the dreamscapes project

Like most up-and-coming bands, the members of the Dreamscapes Project heard the word “no” more than once in their formative years. Unlike most bands, however, the word didn’t come from recording companies.

When lead singer Keith Center first approached bassist Jeremy Rodgers about creating a band while they were students at George Mason University in 1997, it was actually Rodgers who answered in the negative.

“He said he had too much going on, and just didn’t have time to start a band,” Center recalls. “But he happened to have some free time when I asked him, so he suggested we go to a practice room and jam for a bit.”

After more than an hour of playing, Rodgers told Center that he had changed his mind. And that was the start of the Dreamscapes Project.

Since that fateful day 13 years ago, the band has grown around the core of Center and Rodgers. Before percussionist Eric Sanford and drummer Gordon Shankman joined in 2006, the band welcomed cellist Ben Guy, although not before that pesky word “no” attempted to derail the Dreamscapes Project once again.

Guy had played with the band on and off again before 2001, mostly as a guitarist, but he was interested in joining permanently.

“Ben asked if we could use another guitar in the band,” Center recalls with a pause and a knowing laugh. “I said, ‘no.’”

Fortunately, Center says, the conversation didn’t end there.

“I told him that we had once had a violin and that I was thinking of replacing that, but I was thinking more about a cello. Ben told me he was minoring in cello at the Shenandoah Conservatory. I thought he was joking; it was too perfect. So he joined even though I tried to send him away, and he’s become a pretty integral part of our funny little group.”

An unconventional Project
The Dreamscapes Project, or the Scapes, as the guys are commonly known by their fans, is hardly a conventional band. Their sound is as eclectic as a 5-year-old’s wardrobe, with elements ranging from Celtic and bluegrass to alternative and screamo.

“We usually go with the genre ‘folk-core’ because it makes people stop for a second and ask, ‘Wait, what is that?’” Center says. “But we’re acoustic; that’s really the only thing that you can say: that it’s acoustic music. It can be heavy, screaming acoustic music, or it can be light, finger-picking folk and everything in between. It’s really us exploring our instruments and exploring our talents, and figuring out what works for a given song.”

Listening to any one of the Scapes’ four records is evidence of the band’s refusal to homogenize its style. They’re very comfortable taking risks and allowing their ample creativity free reign.

It’s an approach that makes it difficult to get a record deal. Most labels put a premium on releasing albums in quick succession, which Center says forces bands to abandon creativity in favor of productivity.

“There’s an efficiency required that isn’t conducive to art,” Center laments. “You have these artists who come out and have a really good album to start with because they’ve had 10 years to work on it, and then they hit it big and they have one year to write the next album and two weeks to record it, and you can’t put artwork on that timeline.”

The Scapes have avoided this conflict, operating comfortably without a recording contract since the band’s inception. Center started his own record company, Figmental Records, in 2004 to help self-produce the band’s last two albums, and they’ve enlisted producers and engineers who have worked with local groups like the Dave Matthews Band and Virginia Coalition.

The band hasn’t let the lack of representation hold them back. In fact, the Scapes seem to be thriving in spite of it.

“The Dreamscapes Project is one of those bands that I think, regardless of genre, you really look up [to] as another musician, simply because they have this interesting ability to constantly come up with really brilliant, new ideas in terms of reaching new people with their music,” says Irene Jericho, the lead singer for Frederick, Md.-based band the Cassandra Syndrome, which has worked closely with the Scapes in the past.

The band boasts a thriving fan base that is naturally headquartered in the Metro-D.C. area, but which also stretches up and down the East Coast and across the country thanks to the exposure they’ve received from 141 radio channels nationwide and playing with bands like Blues Travelers and OK Go.

And Scapes fans are dedicated. The band regularly plays to packed houses, and in June of this year, the same fans banded together to vote the Dreamscapes Project the region’s best band in Northern Virginia Magazine’s annual Best of NoVA reader survey.

Changing course
The Scapes’ success had them eating from a very full plate; they were traveling, performing and creating new music, all while juggling the demands of full-time jobs.

