Livin’ the blues… Papermoon Gypsys Style
Ain’t it the truth. If you’ve ever been down, sad, miserable or otherwise out of sorts, then you’ve had the blues. Getting rid of the blues can be as simple as listening to the blues, one of the oldest American song forms and musical styles around. The blues has its own language. It’s a musical genre that isn’t stuck in any one location. Chicago.. New Orleans and Austin has had their indigenous artists but its Los Angeles that really has the greatest history of the blues. The late great blues master, Johnny Otis was able to break the “color line” by bringing black musicians to perform weekly on local television station KTLA. It was the first of its kind! Local band, The Record Company (championed first by Rock Bands of L.A.com) nominated for a Grammy for Best Blues Album, 2016..had enormous success of bringing the blues L.A. style all over the world and garnering massive radio airplay. We would be derelict if we didn’t mention the “The Six String Siren”, Diana Rein who won the Best Blues Artist in 2016 by the L.A. Critics (Again, featured by Rock Bands of L.A.com) who played frequently with So. CA. blues band Papermoon Gypsys.
Papermoon Gypsys.. Johnny Otis
The Dodger Club, the Living Room, the Cork, Total Experience, the Cotton Club, Maverick’s Flat, the Pied Piper, the Name of the Game and the Flying Fox are but a few of the clubs that anchored a robust L.A. scene that catered to jazz, blues, R&B and eventually funk. Some are still around. Most are gone. Each was a part of a once-familiar world where spectacular talent coalesced.
Those who come to Los Angeles looking for genuine live blues music will not be disappointed in local blues band, Papermoon Gypsys.. Their ability to have fun with the sound shouldn’t be mistaken for a sense of irony. This isn’t your hipster/baby boomer blues rock; they are as true as you’re going to get! P.G.s recently took home two L.A. Music Critics Awards for “Best Blues Artist” and “Fan Favorite”. The band features the father/daughter team of Kenny “Big Daddy” Williams on guitar and on vocals. Ms. Lexi G.. There’s a sense of spiritual connection within their music. We had the pleasure of interviewing both of them..
Rock Bands of L.A.:
This is directed to the “Big Daddy”.. You’ve played so many styles of music.. including a stretch of heavy metal bands.. you are obviously well versed in the “art of guitar”.. Why do you play the blues? Is that your favorite style to play? Who are some of your “bluesman” mentors?? What’s your favorite guitar to play?
Big Daddy Williams:
I play the blues because it gives me an opportunity to constantly improvise.I also play the blues because it’s harder than people think. To play with feeling and virtuosity is a challenge. I do throw some of the other styles I know, into our live performances. I always loved Jimi Hendrix and use to religiously listen to “Electric Ladyland” every day after school. But I grew up listening to my step-dad playing jazz (he played with Les Brown). I of course listened to all the Kings and the usual blues greats and even got to meet a few like BB King and Bo Diddley and opened for people like Tab Benoit and Bobby Rush. They all gave me great advice that I try to practice. My favorite guitar changes from time to time.They all have great qualities. Lately I’ve been using a hollow body Ibanez that I got from the guitar player in Boz Skaggs and I’ve also been using my 1979 Les Paul custom which has a bridge pickup in it that was made by Seymor Duncan called the “Big Daddy” named after me.
Rock Bands of L.A.com:
What do you think of the “blues” movement here in So. CA.? Why are the blues so popular here?..
Big Daddy Williams:
The Blues in Orange county is kind of mixed bag. Sometimes it can be very cliquish. Meaning, there are the purest who believe that only old styles are acceptable. Then you have people who try to stretch the genre. There has always been a movement in Orange county but it’s really hard to get in the club with the old school guys ruling. We have been lucky to be able to do it our way. We do have a unique act with my daughter and I working together. My songwriting finds it hard to follow the rules and I sometimes get the business for it but I feel like if I’m not true to myself than I’m just lying to the audience. I think our live shows tell the whole story.
The Maestro of Blues… “Big Daddy” Williams
Rock Bands of L.A.com:
Your daughter… Lexi G… When did you realize that she had a dynamite voice? Is it a challenge to separate Lexi… your daughter.. and Lexi the band mate? Is it difficult to criticize her?
