The Pearls to bring rollicking country-Americana-swing to Richland

The Pearls’ signature song is a swinging, infectious tune about their “wine and whiskey ways.”

And that’s fitting, because when you go to show by the country rock-Americana-Western Swing band, “you’re going to feel like you’re having a shot of whiskey with us,” said W. Buck Ryan, one of the group’s founders.

“We’re definitely not background music,” added bandmate Nick O’Donnell.

The guys will bring their fun, boisterous sound to Richland on Jan. 14 for a show at the Emerald of Siam, 1314 Jadwin Ave.

Music starts at 9 p.m. Cover is $5.

The Vancouver, Wash.-based band released a self-titled album in the fall, and it immediately found success on iTunes.

It includes the song Wine and Whiskey Ways, along with other plenty of other standout tracks.

On the rollicking She’s What I Want, O’Donnell sings about how “some guys want a woman who’s meek or a woman that’ll turn the other cheek. I was raised to understand how a real woman can love a man.”

His woman “drinks from a bourbon barrel” and would “rather be jumping trains” than flying first class.

On the poignant and lovely Throwing Dreams into the Wind, band member Patrick Tetreault sings of a road trip that ended with him and Ryan deciding to take a chance and form a band.

“Pulled out of Nashville bound for Oregon. Sweet summer rain come falling down. As I roll out on that Highway 65, all I want to do is drive,” the song goes. “I made Kansas about 2 a.m. I got high with my old friend. Wasting time out on that road that never ends. Throwing dreams into the wind.”

Ryan, O’Donnell and Tetreault share vocal duties in the band, with Ryan on bass, O’Donnell on guitar and banjo and Tetreault on rhythm guitar. The Pearls also includes Nikolette Divine on vocals, Joe Haegele on drums and Robin Suskind on pedal steel, dobro, lap steel and mandolin.

The band draws on a wide range of influences to create its unique sound, from The Everly Brothers to Grateful Dead, old Dixieland jazz, Slim Whitman and Bill Monroe.

Ryan and O’Donnell said they’re looking forward to the Richland show. People should expect a good time.

“When people leave our shows, they leave them with smiles on their faces, singing the melodies,” O’Donnell said. “That’s what we strive to do at every one of our shows — make people happy. You’re going to feel better after a Pearls show than before.”

This story was originally published January 4, 2017 at 7:05 PM with the headline "The Pearls to bring rollicking country-Americana-swing to Richland."