They decided to switch gears, and bring the focus of their efforts back to the Metro-D.C. area. They still travel up and down the East Coast from time to time, but Center said that the band wanted to bring a real Northern Virginian feel to their next album.

They jettisoned the typical release format of recording a full album’s worth of songs at one time and releasing them as a single entity. Instead, they opted to spread the content of the album over a whole year, issuing one song each month, creating 12 days of musical catharsis. They called it “The 12 Days Project.”

Spreading the album over an entire year has also allowed the Scapes to amplify the concept of album art and shine a spotlight on several area artists each month.

“We decided we were going to do something incredible and make it D.C.-centric and introduce this area to the world,” Center says. “It was really our way of giving back for all the support that we’ve gotten through the years from the artist community.”

As part of the 12 Days Project, the band has enlisted the help of area photographers, painters, poets, cinematographers and musicians to help them illustrate each month’s song. Their only directive is to interpret their song while translating it into their chosen medium.

“It’s fun to expose your work to people who wouldn’t normally have seen it,” says Ashburn poet Lyla Dabbe, whose poem “Fragile Revisited” is based on the Scapes’ January single, “Fragile.” “The creative process can be such a personal journey, so having this forum that includes many of our peers is really a great outlet.”

Falls Church resident Anne Welles, the owner of Lunatic Fringe Productions who also teaches art and film at H.B. Woodlawn High School, turned her 12 Days assignment to create a music video for the April single “Bluegrass” into a student collaboration.

“When Keith contacted me to ask about making a music video for one of their songs and the timing coincided with the school year, it just seemed like a perfect fit to involve my class,” Welles says. “The students loved the idea, and it was a great project for them to form their own ideas and see them brought to life.”

The Scapes have published the reimagined pieces alongside the band’s original songs on TwelveDaysProject.org. At the end of the project, they plan to compile all 12 songs and the accompanying art and release it as an album to their fans, probably around April of next year. It’s an unorthodox delivery method to say the least, but then there’s nothing terribly orthodox about the Scapes.

“We’re always open to new things, so there’s never a bad idea,” Center explains. “Before we started the project, we had three songs more or less finished and a bunch of songs that weren’t recorded. We weren’t sure if we should do an [extended-play single] and then an album, or do two EPs, and it got really complicated. We thought, we’ve got three songs; that gets us through March if we release one per month, and we can record more to take us through the rest of the year.

“I don’t think we knew what we were getting into when we started,” Center says with a chuckle.

Despite the added pressure of monthly deadlines, the Scapes have delivered songs that fit nicely into their repertoire and have garnered thousands of downloads each month.

“The whole process has been great,” Center says. “Writing these songs is really a group effort. I like to say that I write the songs and the other guys make them better. I usually come to the table with a framework of lyrics and the guitar, but they’re the ones who complete the song and make it what it is when you hear it. It’s just a really great process for guys like us who love music.”

New exposure
An unexpected consequence of the Scapes’ new direction has been added exposure from local media.

“We were so different in Northern Virginia that nobody was really sure how or why to write about us,” Center says. “We were kind of the red-headed stepchild of our own town. We had toured through 10 states doing 60 shows a year, mostly outside of this area. We were headlining the 9:30 Club, but nobody was writing about it.

“So we kind of turned the tables,” Center continues. “Instead of hoping that magazines and publications would write about us, we started focusing in on other local artists. And then suddenly the media took notice and it ended up turning into this great project that people wanted to be a part of.”

The added exposure also brings to light all that the Scapes have done for charity. Each month, the band sets aside one performance from which all ticket proceeds are donated to a local charity, an effort that has raised nearly $7,000 so far this year.

It’s not an accomplishment the band trumpets, but it further demonstrates the strong connection that the band has with the region.

“These guys really show the magical ability of music to bring us all together,” says Annandale photographer Jesse Woodburn, whose work was featured alongside the Scapes’ March single “Titanic.” “It’s really incredible what they’re doing, and hopefully they’ll continue doing it for a long time.”

