“We’ve had a number of changes,” says Rob Grote, songwriter for the Philadephia rockers who perform Jan. 19 at the Columbus Theatre. With their new album, “Popular Manipulations,” they explore the pain of endings of relationships and loss in general.
As a songwriter, Rob Grote’s goal is to “capture universal emotions,” whether they are joyful or painful.
“It’s a struggle to boil life down to moments,” he muses in a telephone call from his home in Philadelphia on a break from touring with his band, The Districts. “A lot of songs I write have some sense of darkness to them but the beauty of music is that you create some sort of cathartic moment. It becomes a reflective, hopeful thing.”
A band founded by three musicians who have been friends since grade school — Grote on guitar and vocals, Connor Jacobus on bass and Braden Lawrence on drums — plus Pat Cassidy, a guitarist added in 2016, The Districts are generally labeled “indie” but Grote insists they’re rockers.
“I find it hard to describe something I’m so deeply invested in, but rock and roll is an umbrella term,” he says, although he adds that, “ultimately, the goal is to make something that can stand alone.”
After the band’s debut album “Telephone” in 2012, The Districts became somewhat malleable audibly, although keeping within the confines of that umbrella category, as the young musicians searched for a niche. Their 2015 album “A Flourish and A Spoil” brought them closer, but the release of “Popular Manipulations” this past August is evidence that they have found a groove they like.
“We’ve had a number of changes,” Grote begins. “There were some basic setup changes at the root of it, but this was the first time we went in knowing a lot about the recording process. We felt extremely confident in our record-making ability, so we were more focused on arrangements and growing a sonic palate.”
“Popular Manipulations” was recorded partly in Los Angeles with veteran producer John Congleton and partly on their own back in Philly.
“We took a lot of steps back to think about things because we were not working under deadline,” he admits. “We were able to more fully realize ideas we had had for a long time and had never executed.”
In preparation for the album, Grote did some self-exploration as a singer and songwriter, too, putting pen to paper every day and cranking out 50 songs for the group to consider.
“For me, it was about honing it a bit. I was exploring how I sang and trying to find more of a voice for the album,” he notes. “As a band, we always wanted to be able to change and not adhere to a specific sound. But, in the moment, when I’m writing, it’s about finding the voice for the band. It’s something that changes every time.”
Grote says the songs that eventually made it onto “Popular Manipulations” explore the pain of endings of relationships and loss in general. “Capable,” for example, touches on the aftermath of divorce while “Before I Wake” delves into the isolation of loneliness.
“It’s about how people interact, people’s needs and how they conflict from time to time,” Grote says of the album as a whole.
— Susan McDonald is a regular contributor to The Providence Journal. She can be reached at Sewsoo1@verizon.net.
If you go ...
What: The Districts, with Pine Barons
When: 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 19
Where: Columbus Theatre, 270 Broadway, Providence.
Tickets: $12 in advance, $14 day of the show.
Information: columbustheatre.com