Big Daddy Williams:
I always knew she could sing and I would drag her to church to sing with me and even then you could tell she was someone special. She just keep getting better and better. The audience is responding to it more and more. It is sometimes hard to separate the two. We had to work through a couple of problems at first cause she was just learning but she’s becoming a veteran so any advice I give she’ll usually run with it. We are very close so we’ve learned a lot about how to get along.
Rock Bands of L.A.com:
What music were you raised on? Have you had professional voice lessons? The press compares you to Janis Joplin… does that scare you?
Ms. Lexi G:
I was raised on classic rock so bands and people like Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, Steely Dan, Led Zeppelin, Allman Brothers, Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, and Eric Clapton all greatly influence what types of music I like to sing and listen to. I actually haven’t had a ton experience with voice lessons, however, I had a coach for a solid amount of time named Dr. I who really helped me explore my natural voice and taught me how to shape my words and make them more interesting sounding (which is huge for a successful song). Most of my singing talent comes naturally and I always joke if it wasn’t built in, I wouldn’t have it.
Kenny “Big Daddy” Williams and Daughter Lexi G
Rock Bands of L.A.com:
Is it tough to be in the same band as your dad? Is he critical with you? How does that feel? How do you separate yourself from daughter and band mate? Your father has a deep understanding of being a musician.. he’s so hugely talented..
Ms. Lexi G.:
It is absolutely tough to be in a same band as my Dad. Anyone who tells you working with a family member or spouse is easy is trying to sell you something. Family is difficult because love is difficult but completely and utterly worth every single moment of struggle. Kenny and I have a connection that allows us to communicate on a deeper level on stage. When we “get in the pocket” with a song, sometimes it feels like we can read each others minds. It’s an incredible experience that I am fortunate to be able to have and I always feel lucky for it.
Yes, he can be critical of me but so can I of him. We’ve been doing this close to 5 years now and after some struggle we have come to a level of communication that I love. We can be brutally honest with each other and either take it in stride or talk it over. I know when Kenny gives me musical advice it comes from a good place and a place of experience. It can be difficult separating Dad from lead guitar player in our band but as I said we communicate openly so whatever bumps we run into we are able to talk them over and work on them. I would much rather have occasional creative friction than apathetic complacency.
My creative musical influences are all over the place. I would like to say I just have one or even a handful but honestly I listen to a lot of music and whatever I hear that is unique I will try to replicate it or bring something similar to my music. As of late I’ve been listening to more melodic music and trying to mix the techniques I hear in with my deep, bluesy voice. It’s extremely fun for me and it’s like mixing all different kinds of elixirs together and trying to come up with a perfect potion which everyone gets to enjoy.
I’d like to give a big thanks to Kenny “Big Daddy” Williams… Ms. Lexi G.
and of course the great Doug Deutsch
Rod Melancon And The Return of Southern Gothic..
From the swamps of southern Louisiana comes the return of apocalyptic folk rocker Rod Melancon. His new album, “Southern Gothic” reflects the same “Gothic Dixie Fried Trash Rock” from his previous works… except the weight of fighting against the apostate seemed to have only gotten heavier. Its outsider music for the dying transistor radios hidden in the basements at the ends of the world. Melancon’s affinity to the great Southern writer, Larry Brown gives a surreal cast to his lyrics that masks for some very human stories about his growing up in South Louisiana. Again, L.A. producer… Brian Whelan has delivered on his promise of making a great rock and roll album that has a wallup! Let the other music pundits call it what it “ain’t”…Americana. We would prefer calling it rock and roll!… His low Delta howl is the pretty, the pain and the yelp of a man going through resolve. Melancon has evolved into an intriguing artist simply because he follows his own instincts and is committed to the art of storytelling. There’s a Gothic air reflected in the music’s earthy graveyard pall which creeps into his lyrical lexicon.
Writer… Larry Brown… Rod Melancon…
The opening track, “With The Devil” is marked by gritty realism, shocking violence, and diachronic narrative. It evokes morbid imagery as much as being a vehicle for moving heady thoughts. It’s more like a punk rock Leadbelly than Americana.
