Clavius Productions presents a night of progressive acoustic fingerpicking:
Friday, May 19
611 Florida Ave NW WDC
http://www.claviusproductions.org 9pm, $5 suggested donation
202-360-9739 for info
BYOB!
Mike Tamburo (Pittsburgh, ex-Arco Flute Foundation/Meisha, Music Fellowship)
Keenan Lawler (Louisville, experimental steel guitar, Eclipse)
Nick Schillace (Detroit, American primitive guitar)
Seahorse Staircase (DC guitar/percussion duo)
Mike Tamburo http://www.miketamburo.com/ http://www.myspace.com/miketamburo The acoustic guitar isnâ??t a new instrument to Mike Tamburo. It was his main axe, as it were, in his former outfits, Meisha and Arco Flute Foundation, though
Beating of the Rewound Son, Tamburoâ??s solo debut, leaves his playing rather starkly unadorned by sidemen or accompaniment. Tamburoâ??s no purist, he has no qualms with regard to augmenting his pieces with other instruments, or making use of nontraditional techniques in his playing, but his emergence as a solo artist marks a turn into more folk-tinged territory for the guitarist. Comparisons in his playing can be made to the usual suspects, Fahey, Basho-Junghans, and their ilk, but Tamburo isnâ??t a straight disciple of any of the prevalent deities of acoustic guitardom.
"Adamâ??s Fruit Temptation" not only begins the disc, but itâ??s the albumâ??s highlight. Tamburo weaves expertly some of his best melodic work with subtle atmospherics and washes of delay. Itâ??s a study in well-executed transitions, a mini-suite that, while it contains a good deal of Tamburoâ??s most traditional fare, easily deters boredom or monotony. The tracks that follow sometimes diverge from this path, with Tamburoâ??s more experimental penchants taking hold. "Kremlin Krab" loops and layers piano in a shimmering weave of swimming layers. Minimalism plays a part in Tamburoâ??s work as well, though drones arenâ??t a prominent feature of his work, his use of looping and electronics touches, at times, on a more active repetition. Tamburo proves more than once that heâ??s more than capable at folk forms and melodic constructions, so the inclusion of effects, electronics, keyboard, and other interlopers into his clean unaccompanied tone are surely not there to mask his playing or muddy the waters. The albumâ??s largely successful avoidance of excess sentimentality is owed, in part, to these more varied stretches; theyâ??re also a handy way to inject variety into the disc. Tamburoâ??s clever arrangement of even his most straightforward segments provides for stimulating listening, though
Beating of the Rewound Son is never so heady it dispenses with its emotional heft.
In a musical climate that seems hungry for acoustic guitarists who arenâ??t afraid to veer from the beaten path (see continued reverence of Fahey, the emergence of Basho-Junghans into the American consciousness, and the exaltation with which Sir Richard Bishopâ??s last disc was received), Mike Tamburo, in
Beating of the Rewound Son, has made an intelligent and impressive debut. (Fake Jazz)
Keenan Lawler http://www.bloodteam.com/lawler/news.html http://www.myspace.com/keenanlawler For over a decade, Louisville's R. Keenan Lawler has been quietly evolving a highly personal and exploratory language on the resonator guitar which has been called "cosmic, monolithic and deeply American." His music is informed by sources ranging from Carnatic classical, Charles Ives, Albert Ayler, blues, minimalism, and non-western trance musics. Although primarily a solo performer he is best known for his collaborative work. The
Keyhole II album he recorded with Pelt and metal worker Eric Clark is one of Pelt's most beautiful and memorable recordings, and the recording of his guitar playing in a sewer pipe in Louisville is featured on Matmos'
The Civil War. He has also performed or collaborated with a wide range of musicians including Rhys Chatham, John Butcher, Charalambides, Ignaz Schick, Philip Samartzis, My Morning Jacket, Kevin Drumm, David Watson, and Lukas Ligeti.
Nick Schillace http://www.nickschillace.com http://www.myspace.com/nickschillace Nick Schillace is a Detroit area artist, teacher, and musicologist exploring what it means to be an American musician. In 2002 he completed a graduate thesis on the late guitarist John Fahey, and utilizes Fahey's self-described style of syncopated "American Primitive" fingerstyle guitar as the foundation for his own technique. This style, based on early forms of blues, folk, and old-time music provides the perfect foundation for larger and more expansive musical compositions incorporating a wide range of his own idiosyncratic influences.
"
Box Canyon is a collection of nine pensive and frequently beautifully played songs for acoustic guitar...initially quietly searching before segueing into something more fast-paced and aggressive -- a fitting summation of Schillace's skills and versatility." (Steve Byrne, Detroit Free Press)
Seahorse Staircase An acoustic guitar and percussion duo who play
open-tune drones and psychedelic riffs, influenced by Gnaoua trance music, English acid pastoral, and New York Fluxus experiments.
