Texas Music Journal » Pop

New IM Live Video Technology Changes Concert Experience

smssteely — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:13:19 +0000

Immersive Media is first to release IM Live, a new interactive live video technology which allows the viewer to completely control their concert viewing experience by manipulating angles and perspectives over the computer. Content comes alive giving a sensation of actually being on stage. The viewer can click on the live streaming concert and with the use of a mouse, see 360 degrees around the stage as if turning your head. Viewer can zoom in or out to receive the broadest or most intimate possible perspective while traveling around the stage.

On September 19, 2009 at 4:00PM, MediaTech Digital Film Studios of Dallas will host popular singer/songwriter Hannah Madison Taylor for a live interactive concert experience through the use of the new IM Live technology. During Hannah’s concert, every website viewer can independently choose their viewpoint, and with a simple ‘click and drag’ of the computer mouse explore every possible angle – up, down, sideways or all around. The technology empowers the viewer with the most realistic online visual experience available, bringing you up close and personal with each band member. To see how the technology works before the concert go to www.immersivemedia.com.

Hannah’s original compositions are heavily influenced by a range of pop icons as Sheryl Crow, Whitney Houston, Bonnie Raitt and Sam Cooke. You can experience the concert like never before by watching the live Immersive broadcast at: http://www.mediatech.edu/dallascampus_studioa.html

During this live event Hannah will be performing these songs:

Lying and Cheating
Not Your Fool
Love Or Something Like It
So Killer Sexy

About MediaTech Institute:

MediaTech Institute offers a one year recording arts programs to establish careers as a music producer, recording engineer, sound engineer for television or film, or in music business management. It also offers a Digital Film and Video Arts program that is a comprehensive study designed to teach advanced aspects of producing commercials, music videos, documentaries, television shows and feature films. Hands on instruction is provided in every aspect of the production process including developing, writing, producing, directing and editing for single and multimedia camera productions. For more information go to www.mediatech.edu or call 866.498.1122.

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J. D. Souther (with Kristy Kruger) at Threadgill’s in Austin

baspinwall — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 01:05:27 +0000

By Bill Aspinwall, Austin, Texas, June 7, 2009

Threadgill’s, once known as World Armadillo Headquarters, is a storied palace of Austin’s musical heritage. It features a small outdoor venue that’s like a large side yard with a shed for a stage – from which you can read the Hooters billboard across the street. Scores of musical legends have performed here and scores continue to come.

There’s home-style cooking at the restaurant (assuming home for you is somewhere south of I-20), poorboys, sweet potato fries and fajitas. The Mexican martinis are stellar.

On this Sunday night, in this tiny venue, the crowd built up to maybe 150 or so, every row tinged with gray hair and time-creased faces. Survivors from the sixties and seventies had come to pay tribute to a songwriter with a career that reaches back for forty years.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome John David Souther”.

That introduction was met with a standing ovation. Not just the elders, but also the younger people in the crowd, even one table of graduates from East Austin’s Kealing Middle School.

J. D. Souther, though born in Detroit, was raised in Amarillo. Maybe there’s something in the water on the high plains of Lubbock and Amarillo: Buddy Holly, Jimmy Dale Gilmore, Eddie Reeves, Mac Davis, Susan Gibson, Joe Ely, Butch Hancock, Waylon Jennings and Lloyd Maines – all were born or raised on those high plains in west Texas.

Very early in his career, Souther moved to Los Angeles and became part of a musical community of friends that included Jackson Browne as well as Glenn Frey and Linda Ronstadt, hugely successful country-flavored rockers who followed in the footsteps of Clarence White, Gram Parsons and various configurations of the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers.

Souther wrote, or co-wrote hits, big hits, for the Eagles, Linda Ronstadt and James Taylor. Later, after relocating to Nashville, his songs got picked up and by the likes of George Strait, the Dixie Chicks, Jimmy Buffett, Bonnie Raitt, Trisha Yearwood and Warren Zevon, among others. There’s an excellent interview of Souther, originally published in 1998 in Goldmine, posted by the author, freelance writer Debbie Kruger at www.debbiekruger.com/writer/freelance/jdsouther.html. That site also includes the full transcript of the interview; great stuff.