Just when the tone of the album is set you wouldn’t expect a song that leaps out at you and could’ve of easily been heard on The Rolling Stones’ epic album, “Exile of Main Street” with the track,”Promises” .. There’s frantic boogie woogie piano and frenzied horns in the song, “Red Head”… You’ve never had them all until you’ve had a red head!
Rod Melancon..”Southern Gothic”
“Southern Gothic’s” best moment is the “remake” from his second album, “Different Man”. A tribute to those who’ve served in the armed forces and upon there return have been neglected by our country ..“Different Man” Louisiana’s own dark star and Orpheus of the underground, Rod Melancon – the fool in your tarot deck – at times trippin’ over his own tombstone reaching into the atmosphere and pulling spirits from the air. An alchemy of all roots music, doom metal with glam-punk poetry. It sounds like voodoo, feels like redemption and puts off heat like a burning oil rig. In the service of tears and the ghost of all sorrows…say goodnight to the world and feel the fire burning at the intersection of perfection and decadence.
Rock Bands of L.A. com had the chance to connect with Melancon about Southern Gothic..
Rock Bands of L.A. com:
What makes your music so engaging is that it touches the hearts of everyone. The stories of your family are relatable…… “Parish Lines” is a fave album of mine and I loved “Different Man”… Why did you “re-record” it? Why mess with a “Picasso”?.. My interpretation of the song is its about a man who served in the Mid-East war and when he returned the world seemed different to him… America turned its back on him and he became depressed… isolated … lonely..
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Rod Melancon:
The Confessions of Mon Laferte
There’s little known here in America regarding the Latina Diva…. Mon Laferte . Yet, her confessions are embedded within tormentous love songs. Each tune is like a mini “novella” unraveling with stories of amorous distrust and deceit.
Ms. Laferte was born in 1983 in the quiet village of Viña del Mar, Chile. Her musical tastes ranges from Led Zeppelin to the late Juan Gabriel.. she’s most like the late legendary singers Selena and Amy Winehouse in body and soul. Laferte studied music at a early age and at the age of 13 her parents had stepped up and sent her to a Chilean music conservatory where she developed her songwriting skills.
In 2003 Laferte released her first album in Chile using her given name Monserrat Bustamante.. It was met with great raves but her singing career hit a road block in 2009 when she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. As horrific as this news was she was cured with minimal evasive treatment. Instead, opted for homeopathic recovery and became a strict vegan. Fearing that her career was stagnating she moved to Mexico City and took on the name… Mon Laferte.. She joined up with an all girl heavy metal …Mystica Girls and all looked good for her career but her heart was really into indigenous Tejano sounds that she had grown up listening to.
Overnight her life changed….. the music of Mon Laferte won the hearts of all Latin speaking countries garnering Youtube plays in the 1oo’s millions!…The current single, “Amárrame” is a duet with Colombian rock superstar , Juanes which is viral throughout the world.. and she’s embarking on her first sold out tour of America……
MIND MELD And Vincebus Eruptum
“Retromania” is the rife of western society and it can be detected so effortlessly by local L.A. Psyche band MIND MELD. Their music has the aura of the era gone past when music was analog. It’s funny how modern technology tries to create something that sounds old. Even with all the music software that’s available MIND MELD opts to manipulate their sound via plugins so to make recordings sound like old tapes, broken tubes, crackling amps, old plate reverb and so on. This return to splendor is what makes Mind Meld so much more compelling. When listening to their new self-titled album they go beyond the “lazy catch-all” term of Psyche rock by not playing within the rule book and going deep inside their heads. MIND MELD is a mindset as much at it is a sound… its a transcendent state of mind. Their antecedents are Hawkwind, Blue Cheer,Velvet Underground and yes even Black Sabbath..We just love.. “The Viper” and “The Lonely”.
MIND MELD
They emphasize the cryptic margins of “avant-rock” by incorporating evanescent textures over an immutable baseline. They produce a ‘heavy’ metallic ambiance that contradicts the sing-song filigree of most Los Angeles rock bands. In an increasingly atomized world MIND MELD is a passport, a kindred connection that you can have with people on the other side of the planet of sorts. Their music is less a conduit to the past and more of a thorough fare for the future.