Center says the Scapes have no plans to slow down any time soon.

“We have no idea where we’re going to go from here or how we’ll follow this up. At the beginning of the year, we made a ridiculous claim, and now we’re trying to make it happen. I think that’s great, though, and we want to make sure it keeps happening.”

So far, it’s been a good run for the band: 13 years, four albums, thousands of fans, 12 days—not to mention two guys who said no, but very quickly came to their senses. - Northern Virginia Magazine

The members of the Dreamscapes Project are chomping at the bit to headline the State Theatre tomorrow night. Bassist Jeremy Rodgers said it’s the ideal venue to see the band perform for the first time. “It has such a good vibe,” Rodgers said. “You can interact with the audience in a way that makes it really fun.”

Lead singer and guitarist Keith Center said the State is easily one of the top three music venues in Northern Virginia.

“To be able to play a venue of that caliber is really exciting,” Center said. “We decided that we want to have a high-energy night where people are feeling up. I think it’s been such a cold, snowbound winter that we need to get people out and dancing. We’re going to have a real party.”

The prolific band’s recent success has secured them a spot on the local music scene’s radar. With four albums under the band’s collective belt and a strong following dating back to their 14-year-old roots, they decided to push the envelope and tap into the local art community. In January 2010, the band launched the Twelve Days Project.

They released 12 songs, one per month, in collaboration with over 50 local artists. “We released this kind of art package,” Center said. “Our fans got to hear new music but they were also exposed to all of these other local artists who were trying to make a name for themselves.”

The plan was to encourage artists to create a piece of artwork inspired by each song to use as album art, but it spiraled into something much larger. Filmmakers, writers and other musicians approached the band, all interested in deconstructing their music and putting it back together in unique ways.

It was an eye-opening experience for the band to see how other artists approached their work. “It’s not the type of interaction you get from playing live,” Rodgers said. “We actually sat down with artists and saw in visual form what moved them to create their art.”

The band’s focus on giving back to the local community extended much further than the artist collaborations. Each release was made exclusively through a local media outlet and the band held a charity concert monthly, raising over $5,000 for local area charities by the end of the year.

“This wasn’t just about trying to make a name for ourselves,” Center said. “We were trying to focus on everybody else and it ended up coming back tenfold. I think it really shows that although we are considered to be a political town, there’s just this huge art community and if you tap into it, people want to work together. So we offered this kind of spark and it ended up really snowballing into something that I don’t think any of us really expected. Just to have the opportunity to headline at the State Theatre speaks volumes to kind of the momentum that the project created.”

The band spent three weeks in hibernation this January before kicking off the New Year with their upcoming performance. Their project may have been exhausting but the musicians are used to collaborative efforts within their own band. The current lineup, which also includes cellist Ben Guy, percussionist Eric Sanford and drummer Gordon Shankman, have been making compromises for five years.

“Each of us comes from a very different area of music and rarely agree on what genre we’re going to create,” Rodgers said. “Whatever happens to come out, that’s what we are at the time.”

The band falls under the umbrella categories of eclectic acoustic, indie folk rock and folk-core, although Center describes them as five very unique satellites tethered together in a way that allows them to communicate using the same kind of language but not in their native tongue.

“What we really are is 12-string acoustic guitar, bass, drums, percussion and cello and then whatever comes of that,” Center said. “It means a lot to have a group of guys that don’t want to just play music and don’t just want to be in a band but want to be creating music in this band. I think that’s really what’s unique about it.”

Shankman, who joined the band in 2006, agreed with Center’s insight into their sound. “We venture out from time to time but it always comes back to that wheelhouse,” he said. “And sometimes it’s whatever mood strikes us.”

The band is ready to move on to their next challenge. Rodgers said that their experience with the Twelve Days Project will have a massive influence on what they do going forward. “We were given the opportunity to work with lots of different studios, engineers and musicians,” he said. “There were lots of different perspectives and vibes when we were recording. In years past, we would just go into the studio and for this, we worked with all of these different people and we got to taste and nibble.”

