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The snow didn't stop Gehrers music
Ed Paukstis
Capital Times Reporter
Snow began to cover the ground
and stick to the roadways early in
the morning on Wednesday, March
3rd but he made the trip PSH
anyway.
People shuffled by in a
semi—panic trying to complete
their business as quickly as
possible but he remained relaxed
filling the room with warm and
vibrant jazz lines that resonated
throughout the small lounge area
in the Olmsted building. This was
no ordinary performance! It was
Ken Gehret, a featured artist in the
lunch time concerts sponsored by
SGA, playing solo jazz guitar in
his unique and slightly unorthodox
style.
Gehret's performance was
originally scheduled to take place
in the Gallery Lounge but instead
was intimately delivered from the
vestibule lobby in the Olmsted
building which easily transformed
into a nightclub scene minus the
Travler saves souls and
Ed Paukstis
Capital Times Reviewer
Luna
Bewitched
Elektra
Luna is a four man band with a long list of
musical credentials. They opened up shows
for the revitalized Velvet Underground on
their recent tour. Ex—Velvet, Sterling
Morrison appears on two tracks of Luna's
new album—" Friendly advice" and "Great
Jones Street". Lead vocalist, Dean
Wareham's voice is reminiscent of vintage
Lou Reed. Therefore the comparison is
justified. Right? Well, it seems that Luna
has a great deal of musical integrity, but
often lacks the intensity of the legendary
Velvet's. There is a common bond of
simplicity that combines with great guitar,
vocal harmonies and haunting melodies to
quench the thirst of a Velvet fan, but Luna
is missing the edge and unpolished sound
that the Underground achieved on great
songs like "Lonesome Cowboy Bill"and
"Sweet Jane".
Sterling Morrison's appearance on the
album is authentic and he seems to be right
at home as he does some incredibly cool
guitar work. The whole situation is very
nostalgic, but where does that leave the rest
of the recording? Somewhere between a
masterpiece and mediocrity.
"Into the Fold" is probably the best song
on this album. The clean guitar strumming
is evidence that guitarist Sean Eden studied
his Velvet recordings and mastered Lou
Reed's guitar style, while emphasizing the
dark lighting, smoke and chink
specials
Gehret's natural ability to
improvise sophisticated ideas
within the framework of
conventional jazz is just one aspect
of his impeccable style. But
perhaps the greatest achievement is
Gehret's perseverance and
determination to play "the gig".
Gehret positioned himself slightly
in front of the lounge area and
seemed to be totally pleased with
the impromptu performance
setting. lie introduced each song
with some background information
and honored requests from the
audience.
"I gave up planning things years
ago," Gehret said. "I try to be as
extemporaneous as possible
"The weather was getting pretty
ugly on the way up but I really
didn't mind traveling," Gehret said.
because it seems to work better,"
he said.
"less is more" guitar solo. The rest of the
band has polished their sound to resemble
the mathematical sound but oddly enough,
the effort only half shines. The tarnishing
effects are beyond the remote comparisons
of what the Velvet's actually soundedlike or
how they produced songs. It might leave
you wondering if Luna really knows the
difference between themselves and their idols
although people do say that imitation is the
greatest form of flattery. But not everyone
subscribes to that notion and, after all,
according to Andy Warhol, "We are all
entitled to our 15 minutes of fame"!
BLUES TRAVELER
SAVE HIS SOUL
A&M Recording Artist
New York based band, Blues Traveler has
created yet another masterpiece with "Save
his Soul". The album serves as a
celebration of sorts for the band members
d fans since lead vocalist and harmonica
player John Popper's recovery from a near
fatal car accident that confined him to a
wheel chair for a number of months and
throughout most of the supporting tour.
But these guys are not about to call it quits!
"Save His Soul" is probably the strongest
recording since the debut album.
John Popper's voice sounds wonderfully
soulful and his harmonica wails throughout
the album like it never did before! Popper
shines on cuts like "Believe Me" and "Love
and Greed". He has slightly altered his
approach to the "harp" and refrains from the
extended solos that brought the Garcia
comparisons. Popper still retains a cosmic
energy but juxtaposes it with great blues
Arts and Entertainment
The small turnout responded with
enthusiasm as Gehret launched into
traditional jazz standards like "Blue
and Green"
Gehret's approach to the guitar is
a finger style technique that blends
together many facets of classical
and jazz. He executes brushed
harmonics that sound lush and
peaceful which lay the foundation
for a perfect bridge between his
more "bluesy" licks.
Gheret's tone embodies a deep
bass timbre that is reminiscent of a
piano with pedal effects and
volume swells. His walking bass
lines are a result of spider-like
finger combinations that prowl the
length of the guitar's neck with
confidence.
All the while, Gehret somehow
keeps the bottom or bass section of
the song in a constant motion
which lets the song breathe.
licks that would make Muddy Waters,
Howlin Wolf and Willie Dixon proud.
The band is playing tighter than ever and
upholds the blues meets reggae sound that
older cuts like "Gina" introduced and newer
songs like "Go Outside and Drive" and
"Trina Magna" now represent. They also
introduce a few harder edge tunes that are a
combination of James Brown "funkadelic"
meets R&B meets retro Bob Marley.