Souther has been on tour since late 2008 to support his first release in 25 years, “IF THE WORLD WAS YOU”, released both as a CD and on vinyl in October 2008. More details about the project are available on his website.

He now cuts a gaunt figure, lean as rain in Reno, wearing a plain suit in preacher black, no tie. Three acoustic guitars, a baby grand and no back-up band. He opened the show on guitar with “Your Turn Now”, from his 1976 album, Black Rose. His whole set mixed songs from various times in his career, switching between guitar and piano.

His voice has a warm, breezy quality, sweet enough in the higher registers to have opened opportunities for Souther to sing duets, backing vocals and harmonies with many notable recording artists. His unique timbre could be heard particularly in two songs near the end of his set, “Maybe It’ll Rain” and “Faithless Love”.

Performed solo, his songs rise above any genre classifications, while incorporating elements of country, western, swing, rock and Latin styles. His influence on other songwriters like Jackson Browne, Glenn Frey and Don Henley is evident.

It was comfort of a kind to hear his performance of “New Kid in Town”, stripped of all the Eagles’ gloss – though he unfailing gave due respect to his friends in that band, saying, “The boys always made great records of my songs.” Comforting, too, was his rendition of “Simple Man, Simple Dream” also from Black Rose. Both songs reveal his extraordinary writing capabilities.

His piano playing is particularly fine; spare, gospel flavored and understated. And while his guitar playing might not merit an endorsement deal, it’s made from a sturdy cloth that suits his songs. In one song during the evening, (“Baby Come Home”), Souther tuned a string a half-step down in mid song, shifting an open major tuning to a minor for the song’s bridge, then tuned it back up for the rest of the song. Nice touch for a songwriter.

He was occasionally pestered by the traffic sounds, motorcycles roaring past on Barton Springs Road, but Souther held the audience tight throughout his set. In an age where every other youtube guitarist offers hopped up but hackneyed versions of all the modern guitar classics, its quite beside the point to bust Jake Souther’s guitar chops. No one else on the planet can captivate a crowd with a timeless song like “Faithless Love”, with that celestial tenor and a full moon rising in the east on an early June evening in Austin – that’s some kind of magic.

The show was opened by Kristy Kruger (www.kristykruger.com). She’s ostensibly from Dallas, although she’s recently spent so much time on the road that, quoting her own lyrics, “My Home is Everywhere”. She played a short set of seven songs, mining an area along the swing blues and country swing divide, maybe somewhere between Billie Holliday and Leon Redbone. She writes tight, bittersweet songs on guitar, banjo and piano and delivers them with the heavy-lidded, sly smile of an inside joke. She’s a fine performer, a good musician and a pleasant surprise – she also opened the recent show in Dallas for J. D. Souther.

The Heart of Melody – An Interview with Lena Shammas

baspinwall — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 23:45:14 +0000

This is the first of what we hope will be many articles written by Bill Aspinwall whose album, Free Range Trout, was reviewed by the Texas Music Journal (http://texasmusicjournal.com/texas-music-business/album-reviews/album-review-bill-aspinwall-range-trout).

This article originally appeared in “Liner Notes”, the official webzine of the Houston Songwriter’s Association and is re-published with their permission.

_________________________________________________________________________________

“The wealth of sense-knowledge belongs to perception, not to immediate certainty, where all that wealth was merely something alongside and by the way; for it is only perception that has negation, distinction, multiplicity in its very nature.” - The Phenomenology of Mind, G.W.F. Hegel

Photo by Bill Aspinwall

One of the most elusive elements that songwriters deal with is melody, the element in a song that at its best, resonates in our hearts, immediately captures our attention and lasts in our memory. The best melodies make us want to sing along with the radio or in the shower. The philosopher Hegel’s concept that perception is everything seems to be particularly true when it comes to melody.

There is a large amount of literature aimed at defining melody; explaining the basics: construction of note sequences and rhythm, intervals and patterns, chord structures and scales. Unfortunately, purely intellectual efforts to construct compelling melodies fall short of reaching that goal.

