Bob Crawford isn’t a well known guy by any means. He’s the suit and tie of a band of bearded boys from North Carolina. You know them as The Avett Brothers; and if you don’t know them, you soon will. After being picked up by producer Rick Ruben on their most recent album titled “I and Love and You”, they’ve blown up. They’re on television shows as featured artists and on at least 50% of your friend’s iPods. Head to the Myrtle Beach House of Blues website and you’ll see they will be playing for three days straight, August 19th- 21st. And you’ll probably have difficulty getting tickets, even this far out. They are the Carolina’s favorite claim to fame and a well representation of their genre, whatever genre that is.

The Avett Brothers don’t want to be pinpointed to a certain scene, and go as far as to say that they LIKE the fact that fans can’t decide exactly what to call their sound. The Avett Brothers produce a sound described by the San Francisco Chronicle as having the "heavy sadness of Townes Van Zandt, the light pop concision of Buddy Holly, the tuneful jangle of the Beatles, the raw energy of the Ramones." In theory it may sound horrible. In reality, it’s beauty.

When we asked Bob what his first music memory is, he doesn’t reach for some country song he heard in high school, not even a nursery song his mom used to sing to him. He goes back to influences like the Four Seasons and The Coasters, the music his parents used to play in their home.

At the age of thirty-nine he still remembers being 11 and 12 years old, hooking his boom box up to his headphones, and listening to Bruce Springsteen. “I remember just being transported away from my bed room” He says. “Seeing any live music as a teen no matter who was playing, or even if they were terrible, I was in awe.” He looked at those people on stage and said to his self, “I want to be able to speak that language.”

At the age of fifteen he started the journey. He began taking guitar lessons so he could play Bruce Springsteen songs. He started learning chords and then began writing songs, “That’s when I knew. That’s when I realized music could be individualized”. We know Bob as the guy rocking out on the stand up Bass, bringing life and energy to The Avett Brother’s music; but according to him it wasn’t always so easy. “It wasn’t natural talent at all; I really had to work on it. Someone in school even called me the has been that never was”.

Bob returned to College at the age of 30 to “learn the language of music” He attended school in Rock Hill, South Carolina and it was there that he decided to buy a bass. He told us “I remember Friday and Saturday nights sitting on a friends back porch hanging out and drinking. My friends would pull out their guitars and then I would just be this random guy on the bass.”

It was thanks to that same group of friends that he found his way to the Avett Brothers. “A friend told me, I know these bluegrass guys. Some time later we met in the parking lot of a Media Play on a Sunday night. Scott and Seth pulled up in an old station wagon and we sat in the parking lot and just played together.” A few weeks later Scott and Seth called Bob and they started doing what they do best, together. They’re a band of friends now but it wasn’t always an easy road for them. “Seth and Scott had bad experiences in the past, the trust came with time” Bob said.

“We first started playing covers. We would play shows here and there and once we realized we could do new, original songs as well as covers we saw the potential to be more.” He said, “Our songs are getting more musical as we grow and become better together.” Bob and the Avett Brothers are on two different scales as far as musical influences are concerned. “We’re complete opposites with some common ground. I mean, I studied jazz. I still try to incorporate that into my bass lines.”

With a new tour of shows lined up and the release of a new album produced by Rick Ruben we had to ask “What has Rick Ruben brought to the table?” He replied, “Being Rick Ruben. He is very hands-off and such a calm and mellowing guy. It’s a good album thanks to him. We love it and are proud of it.”

We also asked what they were going to do for their three nights at the Myrtle Beach House of Blues. He said “The same songs over and over.” He laughed, and so did we. “We try to be able to work any stage and feel comfortable, but all of the House of Blues venues are awesome. Myrtle Beach is a great room, one of the best in the country. We’re going to figure out a way to keep it fresh every night.”

Their song writing doesn’t really happen on the road, and they don’t all sit in a circle and say “Okay, we’ve got to come up with our next big hit!” It’s quite the opposite. Bob said, “Most of it comes from Seth and Scott. When the opportunity comes they seize it.”

In our last few moments we had but one question left to ask, “What is the Avett Brother’s ideal future?” Bob had but two words for us, “Quality and Longevity”.