Local musician Mark Pickerel has led a remarkable music career, working with artists such as Nirvana and Brandi Carlile. The original drummer for the grunge band Screaming Trees, Pickerel is now the front man of Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands.

The inspiration for the band name came from a friend’s tattoo of praying hands.

“I sort of like the optimism of that image,” Pickerel said. “It’s a very hopeful image but also vulnerable and fragile.”

Pickerel first began playing drums in his sixth-grade band class.

“I gravitated towards drums mainly because it was the only instrument in band class I associated with rock ’n’ roll,” he said.

This led to the eventual formation of Screaming Trees. Pickerel was originally the singer before switching with Mark Lanegan for drums. Since then he’s toured with Neko Case and owned Rodeo Records, one of the most musically diverse record stores in Eastern Washington.

“I opened for X recently, and they were one of my favorite bands in high school and continue to be,” Pickerel said. “That was probably one of those moments where I felt that I had made it, where I felt that I was living my dream.”

Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands’ latest album, Cody’s Dream, was in part inspired by Pickerel’s solitary tour through the Southwest without a working radio and with only the sound of the highway beneath his wheels his thoughts to keep him company and.

The album includes a cover of Bob Dylan’s “One More Cup of Coffee.”

“I’m no more of a Bob Dylan fan than other artists ... but for some reason that song ... there’s a lot going on in his version, so I wanted to interpret it and wanted to make it my own,” Pickerel said. “I loved the lyrics and melody but didn’t necessarily want to recreate his same vibe.”

Cody’s Dream has been described as having a country-rock feel with some jazz influence on vocals.

“I grew up in a town where country music was very popular,” Pickerel said. “I think subconsciously, the structure of a country song exists inside my person.”

Switching from drummer to front man isn’t uncommon in the music industry (Phil Collins, Keith Moon and Dave Grohl are all examples), and for Pickerel, the position is just another musical outlet.

“Throughout the years, I’ve often heard melodies in my head and wanted to turn them into songs, but since I had limited skills on guitar, it was hard for me to convey them,” Pickerel said. “I got a guitar in my mid 20s and started fooling around with melodies and lyrics and started devoting more time to it. Now I spend more time writing music ... but [playing drums] is my first passion.”

With more than 20 years of experience in the music industry, Pickerel’s career doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon. Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands recently performed a concert Aug. 2 at Genesee Park as part of the third annual Seafair Saturday Night Concert, along with The Saturday Knights, Jim Morris, Central Service and El Vez!. The band is working on material for a new album and preparing for several tours in Europe later this year.

“The most important thing is to focus on your material, even if your material doesn’t have a place in the current marketplace,” Pickerel said. “If it’s something you are passionate about or believe in, eventually someone will hear something unique in your music or talents.”