jamming with friends. I went through a Beatles phase, a jazz phase, a Bowie phase, a Hank Williams phase, an R.E.M. phase, and many more – you get the picture.
Along the way, I began picking up other instruments such as vibraphone and dulcimer, which I use in recordings, but guitar is the instrument I remain focused on because you can’t become really good on every instrument.
So, I guess I’ve always been a musician; it was just a question of what role music would play in my life. I don’t make my living with music but it remains my creative outlet and I feel like as long as I keep growing as a musician I’ll keep doing it until the well runs dry.
OSR: What does music mean to you?
Pellnat: Its endless possibilities make it daunting and freeing. It’s an infinite ocean of beautiful structures, residing someplace outside of time and space I think, waiting to be given form in this world. The physicist David Bohm theorized that the universe we see is a projection of an underlying reality he called “the implicate order.” He believed that music is a direct manifestation of the implicate order in the universe as it unfolds over time. That notion of music being an elemental part of the universe’s underlying structure appeals to me. Our task is to bring it into being in this world.
To be able to tap into that beauty is electrifying. I don’t always succeed in bringing the vision to life fully, but the process of working at it yields other discoveries along the way and helps build skills that improve over time. The creative process is unpredictable, and you can’t ever know when inspiration will come, but I find it amazing that music is an art form I am actually able to partake in and contribute to in some small way.
OSR: You recently released the album, Cairn. What can you tell us about it?
Pellnat: A cairn is a stacked pile of stones meant to mark a memorial, a trail or just to say “I was here.” It’s a simple sign that anyone can make, and the meaning is unknown to anyone except the person who built it. So, I went with that idea as the starting point for the album. I saw some really cool cairns on the coast of Maine last summer and took some photos, one of which ended up being the album cover.
The album begins, fittingly, with the sound of the ocean on ‘Ship on the Horizon’. Then a guitar and dulcimer kick in and I’m spouting a children’s playground counting-out rhyme: “Inka binka ball of ink.” Like “eenie meenie miney moe” it’s an example of true folk music because it is passed along through the generations by word of mouth on the playground without any iPhones, social media influencers or streaming algorithms. That was my way of recognizing creativity within the context of a long-running tradition.
The album starts off in acoustic “folk” mode but quickly branches out to jangle rock, trippy synth explorations and some straight-up folk-rock.
OSR: If you could change anything about the album, what would it be and why?
Pellnat: Ha! I like to tell people, “I can’t really sing but I do it anyway” – which is true. So, if I had a magic wand I’d wave it and grant myself a great voice on Cairn and all my music, for that matter. But seriously, I’m satisfied with the album and I’ve made peace with my voice and just try to make the most of what I’ve got.
OSR: Do you think Cairn is a representation of where you are as a musician at the moment?
Pellnat: Yes, or at least where I was for the last two years when the album came together. It’s been a weird time post-pandemic, but the world seems to be getting exponentially crazier. Global warming continues, authoritarianism is on the rise, there’s war in Ukraine, the instability in the Middle East – you can ignore it and be happy, but at your own peril.
I think that kind of doom-scrolling fever made its way into the album in an unusual way. Most of the music is actually optimistic. For me that too is the magic of music. It can help you regain balance and even optimism amid the insanity of world events.
There are no humorous songs on Cairn, but it does end with a jaunty, ridiculously happy song, ‘The Final Wager’. I try to keep things light in general. I take my songwriting seriously but I don’t take myself seriously. Sometimes I like writing silly novelty songs. I wrote one called ‘Super Saiyan’ about being a Dragonball Z character. I wrote ‘Vegetarian Blues’ about being a vegetarian, and most recently I wrote ‘Billie Eilish Won’t Follow Me’, which takes a humorous look at celebrity and music streaming algorithms.
OSR: I see you play in the band The Warp/The Weft, the duo Teeniest, and have this solo project. I don’t want to say which you prefer, but what are the pros and cons of being a solo artist as compared to working with others?
Pellnat: I love playing in a rock band. There’s nothing like cranking up your amp with an electric guitar in your hands. And The Warp/The Weft is an amazingly unique band – we truly don’t sound like anyone else out there. I also like the camaraderie of being in a band and the creative give-and-take that brings our music to fruition.
My work with Teeniest is also very gratifying, mostly because Erin has such a wonderful voice! My solo work has its own solitary rewards for sure, but music is ultimately a social performing art so I try not to get wrapped around the axle of my own creative trials and tribulations too much. Sometimes you need to step out and play with people to get out of your head and recharge.
OSR: What does the future hold for Chris Pellnat?
Pellnat: More music, in bands and solo, as long as my creative faculties hold up. I mentioned above that Cairn is an optimistic record, but I think my next chapter might be darker, not because I’m feeling lost or hopeless but because optimism only goes so far. To defeat the darkness you need to expose it and confront it directly.
OSR: Do you have any message for our readers?
Pellnat: One of the most important things I’ve learned playing music, listening to music and recording it, is that it truly is subjective. There is no single arbiter of taste or value. There are genres of music I never listen to (thrash metal, new country…) but I know those kinds of music speak to millions of people out there, so I respect the music and recognize its validity and value even if I don’t “like” it. So don’t trust what the industry hype machine says, or what you’re “supposed” to listen to based on your age, sex, etc.; just open your ears and mind, and listen to what you like. If it speaks to you, it’s good.
Many thanks to Chris Pellnat for speaking with us! For more from Chris Pellnat, check out his Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