"Save His Soul" is a swirling mass of bass
and drums with machine gun guitar
reminiscent to some vintage Hendrix but
without the obvious replication of his style
or licks. There is a definite mood or feeling
throughout this recording and new songs
like "Bullshitters Lament" and "Fledgling"
are definitely noteworthy examples of how
the band has matured
musicians and songwriters.
"Save His Soul" is definitely a good
investment. It is an indication that Blues
Traveler is still able to make great music
that extends well beyond the parameters of
the blues. Don't be deceived by the name.
Don't think that it doesn't contain blues.
It's in there!
Gehret plays a 10 string guitar
which is tuned somewhat like a
piano. The second string is middle
"C", the Ist string is an "A" above
middle "C" and the bottom strings
are tuned standard.
The tuning is all Gehret's own
creation and he is able to create
gorgeous melodies that work from
unusual chord sequences.
The base of the guitar has an
unusual black covering which
Gehret said acts like a dampening
device. Gehret parallels the
covering to a "bathing suit".
The song "Little Snowshower" is
an original Gehret composition.
The guitar stylings that Gehret
creates are reminiscent of the sound
that Robby Krieger achieved in the
Doors song "The End" except
Gehret extends the sound a bit
further into the mid—eastern or
"Arabic" tradition. Throughout the
song, he interjects sonic double
stops and executes lightning fast
runs up the neck that resolve into
a stream of tender harmonies.
Gehret explains that he was
inspired to write the song while
stranded in a snow storm.
"I guess you can call it the Ken
Gehret Special," Gehret said
jokingly. "For years I have tried to
find the sound that I wanted
without getting all the feedback
that occurs when an acoustic guitar
is amplified.
Gehret said that his device is the
solution to increasing the number
of overtones that the instrument is
able to produce.
"I can now play as loud as I like
and still have the response of a
classical guitar," he said.
Gehret said that he enjoys playing
live and that he frequents many
different types of venue including:
Loser wins
Kristen Hersh
Hips And Makers
Sire\Reprise
When the band Throwing Muses called it
quits in 1992, it became questionable
whether the collaboration between
songwriters Kristen Hersh and Juliana
Hatfield would fade into oblivion or draw
comparisons of legendary songwriting teams
like Lennon and McCartney or even merit
any praise at all. Until now, the
comparisons have not yet surfaced but it's
only been about two years since the
break—up.
Still the similarities of their solo careers
can be compared to the outings of Lennon
and McCartney in the 70's. McCartney
triumphed as a pop phenomenon while
Lennon was cast as a rebellious underground
rock star who had little concern for the
limelight and produced strikingly
controversial and obscure music that has
influenced many of today's rock
personalities including Lenny Kravitz.
Hersh can be compared to Lennon while
Hatfield resembles the McCartney image.
Hatfield did not hesitate to put together a
band and to transcend the alternative music
scene and the MTV commercial pop world
much like McCartney did with his band
"Wings" minus the MTV thing.
Hersh has just debuted on the alternative
scene with the release of her new albums
and Makers". It is an all acoustic album ii.
which she incorporates all the vocal
techniques that she utilized in Throwing
Muses and finally makes them her own
creation.
The album is
a subdued masterpiece in
April 17, 1994
The Capital Times
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GRAINGER
coffee houses, bars, night clubs,
festivals and other universities.
A self proclaimed studio
musician, he also has worked on
other musicians recordings and has
scored and produced soundtracks for
several documentaries.
One such film is entitled, "A
Time For Tears" which is based in
Reading, PA.
"That one was a real tear jerker
type of film," recalls Gehret. "It is
relatively obscure," he said.
Gehret also is a member of the
bluegrass band "Sweetwater
Reunion". In this band he is able
to flex yet another part of his
musical anatomy by playing the
fiddle.
"I enjoy fooling around with
different instruments but my main
ones are guitar and fiddle," Gehret
said.
which Hersh strums her way through
compositions that are tainted with almost
every human emotion imaginable but she
does not come right out and say something
like "I love to yeah yeah yeah. Not all their
songs are a bit tongue in cheek but they are
well thought out and conceptually real in
design and presentation.
The song "Beestung" is about as cute as
any song can get. It's Hersh's interpretation
of Edie Brikell minus the sexy vocal
swagger and Margo Timmins minus the
whispering. Maintains a Mon, Mar 28,
1994 pre—adolescent voice on the tune and
the song climaxes with her vocal "Your
beestung there got too late".
Hersh's guitar work is unique and she as
that "Dylanesque" humming combined with
a bit of Neil Young influence which really
helps the songs achieve a dramatic flare.
For Hersh, the songs are one continuous
palette of musical experimentation in which
the accent is upon her ability to make the
simple seem complex and the odd to become
familiar.
Her solo career seems to be headed in the
right direction and with the help of friend
Michael Stipe on the song "Your Ghost",
Hersh is destined to make her mark on the
musical world. Regardless of how different
her approach might be, Hersh can say," I did
it my way".
Beck
Loser
4 song ep
SEE LOSER
ON PAGE 6