Alt-Rocker Winterkill Band Finds New Life in Vermont

Pederson is exhilarated by the creative output and synergy of his band, as they create honest songs reflective of his life.

“I strive to live each moment as if tomorrow won’t come,” Pederson stated. “Honesty isn’t an option for me; I aim to be as genuine as possible.

“Since 2020, we have recorded 48 songs and four albums,” he remarked. “I’ve lived every word of them. I am what I’m singing, and that’s the essence of it all.”

Pederson grew up in a blue-collar family, where he worked on his family’s fishing boat. From Florida to Boston to New Orleans, he moved frequently during his youth. Music remained a constant in his life, starting with singing in the Episcopalian church his family attended and later performing folk music in dive bars.

In the mid-2000s, he returned to Boston and became the singer-guitarist for melodic alt-rockers Bone Dry System. The group gained attention and received nominations for several Boston Music Awards, but eventually disbanded around 2012.

As the band fell apart, so did Pederson’s personal life. Amid a contentious divorce, he gave up on music and worked construction and fishing to make ends meet.

“It felt like Robert Redford in ‘The Natural.’ My career just came to a halt,” he lamented.

In late 2019, after remarrying, his wife urged him to pick up his guitar and start writing again.

“My wife said, ‘Listen, you’re going to start playing music again. You don’t have any other choice’,” he recalled. “My insecurities dissolved, and I returned to the studio, recording two albums.”

Those records were solo projects, country-rock albums recorded in Boston with a makeshift group of musicians. It wasn’t until he sold his fishing boat and moved to a farmhouse in Vermont in 2021 that Pederson found the musicians who now make up the Winterkill Band and contribute to their ’70s country- and hard rock-sound.

He connected with Andrew Koss, a Manchester-based producer known for his work with Alicia Keys and John Legend, who introduced him to a talented group of musicians. The chemistry was immediate, leading to a whole new creative dynamic for Pederson, as well the creation of “Lower Country Outlaw” and more.

“This is the first band I’ve ever co-written with,” he said. “Me and the guys just click. Andrew excels in melody and encourages different counter melodies, while I’ve started tailoring my writing to everyone’s strengths. When we’re in the studio, there’s never a moment of silence. Everything has happened so quickly, which is perfect for someone like me who values efficiency.

“We rapidly recorded six songs, and Andrew said, ‘You have to do 12. It won’t be Grammy-eligible unless it’s a full-length album’,” he continued. “He’s hard to read, so maybe he was joking, maybe not. But now we’ve recorded ‘Lower Country Outlaw’ and have enough material for a follow-up.”

But before that plan comes to fruition, there’s Rockin’ on the River. Pederson thoroughly enjoys performing live and looks forward to sharing his new music and connecting with the audience.

“I hope people will vibe with our energy,” he said. “We put on an exhilarating show, and there’s nothing quite like being on stage, rocking out, and making eye contact with someone in the audience who is having fun and on the same wavelength as you.”