This is the kind of homecoming Bobby Greiert had in mind.
The 25-year-old Snohomish native left his small-town life behind seven years ago to chase his music-industry dream in Los Angeles. A few years ago, he returned to the area with a pieced-together version of his band, A.M. Session, and a rough EP for sale.
But when the band returns Saturday night to Club Broadway in Everett, and Sunday night at the High Dive in Seattle, it’ll be a different story.
“We’re just trying to show people how much we’ve grown since the last time they’ve seen us,” Greiert said in a phone interview last week.
“It’s also way to say thank you. There are a lot of people in Everett and Seattle that have been supporting us.”
After a couple of years together, A.M. Session is developing quite a following on the West Coast, playing L.A.’s famed Viper Room on a regular basis and now heading out on its first full-fledged tour of the region. With other stops in Portland, Boise, Denver and Las Vegas, the band is looking to put its music out there like never before.
Greiert, who graduated from Snohomish High School in 2000, left town at 19 to pursue a degree in audio engineering at Musicians Institute in Hollywood. After years of playing with a few bands and working on in-studio projects, Greiert started A.M. Session with pianist Garrett Sakahara of Orange County. The band’s eclectic rock sound draws on its members’ wide-ranging geographic connections, with Greiert representing the Pacific Northwest, drummer Dana Deignan of Boston and bassist Grady Hutt of Chicago.
Greiert is enjoying his time in Hollywood, and he doesn’t have any immediate plans to return home for good no matter how nostalgic he gets.
“I felt a little trapped in the small-town thing,” Greiert said. “But I’ve got to say L.A.’s no place to raise a family. Snohomish was a great place to grow up and develop a sense of morals and character.
“There are a lot of people in this business that don’t always have the best character and the best morals, so it’s important to never forget where you came from.
“But L.A.’s a very different place than Snohomish. In L.A., it’s all about now, and it’s fast-paced and always moving. I do like that, but I miss some of the small-town aspects of Snohomish, and the outdoors.
“You don’t get that a lot in L.A.”
What he does get is a chance to play on the local stages where some of rock’s all-time greats started.
“I have fallen in love with the Hollywood scene,” Greiert said. “You get to play places you dreamed about playing when you were 12 or 13, like the Viper Room stage or the Roxy stage or the Whiskey stage. Even if we never make it on a bigger level, we’ve played some good shows in some pretty cool places. It’s humbling and it’s cool all at the time.”
Reporter Victor Balta: Victor.A.Balta@gmail.com
Los Angeles band A.M. Session – bassist Grady Hutt (left), singer Bobby Greiert and pianist Garrett Sakahara -performs in the area this weekend.
Talk to us
- You can tell us about news and ask us about our journalism by emailing newstips@heraldnet.com or by calling 425-339-3428.
- If you have an opinion you wish to share for publication, send a letter to the editor to letters@heraldnet.com or by regular mail to The Daily Herald, Letters, P.O. Box 930, Everett, WA 98206.
- More contact information is here.