The “trinity” of MIND MELD is made of Bert Hoover on guitar, Erik Lake on bass and Ms. Liz Tooley on drums. We were lucky enough to interview Ms. Tooley…
Rock Bands of L.A..com:
Are you a native of Los Angeles? Where are Bert and Eric from? I’ve listened to your newly released album and I think it’s really good. Was this a tough album to make? At times, you cross into a “heavy metal” sound but at the end of the day there’s a “pop” sensibility… How did the recording process work? Who produced it?
Ms. Tooley:
I was born in Arkansas and grew up in Missouri. Bert is from El Segundo and Erik is from Venice so they are basically L.A.. The album was a little tough to make. We recorded it at ABC Studios, which for the most part is a practice space. But this space owned by Andrew Schubert was built out to be a studio. I’d say for me, recording is always difficult because it’s hard because we record everything live to tape. It’s exciting that way and I love having the whole band capture that 1-2-3-go feeling, but it’s tough as a drummer to keep exact time in that type of situation. And the more takes you do the more you psyche yourself out. The room sounded good, Andrew was a great engineer and my band mates are amazing and patient so we were able to knock this recording out in only 3 days. As for producing, we did everything ourselves with a little help from my guy, Lance Barresi. It was tough squeezing it all into just a few days, but we were really happy with the results!
MIND MELD and Former President Obama showing love to Captain Beefheart
Rock Bands of L.A. com:
What was the songwriting process like? I believe that women in psyche have become very popular of late. Is being a women in a rock band make you feel more empowered? Do you feel you have something to prove because you are a woman?
Ms. Liz Tooley:
First off, I always bring it up (and maybe I shouldn’t), but MIND MELD is actually the way we spell the band name. The way it looks, in all capital letters, makes my brain happy. Secondly, I don’t sing ANY of the songs. It’s all Bert. Thirdly, I really dislike talking about gender when it comes to music. I dream of a day when someone just says, “Hey, I really enjoyed your set,” verses “Hey! Chick drummer, cool!” In the end it’s all a compliment I guess, I just don’t like to think about my vagina all the time. I just want to play the drums and have a good time with my bandmates.
Rock Bands of L.A.com:
It’s funny how we use modern technology to create something that sounds old. Even with music software you get options to manipulate your sound via plugins to make it sound like old tapes, broken tubes, crackling amps, old plate reverb and so on. This is really happening now and the Trinity of MIND MELD creates this sound so masterfully. You just might be making e leaps into the sonic unknown! What is your roadmap for the future? Touring?
Ms. L.T:
We recorded everything analog and with vintage equipment. The sound is old because we use vintage gear and a pre-Pro Tools way of recording music. Every crackle or tape hiss you here is because that’s how it was made. Recording live to tape gives you warts and all and that feels more authentic to us. It’s actually becoming more and more common amongst our peers. Tons of bands record to analog tape and play vintage amps, etc. these days. It’s just what you do if you know what your doing. We all want the best sound possible and for many of us that’s the vintage way. We plan to continue making records for as long the tunes keep coming. Looking forward to writing and recording our next album very soon!
RBOLA.com:
Do you get tired of people associating Psyche with drugs? I think the music has to stand on its own. Is “Psyche” becoming a pop-music genre to dance to like EDM?
Ms. L.T.:
I feel like the hardest drug ever mentioned these days is psychedelics which I’m totally fine with. Everyone can just do what they need do to make the most of their night. It’s not really our place to comment as to whether any genre should be drug free. All I would say is anything heavier and things can sometimes get dark, but luckily we don’t deal with that many issues due to drug use. We all like to party a bit and don’t seem the harm in a little controlled chaos. For your second question, I’d just say no. I really don’t see that at all. People might head bang a little or stage dive, but I would never compare the scene with EDM…
RBOL.A.com:
Tell me about Permanent Records? It’s a store and a record company???
Ms. L.T.:
Yes, it’s both. My boyfriend and I started our first shop in Chicago over 10 years ago. We later would move out to L.A. to start our second store in Highland Park and now have a third in Echo Park, right next to The Echo. The label happened a year after we opened the Chicago store. We had so many friends in great bands that weren’t getting records pressed and we saw a need in the community for a small DIY label. It’s still a really boutique label, but it’s something we take very seriously. It’s quite a things to help bring a record into the world! Or in some cases, reintroduce one that’s been away for a bit. We’re very happy to be doing what were doing at Permanent Records.