The members of the Dreamscapes Project are pumped for tomorrow’s performance and for new opportunities on the horizon. They anticipate a welcoming crowd, audience participation and palpable energy on the dance floor. “I definitely want to be sweating when I leave the stage,” Rodgers said. - Patch.com

12-strings, cellos, buckets, spoons and questionable art books, oh my! What? That doesn't make sense to you? Then you weren't at Arlene's on Saturday watching The Dreamscapes Project.

This was the first time I had the opportunity to catch the band, Keith Center (Lead Vocals / 12-String Acoustic Guitar), Ben Guy (Cello / Vocals), Jeremy Rodgers (Electric Bass), Gordon Shankman (Drums) and Eric Sanford (Percussion). For those who haven't had the experience, they're a revved up folk rock band.

The Dreamscapes Project have made my list of bands to see live. Sure, they're good on record, but, you really have to see them live to get the full picture. They kind of take a no holds barred approach which leaves the audience smiling and dancing. Yes, dancing. You can dance to a folk band folks. One of my favorite songs of the night was a little tune called "Bluegrass." It was indeed a bluegrass song and where Sanford's bucket and spoon playing came in. Only in New York (or maybe it's just only when The Dreamscapes Project are in New York) can you find a folk band, in a rock club, playing bluegrass while a couple of guys have a little hoedown in the audience.

I have to mention "Why Do I Always Feel Like The Sound A Chair Makes As It's Dragged Across The Floor?" if for no other reason then for the amazingly long title it carries. Did I get the full title right?! So, they played Chair Song (sorry Keith!) which, by the way, is a really good song, after Center expressed his chagrin, amid good natured ribbing from his band mates, over the song title being whacked down to just Chair Song.

One of the things that first intrigued me when this band was brought to my attention was the fact that they have a cello player. When I first heard this, my first thought was, 'oh he probably just plays it on a few songs.' But, that's not the case. Guy wields his cello the entire show and quite frankly, rocks out with it. Center, an unassuming frontman, has some soul in his vocals. He has a good voice and the sound person did a bang up job in making sure it was heard properly.

I bet you're wondering where the questionable art book part comes into play, huh? Well, set a band loose in NYC with some time to kill and they'll happen upon a crackhead (or some sort of questionable person) selling self-drawn art books which led to a bit of a show and tell. Their version of support the arts?

They closed the show with a rousing cover of Dirty Vegas' "Days Go By." It's a perfect song to end with yet, it's also a bad song to end with. Perfect in the fact that it leaves you pumped up full of rock show adrenalin. Bad because that same rock show adrenalin it leaves you with, makes you want a few more songs! But all good things must come to an end. I had a good time and look forward to seeing them again. Go check them out when they play near you. You'll have fun ... might even yell yee-haw! - Quirky NY Chick

"Never mind the New Age-sounding name (no whale songs, bubbling brooks, whispering winds or haunting Celtic flutes here), the Dreamscapes Project is an acoustic rock outfit reminiscent of the Dave Matthews Band. Over the last five years, the band has built up one of the most loyal followings of any group on the local club circuit.

In 2002, the Dreamscapes Project took top honors among 190 local and regional acts at the first battle of the bands contest held by Springfield's Jaxx nightclub, with hundreds of the band's fans turning out. In 2004, the band pulled off a similar move during the Emergenza international music competition, elected by popular vote as the number one act in the region.

The similarities to the Dave Matthews Band go beyond similar types of acoustic rock. There's singer, guitarist and songwriter Keith Center's voice (which has a reedy tone similar to that of Matthews), and Dreamscapes' prominent use of a stringed instrument, with Ben Guy's cello standing in for Boyd Tinsley's violin in the Matthews Band.

Jeremy Rodgers's busy jazz-funk bass work only strengthens the comparison when you think about Dave Clark's punchy drumming.

