“I was 38 when we went on tour with Pearl Jam. A long time ago, I’d given up on the dream of something like that happening”: Dead Pioneers on how indigenous politics and pedal-builds have powered them to punk glory

Dead Pioneers on stage.

You never really know when you’re going to get your break. Dead Pioneers’ early single, Bad Indian, created a momentum they hadn’t anticipated. Things only accelerated when they mailed a copy of their music to Pearl Jam bassist Jeff Ament.

“I was 38 when we went on tour with them,” says guitarist Josh Rivera. “A long time ago I’d kind of given up on the dream of something like that happening. Pearl Jam asking us to come out and play was kind of the ultimate confirmation that maybe we were doing something right.”