05.22.03 - North County Times. Escondido, CA
By SANDRA KRAISIRIDEJA

THE PLAINS HIT THE WEST COAST TO SELL THEIR SOUND
The Plains are hitting the road.
Driving through the mountains on I-5 from Arcata to Yuba City, the Seattle-based trio is unreachable by cell phone.
Aaron Semer - the 25-year-old vocalist, guitarist and songwriter who formed the Plains a year ago - calls from a pay phone to assure his interviewer that he will call once his cell phone reception returns.  
A few hours later, Semer is explaining why his band is on their first road trip outside of Washington, where they have built a loyal following and received praise from local press.
"We sort of oversaturated the market and felt we needed to start building our name in other places along the West Coast," Semer said.
The tour includes stops in Oregon, Las Vegas and California, including a show May 25 at Pounders Pub in Escondido.
The band is promoting its debut album, "On Earth as It Is in Heaven," a collection of rock tunes heavily influenced by country, blues and folk music.
"I take chord structures from those styles and form the sounds to be more modern," said Semer, who taught himself how to play guitar, bass and percussion.
In fact, Semer plays almost all of the instruments on the album, which was recorded on eight-track reel-to-reel tape because it was "cheaper," he said.
Semer has been in a band, in one form or another, since he was 13 and had some early success with a group called Lethargic Id. The band played bars and outdoor festivals around Ohio, his home state.
Growing up in the Midwest - Semer was raised outside Toledo - made him restless, and he longed to visit the East and West coasts, he said.
After three years at Ohio University, Semer dropped out to travel across the country in a van. His travels inspired many of the songs on the album. "Black Hills, SD" benefits greatly from Semer's firsthand experience.
"The lyrics are about a relationship I had at the time and my experience camping and driving through the Black Hills," Semer said. "The towns are indicative of the Plains culture."
Semer's socially-conscious lyrics are a product of his upbringing.
"I was raised by ex-hippie parents who are into politics and very active in the community," he said.
Semer doesn't just talk about social problems, he faces them every day while working at Pioneer Human Services assisting runaway youth. His bandmates also work in social service.
Bassist Josh Atkins, 25, and percussionist Jonballs Kilian, 25, both work at Seattle's Downtown Emergency Service Center helping homeless adults.