But despite these similarities, the Dreamscapes Project is its own animal. Center can be a playful frontman and songwriter. When he embraces the sort of hip-hop, rock and folk fusion employed by artists such as Beck or the goofiness of They Might Be Giants, the band is just plain fun. And therein likely lies the secret of the Dreamscapes Project's popular appeal: When people go out, gosh darn it, they want to have a good time. The Dreamscapes Project is happy to supply that."


-- C. WOODROW IRVIN

- Washington Post

"The set list from this folk-rock quintet is making its way onto playlists all over DC. This local band has a philanthropic side that makes for some beautiful music. With a little Dave Matthews Band and some OAR mixed in, the Dreamscapes Project creates a sound that is filled with both fun and heart." - District of Sound

"The 12-string acoustic guitar and cello give The Dreamscapes Project a distinctive sound to begin with. Though they’re acoustic-based, they still maintain a powerful and dramatic sound, especially when the churning, propelling percussion jumps in. Then throw in Keith Center’s brooding lyrics and delivery to give it a minor bent, and voila, they have their own brand of “Folk-Core.”

The Dreamscapes Project have a new, as yet untitled, album dropping later this year. And what fun would a new album be without an unconventional method of release? They’ve got a cool one with their Twelve Days Project that involves artists all over the DC area." - Metro Music Scene

The Dreamscapes Project To Play NYC!
DC band The Dreamscapes Project are coming to NYC. They're set to take the stage down on the LES at Arlene's Grocery next weekend, Saturday, July 11.

For those who aren't familiar with The Dreamscapes Project, think The Decemberist or The Dave Matthews Band if you need something to compare. They're a dynamic acoustic based rock band featuring a 12-string acoustic guitar and a cello. When's the last time you popped into a rock club and saw a band break out a cello? Yeah, that doesn't happen often, does it? - Quirky NY Chick

Folk-rockers The Dreamscapes Project will play a show at Bube's Brewery Friday night.

The Dreamscapes Project was born in 1996, when founding members Keith Center and Jeremy Rodgers were in college at George Mason University. Center was a theatre major with dreams of starting a band, and Rodgers seemed like just the music major to help him do it.

"I enjoyed theatre, but it seemed too confining. I was looking to branch out," Center explained.

So, Center asked Rodgers whether he'd be interested in starting a band, and his answer was a resounding no.

"He came around," Center said.

The band and its sound evolved throughout the years, as is the case with many bands. It gained and lost members, but according to Center, they have the recipe right this time.

There are lots of things that make The Dreamscapes Project unique, and its lineup is certainly one of them. It's incorporated into the mix a cello, which definitely adds some depth to its sound. Hit up the Myspace (myspace.com/thedreamscapesproject) and listen to "Excess." You'll see what I mean. I also recommend "Still Love."

"The cello can be so brooding, but it's also very versatile," Center said. "It can be soft and melodious, but it can also go down and growl. Since we are mainly an acoustic band and we don't use effects, the cello helps give fullness to our sound."

These guys have been at it for about 12 years, and they say that 2008 has been one of the most exciting years they've had. They've headlined at the famed 9:30 Club in Washington D.C. Their newest album, "Pity In A Heartbeat" (released last October), has gotten great reviews and has been picked up by 150 radio stations. Sounds like a pretty good year to me.

They've played at Bube's Brewery a bunch of times this year, and they're excited to come back tomorrow night.

"Everyone there is so fantastic, we love the people and the relaxed atmosphere," Center said. "The crowds are always great. We love trying out new songs there because they're so supportive."

The Dreamscapes Project encourages its audiences to become engaged and involved in their live shows.

"We want people to have fun, sing along, be part of an experience," Center said. "Our goal is to have fun, and not take ourselves too seriously."