Clockwise L.A. Psyche Bands..The Seeds..The Leaves….The Standells.. The Electric Prunes
Los Angeles has been the vortex of Psyche rock dating back to the mid and late 60’s…The Seeds, The Leaves, The Electric Prunes and The Standells. The music seemed all so abrupt. It was L.A.’s answer to the British Invasion when the world went from monochrome to psychedelic. MIND MELD’s debut album creates a similar transcendent state of mind that is longing for an outwardly connection much like the 60’s when our world was complicated by war, politics, prejudice and the ignorance of not saving our planet.MIND MELD’s debut is worthy of a good listen..
I would like to thank Ms. Tooley for her thoughtful answers and patience….
Pink Hotel In Modern Times
Bath, England is an extraordinary place in so many ways. “Bathonians” are dedicated to live life to its fullest with its extraordinary architecture, prolific writers/artists and musicians….Tears for Fears, Peter Gabriel and Midge Ure all natives of Bath. But now there’s a new band that is taking notice.. “Pink Hotel” and they are backed by their charismatic singer and guitarist, Samuel Gotley. His songs are galvanized by truth. Much like the connect between Bruce Springsteen and the plight of the working class. His stories are relatable and offer stories about the misfortune.
There’s a lot about satire and context in this age of muddled, phony narratives and hyper-partisan group thoughts. Perhaps fun rock music is still being made but it isn’t being played at my local terrestrial radio stations; so I’m not aware of it. It looks like pretentiousness has taken over rock music. The atonal sounds of EDM has seemed to destroy the brain cells of our young! If a song doesn’t have a serious meaning, it has no right to exist. Rock fans decry the death of “real music.” This is a turn off to many people who want music to serve different purposes. Sometimes, it should be fun; and perhaps enlightening. Sometimes, it should be serious. Sometimes it should be about things we can relate to whether that’s falling in love or a painful breakup. Sometimes it can deal with social issues. This is what music is supposed to do..take you from here to there . Thank goodness for Pink Hotel!
lWith radio diversifying, the moment is ripe for guitar driven rock to come back. Someone needs to come along who makes guitar driven rock that can appeal to pop audiences, as well as rock. Maybe the rock purists won’t like the form it takes because it doesn’t sound exactly like 60’s and 70’s corporate rock. Like me, there are those musical diatribes who consider a group like Linkin Park inauthentic; because they mix rock and metal with rap and hip hop. Even country music has morphed into “Bro” Country with its beats festooned with lyrics that talk about getting drunk, pick-up trucks and getting dumped by a girlfriend. But that shouldn’t matter. Music has always evolved and changed and it always will. Great music has always incorporated influences from other genres. I would prefer to see rock change and become more popular rather than fall into the abyss of Classic Rock.
Much of this dilemma is due to the state of rock music here in America. What’s happening now are American bands going across the pond to England and Europe to break(Rival Sons). Moreover, there are Brit bands that sound more “American” than American bands (The Temperance Movement). Pink Hotel have recently released an almost perfect E.P. with 7 tracks… I guess if they put on one more song I’d have to call it an album. We first became familiar with Samuel Gotley from his earlier band Carousels & Limousines. Pink Hotel doesn’t pick up where C&L’s left off but it is encouragingly close. I’ve met Gotley twice and he’s seriously thoughtful about his music… But this stringent conduct is what can make a rock band great; along with perseverance, drive and a tremendous work ethos.
I was fortunate to get Sam Gotley to do an interview…
Rock Bands of L.A. com:
We first met when you were with Carousels and Limousines. It was a phenomenal album to say the least… Now there’s Pink Hotel… Does C&L not exist anymore? How would you say that Pink Hotel’s “sound” differs from C&L? Who produced Pink Hote?
Sam Gotley:
When a couple of the members left the band the rest of us decided to do some writing and what we ended up with didn’t feel like a Carousels record so we decided to do something new. It was produced by Dom Bailey at his studio “9 volt leap studios” just outside Bath where we are from and he also played drums on the record.
