Lyrics for adults, riddims for the child in all of us. Songwriter /Bassist/Guitarist DAVID PILGRIM was raised in the island paradise of Barbados and came of age in New York’s concrete cityscapes. Ever since, he’s spanned those 2 worlds, creating music that has an awareness of both but transcends the limitations of either.

He calls this Caribbean-accented musical fusion Island Soul. 1998 signaled his first solo release Under The Bushel, a collection of songs that sowed the early seeds of his musical vision. 2003 saw the arrival of the descriptively-named Island Soul, which Performing Songwriter magazine called “A flawless execution of musical ideas”, and Bob Marley documentarian Dermot Hussey referred to as “A fine record, defined culturally and creatively in a masterly way”. 

In 2007 David helped form a songwriter collective called the Soulfolk Experience (featuring the amazing Maritri Garrett and V. Jeffrey Smith) with a repertoire covering Jazz, Classical, Folk, Rock, Reggae, Blues and Country. They have graced the numerous national stages, deservedly winning WNYC’s 2011 title of Best Band In Brooklyn. The group has released three compilation albums, The Soulfolk Experience Vols. 1, 2 and 3 featuring several Pilgrim-penned tunes.

2011 marked the release of his third album, All Things Being Equal. He freely rummaged through multiple musical genres including Ska, R&B, Reggae, Funk, Hip-hop, Rock and Afrobeat to find, in his own words, “the right riddim to rock the lyric”.

His fourth solo album, 2018’s Longer Here Than There, documented his movement into fatherhood and the realities of having lived longer in America than in the West Indies. 2020 brought Burning Bridges, an EP release sharply targeted at the deep social and political divisions the times reflected. Love Come Through and FeelGood his singles for 2021, found David's creativity emerging in a state of cautious optimism. 2023’s Time And Opportunity was an imagined rebel plan released in time for Juneteenth in cahoots with old friend, David “Batto” Batson, also a Bajan songwriter/producer living in the diaspora.

Now 2024's Boil The Ocean chronicles life after the loss of both parents and his own elevation into elder statesman. Musically he freely associates, leaning into Afrobeats, Reggae, Soca and Rock as it suits him. His wide-ranging lyrics cajole the listener into thought as much as action, often simultaneously as on the singles "Easy", "To What Degree" "Long As Love" and "Again". David Pilgrim's Island Soul has returned, comfortably stretching boundaries, easily entertaining the curious. Enjoy, and thanks for listening!