Last year, Lowell rock trio Idle Pilot were faced with a dilemma. They had recently changed their band name from Currents, their hand forced by another band who claimed the moniker first. Saddled with a significant amount of band merchandise with the old name, they made the excellent decision to donate the outdated gear to Rosie’s Place, a Massachusetts women’s shelter.
Now, Idle Pilot bassist/vocalist Alex Miller is lending another hand, this time to animals in need. Back in September, he started a small Waltham-based cassette label Head vs. Heart, and one of their first releases is an upcoming 17-track compilation of local bands designed to raise money for the Animal Rescue League of Boston. Paws, Rewind: A Compilation To Benefit Our Furry Friends is officially out February 26, and features tracks by Kal Marks, Nice Guys, Pile, DCDR, The Digs, Harris Hawk, and others, and artwork was designed by Dug McCormack, whose band, Psychic Dog, is also featured.
“I’ve been wanting to put out a charity compilation tape since the inception of Head vs. Heart,” Miller tells Vanyaland. “It’s a great way to give some exposure to what I consider to be amazing, hardworking Boston bands while at the same time donating to a good cause. The first and foremost reason for doing the ARL is because I’m a huge animal lover and with all the artists on the tape being from Boston I wanted to keep with that local theme and get a Boston charity.”
Miller says enlisting McCormack to paint the compilation’s cover was a perfect fit, as the Somerville artist’s designs fit in well with the cause. “A lot of his work features crazy animals,” Miller adds, “so it was right in his wheelhouse, which made it even better.”
The night of the compilation’s cassette release, Head vs. Heart is hosting a party at the Cantab Lounge’s Club Bohemia, featuring a handful of the participating bands, including Nice Guys, Think Tank, DCDR, Great News, and Miller’s Idle Pilot.
Stream and purchase Paws, Rewind: A Compilation To Benefit Our Furry Friends via Head vs. Heart below, where you can also pre-order the cassette well before its release later this month.
