Pinegrove: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert

Bob Boilen | December 2, 2016 — There's a confessional quality to the songs of Pinegrove that feels reassuring. The problems that swirl around Evan Stephens Hall's head feel universal, so it's comforting in "Old Friends" when he sings, "I should call my parents when I think of them / I should tell my friends when I love them."

The New Jersey group's sound feels fresh and scrappy at the same time. Hall and drummer Zack Levine, who've been friends since they were 7, form the core of Pinegrove. (Their dads play music together, too.) Together, the band squeezed four songs into their 13-minute Tiny Desk concert, with Hall's voice — and a spirit of warmheartedness and friendship — at the center of it all.

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SET LIST
"Need"
"Angelina"
"Old Friends"
"Waveform"

MUSICIANS
Evan Stephens Hall (vocals, guitar); Nandi Rose Plunkett (keyboard, vocals); Zack Levine (drums, vocals); Adan Feliciano (bass); Sam Skinner (banjo, guitar); Josh Marre (guitar, vocals)

CREDITS
Producers: Bob Boilen, Niki Walker; Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin; Videographers: Niki Walker, Colin Marshall, Nicole Boliaux; Production Assistant: Anna Marketti; Photo: Raquel Zaldivar/NPR.

[kalanyou]

Woah. That lyric "I saw Leah on the bus a few months ago, saw some old freinds at her funeral" man..

[LyndsAndJazzy]

evan (the singer) is doing a solo mini tour right now, and he did a show in my town in some random dude's living room and when we walked in he was just sitting criss cross applesauce on the floor and he greeted us with a big smile and a handshake and was just an absolute sweetheart. he made sure to talk to every single person that walked through that door and try to make a personal connection with all of them. his set is even better in person and he's just such a down to earth guy. i'm so glad someone like him exists

[BonsaiRaygun]

Maybe I'm just high or whatever but I started crying like twenty seconds in

[MrGeasel]

this made me call my parents to tell them I love em

[coleton]

2:24 acoustic angelina is a blessing we should all recognize

[adamsrikantha]

this is mixed scrumptiously props to the sound engineer

[MrJesseDeanPerriera]

i just keep playing old friends over and over again. it crushes me. i had a friend who looked like the lead singer, like, strangely similar, and about a year ago he killed himself. he was in the military, we played high school football together, and were generally close during that time, but life has a way of creating distance between people, even those you love dearly. it's just that idea, and that line about seeing an old friend, and attending their funeral not that long after seeing them, and how we should tell our friends and parents that we love them. fuck man, it just makes me feel so human i guess

[scottvaughn]

Whoever ran the sound/mix for this session is a beast. It's pristine. Even if the acoustics of that small area are naturally nice, they are still a hero. The band always sounds good but I've never heard them sound THIS good.

[clarasmallman]

immediate tears. pinegrove u will never be forgotten as long as i am living

[theaveragetrailrunner]

Three things,
The tempo changes are just fantastic and always spot on
Backing signing has the best harmonies ever
Evan never gets a single note out of tune
What a bloody band

[samc]

00:00 - Need
02:24 - Angelina
04:03 - Old Friends
08:02 - Waveform

[jacklandismusic]

Pinegrove unplugged is just folk music, which is honestly most of the reason I gave the band a chance. This was my first exposure to them. Now, I’m in the middle of a big Pinegrove binge.

It’s interesting to see my internalized music biases working in real-time. I’m a big folk music guy, and I probably wouldn’t have given Pinegrove a first chance if they’d been all electrified. But now, I love the fuzz guitars. If I wasn’t so strict about the kind of music I let in, I’d probably like a lot more bands than I do.

[redface]

This is the best pinegrove has ever sounded. I’d even go as far as to say this is everything music should be. This whole tiny desk, 10/10.

[elilockie]

Can't even explain how this tiny desk makes me feel. Im glad to be alive with you all!

[fourtreemouths]

this version of old friends is supreme

[abigaillennon]

I only found Pinegrove recently but they're already my absolute favourite artist at the moment. Been listening to every album on repeat for weeks now. This performance is so gorgeous. Evan's voice is so emotional and powerful. This is the sort of music I'd love to be making.

[Benaddictedtrkfbal]

Thank you pine grove for making me take a pause from my life and feel something again. From the bottom of my heart.

[chronicmango]

Josh Marre is probably the most underrated slide player in the industry. His stuff is always so perfectly placed. Never flashy, but just adds so much texture and pushes the song in the right ways. Actual slide inspiration for me.

If you're reading this, thank you dude. Your slide solo in Need 2 on Audiotree literally made me buy a slide and now it's one of my main tools and I'm getting people hitting me up to play slide on stuff.

[meatdetective]

yo this is probably the best Tiny Desk Concert

[thecodynowak]

Annnnd THIS is why I watch Tiny Desk concerts