Yet the concept of what makes a particular piece of music more pleasing to the ear than others is intriguing. Talking to a person who consistently produces engaging melodies might be a useful approach. One person who writes ear-pleasing melodies is Lena Shammas.

Some writers (Annie Proulx, for instance) believe that the best way to learn how to write is to read. By extension, it may be that the best way to learn to write better melodies is to listen. You should listen to Lena Shammas and do your own research – with the melodies that she writes, the journey unfolds like the best of melodies, effortlessly, organically and with pleasure. You can check out her music on her first CD, “Open Your Eyes”, released in 2004 and available on Outbound Music.com. It’s a unique gem.

After you’ve had the chance to listen to Shammas, you’ll understand. I had the opportunity to hear and see Shammas at Anderson Fair, in Houston. The legendary Anderson Fair, still lighting prayer candles for live music.

It was a songwriter night, hosted by Ken Gaines, consummate performer and songwriter, joined by the bourbon-smooth guitar of Wayne Wilkerson. Clay Farmer was also along for the ride, in full acoustic songwriter mode, East Texas fundamentalist gospel honky tonk, country rock and more. Just another magical night at Anderson Fair.

The following week, Shammas was kind enough to spend a lunch hour with me, talking about songwriting and how it’s been a part of her life.

Global Perspectives

She was born in Kuwait into a Christian family. Her family left Kuwait while she was very young, and she then spent quite a bit of her childhood all over the globe – London, New York, Moscow, Poland, Hungary, Paris, Nairobi, and California.

As a result of her travels, she has been fluent in 4 languages. At the moment “three and one-tenth – I’ve started studying Spanish”. She has written songs with lyrics in Arabic, English and French.

When she was with her family in Moscow, she helped her father, a Kuwaiti diplomat, by translating Russian.

“I was about 9 or 10 in Moscow. I used to be fluent in Russian. My dad always needed me – he’d say ‘Call Lena – we need to talk to so-and-so’. You know, when you’re a child, you just pick up a language much, much easier.”

Because her father was an ambassador, family travel included a trip to New York City, to put up the Kuwaiti flag at the United Nations. She went to the local international schools where her father was posted and for awhile, a boarding school in Switzerland. She finished her high school years in Kenya, graduating from Nairobi International School and then went to Pepperdine University in California.

A global perspective at an early age. She also started music at an early age.

“I started playing piano when I was six. Just learning scales, do-re-mi, from a Russian lady. And then when I was 12, in boarding school in Switzerland, my roommate had a guitar. She never wanted me to use her guitar, but when she was out of the room, I used to borrow the guitar. And then I asked my parents for a guitar and it started from there.”

Shammas’ guitar playing is deceptively simple and elegantly placed behind her songs. The training in classic music shows, for example, in the song “Don’t Try to Stop Her” on her first CD. The song has a short bridge where the guitar work sounds almost like the beginning of a fugue with counterpoint – very Bach-like.

Another interesting facet is her ability to write gorgeous melodies. Her use of intervals and unexpected notes is beautiful and inventive. Without being derivative, her melodies are reminiscent of some of the best work of the Seals and Croft, Karla Bonoff or Joni Mitchell; for a more recent comparison, perhaps Sarah McLachlan or Sheryl Crow.

Working with a Multi-Platinum Producer

Her first CD is a wonderful and fascinating project, produced by André Cymone. Cymone is a supremely talented musician and producer who played bass in high school bands with Prince (long before Prince became the “Artist formerly known as Prince”) and also played bass on one of Prince’s early albums, “Dirty Mind”.

Then, in best Pete Best fashion, Cymone left just before Prince became a mega-super star. Cymone, however, went on to produce a number of high profile pop/R&B/dance acts in the 80’s, including the multi-platinum Jody Wately and Adam Ant. To have such an experienced and talented producer for a first CD project is a good thing.

“When I first came to Texas, I was getting into music…trying to see where I belonged. A friend of mine from Los Angeles came to town and he heard me singing. He said, ‘Let’s go to LA and see this producer friend of mine.’ We ended up meeting a record producer who apparently had been trying to get in to see André Cymone.”

As luck would have, a meeting was arranged.

