Tuesday, Nov. 30
November 30, 2010
HPD reaches out to area’s needy with food boxes
December 2, 2010
Houma native and local musician Ethan Belanger combined two projects into one and the result is one of the hottest bands in the Tri-parish area.
While attending Vandebilt Catholic High School, Belanger said he spent countless evenings playing music with his friends, most notably drummer Zack Blum.
Then in Baton Rouge as a student at LSU, Belanger got reacquainted with his Vandebilt classmate Gabriel Delaney, and they also begun to play for fun.
Belanger had an idea after spending time with Delaney and The AutoPilots were born.
“It was just kind of like, ‘Why not combine what I’m doing with this singer with what I’m doing with this drummer?’” Belanger said. “So we did that and it just all came together from there.”
The AutoPilots are a four-person band, with guitar player Matthew Meche joining Belanger, Blum and Delaney.
All four musicians are from Vandebilt Catholic and they are all the closest of friends n which Belanger said makes the chemistry of the band “one of the best things,” about the AutoPilots.
“Being in a band like this with your friends is just awesome,” he said. “This is like the best job you could ever ask for. You get to hang out with your friends all day. Then we get to rehearse, drink a few beers and then go play a show. We get to do what we love to do and to be able to do it with some of your best buddies, it’s a pretty good time.”
Belanger said the band’s sound is a unique blend of several modern rock ‘n’ roll musicians.
“We naturally try to be original,” Belanger said. “But of course everyone has their influences. For us, our biggest influences are probably Foo Fighters and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.”
Aside from the more recent influences, the band also draws from the past, too, which makes them a draw for everyone.
“We feel like we can appeal to a wide variety of people,” Belanger said. “We have that more modern feel, but we also have been told by some people in the older crowd that they like our stuff, too, because it reminds them of some of that 1970s classic rock. And that’s the goal. So I think that’s a good thing. We can play and have every person in a particular family rocking out to what we’re doing on the stage. That’s kind of neat.”
And while playing for fun is one thing, The AutoPilots hope to someday say they play for a living. Since the band’s inception last Christmas, they’ve played numerous shows across southern Louisiana, including in Houma, New Orleans and Baton Rouge.
From those shows, the group has developed a following in the area.
“The people who come out and see us seem to like us, so that’s obviously good,” Belanger said. “The people who don’t necessarily know about us, but they just randomly see us, they usually tell us that they like the way that we play and our style of music.”
To help spread that following even further, the band is set to “hibernate” in the studio for the next few weeks to record an EP.
That album will contain approximately seven songs, according to Belanger and it will be debuted on a Christmas Night Release Party at the City Club in Houma.
“That day will be the first time anyone will be able to buy our album,” Belanger said. “We’re just really excited. The main thing for that night is just to kick back and make sure everybody has a good time, because I mean, it’s Christmas Day. But we’re really excited that everyone is going to be able to finally have an actual hard copy of our CD.”
As for the message being delivered in each song throughout the album? That varies from song to song, as the local guitar player said each song will tell a story from the heart of the band.
“That’s a pretty hard question to answer,” Belanger said with a laugh. “But I think all of our songs have their own original message. I can promise you there won’t be any two songs that will be about the same thing.”
So the album is still being polished and the party plans are still being finalized.
If anyone is still in the holiday spirit, check out The AutoPilots on Christmas night at the City Club.
Belanger thinks you’ll like what you see.
“My message to people interested in seeing us would be that if you like to see a band who can play, then we’re probably worth checking out,” he said. “We’re just a bunch of friends up there doing what we love and I really think if people give us a chance, they’ll like what we’re doing.”
The AutoPilots n lead guitarist Ethan Belanger, bass/vox player Gabriel Delaney, rhythm guitarist Matthew Meche and drummer Zack Blum.
