The Features have deflected enough false starts and dead-ends to kill most groups. Absorbed in full, it’s quite the litany of misfortune: at least two unreleased full-length albums to close out the ’90s; a pair of fruitless label dalliances; the departure of three band members. It’s oddly fitting, then, that the Features’ new LP is a self-titled affair. And apparently they’re also late-bloomers, given the measurable bump in song quality and musicianship that propels The Features (Serpents & Snakes/BMG). With its four members now well into their 30s, the band sounds like it’s just now coming into its own. Singer/guitarist Matthew Pelham, keyboardist Mark Bond, bassist Roger Dabbs and drummer Rollum Haas will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our new Features feature.
Dabbs: When Matt and I were first starting to form our first band in high school, I was asked to play bass. Unsure of how I was going to afford to buy a bass, Matt and our friend Don Sergio—former Features guitar player and Calfkiller Brewing Company co-founder—said they would help. They decided to work after school at a local livestock cleaning the muck out of cattle trailers. I was also working at a local grocery store and was saving what money I could along with my tip money to help contribute. If I remember correctly, Matt used the money they raised on a bottle of perfume for his girlfriend’s birthday that he nearly forgot about. I used what money I had and bought a short scale Sears jazz bass and amp for $126 in coins. Not long after, a friend came to me with a 1976 Fender Precision that he purchased for an old stereo and a $100. He cut me the ultimate deal and sold it to me for $300. I nicknamed her “Amber” and have played her fairly consistently ever since.
