“Original Folk Rocker on a Mission in Easton”
“Live happy.” Sounds simple, right? For Covington, Kentucky based singer-songwriter Drew LaPlante, it’s more than a mantra. It’s a mission. Every Sunday night at 9:30, LaPlante brings his rollicking brand of tightly knit tunes to Adobe Gila’s in Columbus, Ohio’s Easton Town Center. Fans such as Jed and Christina make the half-hour drive every week.
“It’s just a great escape from the grind of the work week,” offers Christina. “It’s always a relaxing time.” Says Jed, “We’ve been coming here every Sunday for six months, and that’s because Drew always finds a way to represent the things I’m thinking and feeling in an artistic way. That’s pretty special.”
As for LaPlante himself, his style ranges from the feel-good spirituality of Ben Harper in a tune like “Run Till I Break Through,” to David Gray’s sober, clear-eyed introspection in “Radio.”
“Folk Rock & Roll For the Soul” is his tag line, and song after heart-felt song, he delivers. “What that expression basically alludes to is the energy I try to bring every night to the stage. We live in a culture where cynicism has become a safety net with the way some things are going in the world. People have been robbed of their sense of joy, and if I can bring a little of that into their world with what I do, then it’s worth it, you know.”
Playing the guy with the guitar angle can be a daunting proposition for even the most polished performer, but LaPlante never slips into the shoe-gazing self-indulgence of the coffee house “artiste.” Nor does he cave in to the temptation to ham it up with tired covers in order to buy his audience’s interest. For Drew LaPlante, it’s all about authenticity. It’s all about the music. “The funny thing about that is that I really haven’t spent much time even learning covers. I would try some stuff, then hear how far it was from the original, and say ‘Forget this.’ So I’ve pretty much been writing my own stuff for fourteen years.”
When asked specifically about the risk involved in avoiding bar band conventions while trying to carve out a professional niche, he shrugs, saying, “I don’t see it as a risk so much as an opportunity. Sometimes those cover requests turn into a great chance to steer someone toward my stuff. People tend to identify music with feeling, and if I can capture the essence of the feeling they’re after, the tune itself is secondary.”
A bold stance, perhaps, but it’s tough to argue when, during “Time to Have a Good Time,” an initially reluctant bar restaurant crowd is putting their hands together in unison, not so much feeding off of, but rather sharing in the energy onstage. A glance around the venue, and the smiles tell the story. “It’s a group effort,” says LaPlante. “Above all else, it’s about sincerity. If I feel it, you should feel it too. People know if it’s genuine. So I’ll have a shot a tequila, get a little loose and try to get them dancing.”
At closing time it’s just me, the bar staff, and the guy with the huge grin and the sweat-soaked t-shirt. So after the tequila, after the dancing, where does this self-professed modern day troubadour see this journey leading him?
“Not to be cliché, but there is no ultimate concrete goal. But let’s face it, the ways in which a person can truly make a difference in the lives of others are fairly limited. There’s politics, business, science. I’ve got music. I’m getting ready to start incorporating community volunteerism into what I do, and if we can see some real change in the streets because of an uplifting message, than this is worth it. Sure, I’d like to be successful. A bigger stage is an opportunity for a bigger change and that’s a powerful thing. Can you be meaningfully mainstream?” he asks with a laugh, shaking his head. “Buckle your seatbelt friend, because it’s about to get interesting. We’re taking the music to the masses.”
LaPlante has broken down his gear, loaded onto a cart, and is waiting for the service elevator to take him to the garage where he’ll load every bit of it into his compact car and set out I-71 for Kentucky. I assure him I’ll make mention of the website, drewlaplante.com. He shakes my hand, thanks me for my time, and tells me to live happy. And I know he sincerely wants me to.