THE SCRAPE - ISSUE 1

Dobak - By Salo

Dobak was a fantastic interview. We met on Park Ave in downtown Portland, found a park bench, and shot the shit for half an hour on one of the first warm days of the year. Dobak is a solo artist, honing his craft for the last 5 years. This year at Spring Fest 2023, he comes out of a brief hiatus to grace us with his presence. This time he's bringing new songs, and a supporting cast of musicians. Dobak sings and plays guitar, best friend Jag plays drums, Spencer plays guitar, and Allan holds down the low end on bass. So come Spring Fest, we'll be treated to a new-look act, fully developed, and very, very cool. 

Dobak met festival coordinators Rain and Mia through a karaoke contest in February at 21st Avenue Bar. A short time later, he was even brought on to be a contest judge, and not just a contestant. It didn't take long for his talent to become apparent, and upon applying for Spring Fest, he was readily accepted into the lineup. 

He describes his music as a rock/soul venture, but he's not sure if that still holds up. He's recently delved into hip-hop as well, expanding his ethereal sound. On listening, I find his approach to be reminiscent of indie slacker rock (one of my favorite genres). 

"Obviously there was a 2 or 3 year gap during the pandemic and everything.... but other than that I've been pretty persistent going after shows," Dobak tells me. He recently took a West Coast tour from Everett, WA to Los Angeles, CA. He recalls, it was 10 days, with maybe eight shows... Everett, Portland, Eugene, Modesto... then LA.

In addition to being a phenomenal artist, Dobak is a father too. His son, now in first grade, has been coming to his shows since he was 6 months old, wearing onesies and hanging side stage. With a dad like that, a sincere and loving human being, I imagine that kid will end up super cool. Maybe we’ll see him on stage down the line.