It's a Family Affair 

• Courtesy Photo

Band origin stories can tilt either towards the unique, or the mundane. The SLC band Vinyl Koala definitely has a background as interesting as the instrumental rock they've been writing, performing and, increasingly, releasing to the public over the past three-plus years.

Waid Blanton had played in a high school punk band, but hadn't been consistently drumming since. Nick Nelson, meanwhile, held a spot in a band during his freshman year of college, but hadn't been gigging since either, keeping active on guitar around the house and through lessons. At some point, the two decided to scratch an itch and tested out some material through jam sessions in Blanton's garage, home to a newly-purchased drum kit. Things were moving along nicely, save for the fact that they were missing a bassist—a situation that nearly fizzled out the new project.

And here's where things get the most intriguing.

Into the picture came Mark Nelson, who had played in long-gone bands like Confession Session and The Royal Regiment. These were his own high school bands in the late '60s and they gigged at teen centers, dances and battles of the bands. Though a lifelong guitarist, he hadn't played bass before, but picked one up as "I had the dexterity, the background in finger-picking as a guitarist. It came pretty easily."

What also came easily was a working rapport. Things were already lined up well in that direction, as Mark Nelson is Nick Nelson's father and Waid Blanton's father-in-law.

Blanton knew that the elder Nelson would fit, if only from the fact that every time he'd been over to his house, Mark would be playing "all kinds of random, crazy stuff. He's always been into all genres of music."

For Mark Nelson, "it all started with Pink Floyd, really. They're still my favorite band."

Nick Nelson and Blanton cited some more-contemporary acts like Wooden Shjips as influences, as well. And the final result of their original jams saw the group content to blend in bits of jazz, surf and, for sure, psych.

Though different musical styles were welcomed into the songwriting, two defining ideas were set in place. One was the notion of staying instrumental. As none of the trio are singers, per se, the idea of staying instrumental came early and stayed that way. For Mark Nelson, that's because "I've always been partial to instrumentals. I listen to so much music and what I listen to in the sound is the instrumentation. My mind goes right to that."

Blanton, meanwhile, hears something like vocal lines in Nick Nelson's playing. "Nick's always been the leader of the band," Blanton says, "and my drumming is based on what he does on guitar. I'm hyper-focused on what he's doing, and always thought that Nick is singing with his guitar, more or less."

The band also declined to add covers to the set from the start, which forced them to immediately begin working on sets that could stretch out over two-hours, the amount needed for gigs at small, local venues. In time, that approach meant that they'd found enough material to head into the studio, and they found a sympathetic home at Audio Inn, where they hooked up with veteran producer and sound engineer Rowan Stigner.

An accomplished studio hand with credits on both sides of the Atlantic, Stigner initially found a group that arrived in the studio with seven or eight cuts at the ready. The band and engineer patiently refined that material and released a four-song, self-titled EP in 2021. Over the past weeks, they've been offering up singles to most streaming services, releasing "Get the Hell Out of Dodge" and "Wentworth" in early February. From here-on-out, the group's planning that type of small-scale release schedule, offering up one track at a time, while hoping to work with Stigner as often as he has availability for them.

All three Koalas praise Stigner's ear and skills, with Blanton saying "the experience of coming into the studio and working with a sound engineer of his quality has been so great. Even if nothing else comes of this, that alone was worth the investment."

Keeping the experiences coming is the plan for Vinyl Koala going forward. Releasing a bit more music. Gigging more. Getting together on a moment's notice to practice and write. Being family, well, it's only helped this operation moving.

"Sometimes we present this as a family affair," Nick Nelson jokes. "When I meet new people, I mention that it's my dad on bass and that he's like 70. And that Waid is my brother-in-law. It's not your traditional band set-up. Honestly, through all of it, we're just having fun."

The band's next booked gig is April 16 at RoHa Brewing (30 Kensington Ave., rohabrewing.com), though another date may pop up on the calendar between now and then. Vinyl Koala's new single is available on all major streaming services.