Rock Bands of L.A. com:
I know you and your wife have a “side” project which has a more “soulful” spin..How do you keep if all different and fresh.. I did love your take on “Beast of Burden”..
Sam Gotley:
Yes, Broken Bones Matilda is a collaboration with one of the guys who was in Carousels, my wife and two other guys and we’ve gone for a more as you say soulful and country/bluesy vibe. It’s really fun to do something like that where I can concentrate more on guitar and harmonies. It’s also more acoustic and vocal based so it’s nice to try a different approach where the songwriting is concerned.
RBOL.A.com:
“Neon Clouds” which is probably my fave song… but they are all great..It’s theme hits me like a Springteen song.. the passion of a young couple being together.. I may be way off but does it follow a personal experience?
S.G.:
I think I wrote that one after coming back from tour in America the first time, we toured from Chicago to LA and saw a lot of desert and mountains. It’s part road trip part young love story and you are spot on with the Springsteen reference…the Boss is always in there somewhere!
RBOLA.com
The song, “Modern Times”…a great video..In an age of muddled, phony narratives and hyper-partisan groups you eschew from lyrical cliche’s and examine a relationship in a very sober way… making it real..
S.G.:
Thank you! With Modern Times we wanted to give a sense of who we are nowadays as a society and where we might end up. No one seems satisfied with what they have and there is a feeling that everyone wants more which might eventually be our downfall. A boy & a girl meet in a dystopian city and fall for each other, the overall theme being Love triumphing over evil with a little politics thrown in for good measure!
Any Plans to tour America??:
We are working on getting some dates together so hopefully sometime late 2017 we will be over in the States.
I want to thank both Sam and Sarah Gotley for their time and friendship
Vanilla Fudge — –You Keep Me Hangin’ On
Sixties psyche-soul band Vanilla Fudge are rarely remembered these days. They were a successful and important band once upon a time.The music on their debut album has a “dated” feel and considering there’s not a single original composition, their legacy still has a lotta’ wallop. What made Vanilla Fudge so intriguing was how they and producer, Shadow Morton mutated hit songs by stretching the tempo to slow motion so exquisite that even an overexposed song by the Supremes, “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” sounded fresh on the radio.
Whatever song they covered the genetic recombination made it sound completely alien to it’s original. It’s as if they “stole” it and made it their own! They were a punk version of Emerson, Late and Palmer! There should have been a bigger market for them on FM radio. Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple and Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin claimed that Vanilla Fudge were the “proto-type” of heavy metal!.
Originally calling themselves the Pigeons they got signed by Ahmet Ertegun of Atlantic Records in order to bolster the label’s commitment in rock and roll by starting the new spin-off label.. Atco Records… Their first artists were Buffalo Springfield, Iron Butterfly and Vanilla Fudge. But there was one drawback, however: Atlantic didn’t want to sign “The Pigeons”…They didn’t like that name and told their manager a named change was a deal breaker! They tried to think endlessly to come up with a new name but were getting nowhere until they had a gig in Long Island. While there they started talking to a chick named Dee Dee who worked in the production office. She inadvertently mentioned how her grandfather used to call her Vanilla Fudge and mentioned.. ‘ Hey, maybe you guys should call yourselves that—you’re like white soul music’. It twas” divine intervention They ran it by their manager, Phil Basile. He liked it and told Atlantic.. So Vanilla Fudge it was.
.. Vanilla Fudge and Led Zeppelin
The key was the thudding rhythm section of Carmine Appice and bassist Tim Bogert. But it twas’ Mark Stein’s eerie Hammond B3 organ and surprisingly soulful vocals that were the essential ingredients of Vanilla Fudge’s greatness. Guitarist, Vince Martell had this hazy yet heavy tone that fit the band’s wall of sound. They weren’t shy about being “too loud” with their wall of Marshall Amps. Jeff Beck at times would sit in on many of their live gigs. Their strengths were never more apparent than on their first and best album, which of course was highlighted by their dramatic, explosive recasting of The Supremes’ “You Keep Me Hanging On” which was a top 10 hit and an utter classic. I’d argue that the whole album is a minor classic, and certainly anybody who likes psychedelic music and soulful hard rock and doesn’t mind super-slow songs that often stretch out past 5-minutes should be willing to give this album a try.