“So we go and meet André and right away, André and I just clicked. I just really liked him and he liked my music and through kind of visiting, we found out who he was and right away he said, ‘I’ll do your CD’. His fee is ordinarily humungous, but without a fee, he did my CD.”

Shammas is very modest about her guitar technique and while it’s not laden with fret-blazing gymnastics, it is a unique and subtle fingerstyle, using notes to imply chords and counterpoint.

“While we were doing the CD with André, he said, ‘Instead of flying out, I’ll get a guy to come in and play exactly the notes’. And he brought in four really good guitarists. Then he called me back. ‘You know what, Lena? You need to come out here, I don’t know what you do, maybe it’s too simple, maybe it’s somehow awkward, but you need to come and do it yourself.’ So, I played my own guitar parts for the CD.”

Blending tradition into the future

While the production on her first CD encompasses primarily soft rock and pop, her lyric approach remains true to her Arabic roots.

“I kind of identify my songwriting with Arabic songwriting. Arabic songs are only about love. We don’t write about losing a house or tragedy. It’s only about love. I feel like my songwriting is only about emotions. So it’s part of a tradition.”

Shammas has respect for tradition, and like many successful musicians, hears her music in her head. And perhaps this is why some melodies can be so magic and so elusive – they come from within, from our hearts, our minds, our souls.

“I’ve tried to co-write with a couple of other people, and while we were writing, someone might say, ‘No, but you can’t do that note after that chord.’ And my way is, yes I can, because I hear it.”

Shammas is always working on new tunes. With global perspective, multiple languages, and melodies coming from her heart, head and soul, we can all be looking forward to her next release. It’s a good time to be alive.

Anna Thomas – Matt Gaskins at Cafe Bohemia

John South — Tue, 26 May 2009 13:45:00 +0000

Anna Thomas dazzled the audience at Café Bohemia in Plano, Texas on Saturday, May 23rd, with a selection of sultry jazz and lively pop standards and originals. Her originals highlighted songwriting capabilities that have come a long way in a short time. Thomas is only 13-years old.

Of her originals, Thomas performed three notable songs, “Little Red” (a very sophisticated take-off on Little Red Riding Hood), “My Circle” (about comfort zones) and “Break Apart” (about confidence even one fails). In addition to having a grasp of the technical aspects of songwriting, Thomas demonstrated that she is starting to master her singing. She sang the jazz material with silky tones; the pop and rock standards with light and lively vocals.

Thomas performed alongside Matt Gaskins whose acoustic guitar work was exceptional. Gaskins’ fingers flew across the strings providing an entertaining counterpoint to Thomas’ vocals.

Gaskins is more than an exceptional guitarist. In addition to being a multiple instrumentalist, he is the co-owner (with Kelly Thomas) of the Neighborhood Arts and Music School (NAMS) in Frisco, Texas. The school has an exceptional staff of instructors as well as a state of the art recording studio. At a recent event at the school, it was noted that Gaskins has an wonderful way with the students that allows them to develop as musicians and allows them to have fun at the same time.

The patrons of Café Bohemia had a fun time. Thomas and Gaskins put on a great show. With Thomas demonstrating the level of songwriting and singing that she has at this point in her musical development, we can be sure that there will be much more to come from this talented artist. Photos of the event can be found in the Photo area of the Texas Music Journal, http://texasmusicjournal.com/photos/?shashin_album_key=10.

The Café Bohemia provided an excellent backdrop for Thomas and Gaskins. In fact, Café Bohemia plays an active part in the development of young musicians. Each Friday and Saturday evening, talented musicians take the stage at the Café and entertain the patrons. On the last Saturday of each month, Café Bohemia hosts an open acoustic jam. Many of the artists come together to share musical ideas and to learn from each other. Check out the Café Bohemia at www.cafebohemia.net.

More information about Anna Thomas can be found on her website, www.annathomasmusic.com

More information about Matt Gaskins can be found at: http://ccsongwriters.ning.com/profile/MattGaskins

Information about the Neighborhood Arts and Music School (NAMS) can be found at their website: www.namsfrisco.com

A more detailed analysis of Anna Thomas’ EP Splash of Red will appear shortly in the Texas Music Journal.