COLUMBIA — If you’re looking to sabotage a band’s performance, your first stop should be the drummer. Standing right next to the drum kit, you’ll probably run into the bassist, and from there you should be set.
These two instruments make up the typical rhythm section of a band. Between them, they hold a lot of power. Without a rhythm, the pulsing beat to a song, melodies and satisfying strings of notes from a guitar might land aimless on a listener's ear.
A song intended to be a slow, soulful ballad might throw off the rest of the band if the drummer and bassist decide to pick up the beat. The drum beat and bass lines provide structure for the chord progressions, bridge and lyrics that coalesce to become the songs stuck in your head. And without a rhythm, those songs wouldn’t exist.
Taking a closer look at Columbia’s music scene, it’s not hard to come by multi-faceted and highly skilled musicians. In the rhythm department in particular, we find local band Stagbriar’s bassist, Cam Powell.
Cam Powell is a bassist who plays with local bands Stagbriar and Dear Blanca. Photos by Sarah Danelli/Special to the Post & Courier
Gifted a bass as his brother received a guitar, the two played together diligently throughout their youth in Newport News, Virginia. Powell played any chance he could get. He’d ultimately find his place in a jazz band, the genre he prefers to this day.
Powell made his way to Columbia in 2008, where he attended the University of South Carolina on scholarship. He quickly found a strong support group in town, a theme that runs throughout his life. He dove headfirst into the local music scene, sometimes participating in up to five band projects during and after his college career.
A Columbia local by choice, he’s been on the scene for 15 years, most recently in Stagbriar’s LP release "Telepathy" and other Columbia natives’ Dear Blanca's EP release, "Nothing You Do Is Quiet."
Dear Blanca, the musical outfit of Dylan Dickerson and drummer Richie Harper, lays down a comfort-punk that invokes a swaying, nostalgic tempo that will have you reaching to hit repeat. The power imbued in their music can be found in Dickerson’s croon and the emotional resonance brought by the basslines and beat laid down by Powell and Harper. Both facets to the band's music join together to reach the full potential of a sonic landscape.
Cam Powell of Dear Blanca performs one of the first two opening sets. John A. Carlos II / Special to The Free Times
In a post-COVID world, Powell puts his priority into projects alongside people he believes in, and is constantly striving to be a better musician. Powell lauded his bandmate, Stagbriar drummer Brendan Bull: “He’s the best drummer I’ve ever met, a natural talent but there’s a studiousness about him as well,”
And of building beats with Harper from Dear Blanca: “When it came time to choose a drummer, [Harper] was the only one I had in mind.”
During the day, you’ll probably find Powell at the arcade. Transmission Arcade, that is.
Quickly becoming a local staple for its hang-out vibes and excellent music stylings, Transmission’s food and bar menu leave reviewers raving. Co-owner of the restaurant and bar/arcade, Powell spearheads their semi-regular ”Free Show Sunday,” which features an impressive selection of regional bands. Funded by sponsors, these free shows provide a unique venue for local artists of any kind, from audio-visual engineers, to videographers and musicians.
When asked what’s next, or who to look out for in the rhythm section, Powell doesn’t hesitate: “My friend Jon Warf. He just picked it up a few years ago and it frustrates me how good he’s gotten on bass.”
Cam Powell is a bassist who plays with local bands Stagbriar and Dear Blanca. Photos by Sarah Danelli/Special to the Post & Courier
Warf can be found in music group Galán and rotating in on bass for local group Stankface. The drummer for Stankface is Powell's Stagbriar bandmate, Bull.
If you’re still considering a mutiny, bent on sabotaging a performance, your first thought might have been the lead singer.
It would make sense to see only the lyrics, the melody as chief importance to a band's musical stylings. But to scrutinize the core foundations of a music group, you’d find the most important part to be the rhythm section. Capable of changing the entire genre of a song on the count of four, split your bribe between drum and bass section, because without the tempo they provide, the music simply wouldn’t exist.