Check out www.bubesbrewery.com for more information about Friday's show. - The Patriot News

Washington, D.C. has been the birthplace of a number of types of music, including emo-core punk rock and Chuck Brown’s gogo beat. The Dreamscapes Project is another
Washington, D.C. band with an original sound. Pity in a Heartbeat showcases the Dreamscapes Project’s unique acoustic style,
which they call “folk-core.” Frontman Keith Center brings obvious passion and drive to the music, equally at home singing, rapping, and going over the top with rants that
wouldn’t sound out of place on a punk or heavy metal disc. He stakes out this diverse vocal territory over an unplugged backdrop that prominently features cellist Ben Guy.
In “Still Love,” Center compares a couple to Romeo and Juliet. The song is perhaps the disc’s hit, with a great melody and biting lyrics: “Not everyone finds true love, but everybody dies.” Another standout is “Seldom a Sword,” which has a killer hook and brooding harmonies intermingled with Center’s raps: “And the songs keep getting
shorter, same old words in just another order.” The band also excels when they show a more tender side on “Burning Bridge.”
Songs like “Shadowbound” have some great interplay between acoustic guitar and cello, and the rhythm section of Gordon Shankman, Eric Sanford and Jeremy
Rodgers is strong throughout.
If you get the chance to see them live, these guys put on a high-energy show with a bit more humor than you’ll hear on this disc. That said, Pity in a Heartbeat is a
well-produced set of songs with an original sound. The Dreamscapes Project have shown they can mix their many influences and build
a very loyal following. They’re worth a listen!
—Jim Ground - Elmore Magazine

"The Dreamscapes Project is an edgy dark folk group out of Washington DC featuring 12-string acoustic guitar and cello.
I took the time to stop and to listen to their music and I think they are incredible! I love the mixture of guitar and cello. Their music has energy and feeling and that is projected out to the listener in their tracks.
I want the world to know more about them and to be able to experience their music..." - Flip Side to Music

The Dreamscapes Project is one of the most innovative bands to come out of the East Coast in the last decade. Picture Dave Matthews meets Live, and you’ve got “Pity In A Heartbeat,” the band’s newest offering. Completely acoustic, and interwoven with shining cello, “Pity In A Heartbeat” breathes a new breath of life to Washington D.C.’s stale acoustic scene.

Similar in style to bands like Days of the New, Dave Matthews, R.E.M., and Adam Richman, these D.C. veterans bend and mold the Acoustic genre, making it just as aggressive, if not mores so than bands using distortion and loud guitars. Keith Center, the band’s singer prefers the raw emotion of acoustic guitar to the over-processed sound of amps and effects, and it really shows on “Pity In A Heartbeat.”

“Excess,” the album’s lead track, starts off with poppy vocal hooks, laden with cello, and rips right into “food For Thought.”

“Seldom A Sword” is a interesting little song, merging elements of Acoustic Rock, Reggae, and Hip-Hop. Singer Keith Center even raps on the song’s verses.

Like this band? You may also like: On, Days Of The New, Live, Adam Richman, Dave Matthews, After Midnight Project

Chicks With Guns - Mar 19, 2008
http://www.chickswithgunsmag.com/2008/03/dreamscapes-project-pity-in-heartbeat.html - CWG Magazine

"An acoustic meets folksy band with sounds similar to Dave Matthews or O.A.R., The Dreamscapes Project will be performing at Light Horse at 10 p.m. With members of the band playing instruments like a cello, 12-string acoustic guitar and percussion, expect the unexpected from this band. Launching a music initiative where they introduce a new track each month during 2010, get ready for some new material and plenty of new things from these guys." - On Tap Magazine

Musician
WINNER
The Dreamscapes Project
The website for The Dreamscapes Project compares the band’s sound to that of the Dave Matthews Band and the Decemberists, but really, there is no band quite like the guys from Reston. But it’s not just a unique sound that sets them apart. The band has eschewed the typical album release format, opting instead to release one single a month as part of its 12 Days Project. For each single, the band enlists local artists, filmmakers, writers and musicians to interpret the song in their given medium. “We realized we could get all these other artists involved and really shine a spotlight on an area that’s very culturally rich but tends to get overlooked because of all the politics in the area,” frontman Keith Center explains. The band further gives back to the community by donating proceeds from local shows to D.C. area charities. For a band so dedicated to promoting the Northern Virginia community, this honor is a long time coming. - Northern Virginia Magazine