Julian Taylor Band And Desert Star
Singer/songwriter/guitarist, Julian Taylor is apt to become the next music star emerging from “The Dot… The Screwface capital”- (as defined in urban etymology by Canadian rapper MC Theology 3 back in the year 2000)Toronto. Taylor is of West Indian / Native Canadian indigeneity and was raised in Toronto. The music scene of Toronto has become the hotbed for so much contemporary urban music in the last few years. To some its worn with pride and for others it’s considered a damn shame. “Torontonians” have a history for being tough on musicians trying to make it in their city. For many years, Canadian urban artists would have to run to the States or Britain for recognition and a recoding contract…until now. Could it be that the Canadian metropolis is finally getting an identity and respect it deserves? Toronto’s global migration has given into a vast ethnic culture; in particular the “Riddim” music influence. The long Winters has created a vibrant and stylistic sound natural to Toronto within the club scene. Somehow, Toronto has found its self-awareness.
Julian Taylor
The Julian Taylor Band has gone through many morph-isms which began in 2010 with rotating band members to the present…this year with the release of his double album titled “Desert Star”. While growing up in Toronto, music was always around his life. Taylor writes the truth of urban malaise and offers courage in a neighborhood love song. The harsh reality in his voice and phrasing is like yesterday, today, and tomorrow — timeless in the same way that loneliness, no money, and troubles find each other. Never quitting for a moment offering personal inspiration. His songs vacillate at times between teen lust and a Southern baptism. Relying on nostalgia is one thing but a true artist finds a way to interject themselves into their music. While Taylor pays homage to the spirits of Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye with a sound that is the pinnacle of a bright artist transmitting a dated sound and bringing it straight forward into the 21st century where the final result is ultimately fresh and current. He straddles the hazy line between blues and soul while his stinging lyrics are in debt to the masters of 60’s Memphis/Stax era. Open ears and an open mind are the essence of Julian Taylor’s approach to writing, performing and recording.
Taylor’s world is emotionally fraught. Desert Star is a plea for a partnership under stress with seductive love songs and a call for social justice. A future master at work. Pilgrims of Funk, soul and roll as they’ve been called.
We had the pleasure of interviewing Julian who gave us tremendous insight behind his music. His perspective on Toronto and Canadian music’s heritage:
His musical chakras started when he was a young lad at age 10 and mentions his drummer and long time friend Jeremy Elliott.
Taylor:
Growing up I listened to a lot of Motown and Stax records. My mom and her late sister Marianne were go go dancers on that very strip that I mention before. They loved that music and because my Grandmother was also a dancer and fashion designer they were exposed to a lot of the happenings in the city. My father plays classical piano and so I listened to a lot of Bach, Chopin, etc. I took piano lessons at a very young age. I didn’t really tune into rock and roll until I was a bit older. I started going to overnight camp around the age of ten which is where I fell in love with The Beatles and Paul Simon and bands of that ilk. It was hard to carry a piano to a campfire so I took up the guitar and immerse myself in the rich tradition of classic rock. When it was time for high school hip hop took over and I still love old school hip hop to this day. I thought Tupac was a genius. Jazz is also a heavy influence on me. My grandfather loved it and forced me to listen to it until I got it. I’m glad he did because it’s timeless music and truly one of the most original American art forms. Yes… Jeremy is a beast and one of the most versatile musicians I know. He too plays the piano.
Your band has been referred to as Pilgrims of Funk, Soul and Roll.. I find this statement is a “marquee” reference because it’s a general overview of your music. Your new album, “Desert Star” is a double album. Some people would think its crazy but in truth there’s so many textures that it actually works…”Set Me Free” is a Memphis/Stax l throwback. “The Belly of the Underman” detects reggae and Riddim . “In My Life” almost has a “Led Zeppelinesque” rock and roll vibe and “Chemical Low”. “Chemical Low” sings like a great seductive Marvin Gave song from the Motown era.. You’re all over the place but I think that’s the essence of who you are as a songwriter…
Taylor:
