Eugene Weekly : Music : 12.09.04
Diamonds & Rust Redux
Iron & Wine's Sam Beam finds simple sublime.
BY VANESSA SALVIA
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| Iron & Wine's Sam Beam |
Quitting his day job wasn't a hard decision for Sam Beam. "People started showing up at shows," says this quiet and unassuming father of two. Losing his low-salary job teaching cinematography at a film school in Miami where he lives wasn't a big loss either.
With a Grizzly Adams appearance, Beam makes tender, acoustic guitar-based music with an occasional banjo overdubbed for spice, centered on religious faith (or lack of it), love and loss. The music and message is folky in a hushed, whispered way that sometimes borders on the too-precious. His earnestness and sincerity in conversation and in musical form reveals that he is blasé about stardom and much more comfortable as Sam Beam, the father and filmmaker. Sub Pop (yes, the label that broke Nirvana has definitely softened) released Iron & Wine's 2004 EP Passing Afternoon and will put out another six-song CD in February. Here are some excerpts from our conversation.
EW: What does the name Iron & Wine mean to you?
Sam Beam: I just thought it was an interesting coupling of words. A good contrast but at the same time ... I don't know.
Where do you get your inspiration as a songwriter?
Lots of different things. It's based on personal experience, or things I've read, or things people have told me. I could go song by song and tell you but generally, it's kind of a broad spectrum really.
Your music is quiet and understated. It's not "busy" at all.
Yeah, for the most part. I'm going to put out a record that's a bit more busy. It's still fairly simple, though. I like to take the simple things and make it as interesting as possible.
Tell me about the next record you have coming out, Woman King.
It's a little bit more playful. It's still very familiar. It's a little bit of an evolution. It's quite a bit more percussive, more playful in its instrumentation. It's quite a bit more, just different instruments. Electric guitar, stuff like that.
Ancient Echoes
SAVAE brings early Latin American and Middle Eastern music to Eugene.
BY BRETT CAMPBELL
'Tis the season of gifts and gratitude, so I want to express my thanks for the surprising profusion of early music this autumn has brought. From the magnificent Sequentia to Fortune's Wheel to Anne Azema and Shira Kammen to our own new local early music group Sospiro, we've received an unprecedented bounty of far-too-rarely heard pre-classical music — ancient sounds that often move modern listeners more than the repertoire of the past couple of centuries. And now we're blessed with the first local performance by one of the world's finest and most intriguing early music bands: the San Antonio Vocal Arts Ensemble.
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| SAVAE |
SAVAE specializes in reconstructing the lost music of earlier eras, particularly music that bridges cultures. The group's astonishing new CD, Ancient Echoes, began around the time of the outbreak of the most recent Palestinian intifada, when the group's founders, early music scholars Christopher and Covita Moroney, encountered a book of mystical translations of prayers in Aramaic, the major Middle Eastern language of two millennia ago. Inspired by the idea that today's warring parties shared so many musical roots, they began attending interfaith meetings of Christians, Jews, and Muslims, studying Aramaic, Hebrew and Babylonian dialects as well as the instruments of the era, and learning how to recreate the multicultural music of Jesus Christ's time.
We may hear some of those Semitic sounds, appropriate to the season, but since SAVAE's Dec. 11 concert at St. Paul's church (1201 Satre St.) coincides with the celebration of the feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe, the program will emphasize material from their equally compelling previous album, Gaudalupe, Virgen de los Indios. Again drawing on an ancient text — deerskin-bound manuscripts discovered in the attic of a Guatemalan church, which contain music written around the time and place of the alleged miraculous appearance of the Virgin Mary in what is now Mexico, 500 years ago — SAVAE reconstructed music that emerged from the often-tragic intermingling of Spanish colonizers and native Americans. The septet accompanied their singing with an assortment of handmade percussion instruments and flutes based on pre-Columbian Aztec drawings. SAVAE's concert promises a fascinating glimpse into ancient history and a rare and powerful musical experience. Wish they'd been around when I lived in San Antonio!
This weekend also brings an equally welcome dose of Baroque music in the Oregon Mozart Players' annual holiday candlelight concert at First Christian Church featuring the lively suites drawn from The Fairy Queen, the great English composer Henry Purcell's semi-operatic adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. The show also boasts some of the greatest concertos of the 18th century, including one from Archangelo Corelli's
pioneering opus 6 set, J.S. Bach's dramatic concerto for violin and oboe BWV 1060 (one of his finest creations), and a third from a set often compared to Bach's Brandenburgs, George Frederick Handel's grand opus 6. It's a superior program in a lovely setting.
Speaking of Handel, we can't escape his seasonal perennial: the mighty oratorio Messiah performed by the Eugene Symphony on Friday, Dec. 10 at the Hult Center. Like The Nutcracker, it's now a tradition immune to critical complaint, but familiarity breeds only contentment with this stirring choral orchestral masterpiece.
The Shedd ends a strong year with a couple of instrumental masters. On Dec. 11, the great Johnny Gimble totes his Western Swing fiddle and mandolin to town. Gimble won his reputation as the fiddler with Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys in the 1950s, became Nashville's number one call session fiddler in the 1970s, then returned home to grace innumerable albums by Texas musicians and play with various groups including Asleep at the Wheel. He's won the "best country fiddler" awards so many times they should just name them after him. And he'll be playing swing, country and pop music from "Stardust" to "Milk Cow Blues" and more at the Shedd.
The Shedd also hosts one of the great contemporary jazz clarinetists, Ken Peplowski. As his previous Oregon Festival of American Music appearances, performances with the likes of Rosemary Clooney and Hank Jones, and acclaimed recordings attest, Peplowski is a worthy inheritor of the mantel left by the great swing clarinetists — Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Woody Herman. Peplowski and the Emerald City Jazz Kings will celebrate that great swing legacy on Friday, Dec. 17.
Basementalism
Venue brings art, rock to all.
BY VANESSA SALVIA
Four UO art students. A basement. Music. This could only be a cool thing. Welcome to Stonehenge, Eugene's newest underground (literally and figuratively) hot spot.
Adam Zeek, 20, and his four roommates opened up the club in the basement of their Eugene house at 2841 Central Blvd. and hosted their first gig at the end of September. Since that first show, Zeek and his housemates, all full-time students, have always had the goal of "connecting with the community."
"It's a way of rubbing elbows and becoming friends with your neighbor," he says. "And just giving a place where people can go as an alternative to bars and feel totally safe and laid back and hopefully enjoy themselves and experience more accessible art and music."
Zeek, who's lived in Eugene just two years, gained experience by hosting community-centered shows at other basement venues in town. "When we moved into Stonehenge, it was the perfect place to do this kind of stuff," he says.
On Thursday, Dec. 9 Stonehenge will host Olympia-based Kickball, one-man band Thanksgiving from Portland, and Eugene's Micah Sykes and Bad Sector. Thanksgiving is "powerful amplified folk music." Sykes is a "bluesy, twangy, soulful guitarist," and Bad Sector is a collaborative group that dissects old Ataris, Gameboys and other electronic elements then rewires them to make dance music. "It's pushing the boundaries of music and technology and it's so wonderful to have somebody actually local doing this kind of groundbreaking stuff. Especially where you can go see it in a basement," Zeek offers with obvious enthusiasm.
He stresses that Stonehenge is all ages and alcohol free. Parking can be a problem so he suggests carpooling or better yet, riding your bike. Cover is a sliding scale, $3- $5 and the musicians get it all. Zeek says that it's important that the venue be affordable and accessible to all. "We want to encourage people from all walks of life to come out," he says.
Food for Change
Music making a difference
Rebekah Johnson of Spun Honey doesn't want to be one of those people who sits on the sidelines. She wants to make a difference and she's doing it the best way she knows how — by rocking out.
This Sunday, she'll perform at Cozmic Pizza from 6-11 pm with Hollis Ann Thompson, the second half of the duo that makes up the core of the Eugene-based band, Spun Honey. Joe Brutzman on guitar, Howard Sichel on bass and Pete "The Beat" Burger on drums will join them for a sweet treat: the rarely assembled, full Spun Honey ensemble.
"Looking back over the years, there have always been things that make us feel powerless and dejected," Johnson said. "But the fact that we can do something like this and make a difference for just one kid or just one family, it just shows you can make a difference."
The event, called Pocket Full of Change, is a fund-raiser for FOOD for Lane County and all you need to get in is some change; the more the better. For every $1 they collect, five pounds of food will be distributed to hungry people in Lane County. That's a lot of fuller bellies, so show up for a great show and pony up.
AX BILLY GRILLE & SPORTS BAR
SA: Carl Woideck
BLACK FOREST
50 E. 11TH ST. 686-6619
FR: Uncle Stumbles, Gel--9:30
SA: The Koozies--9:30
SU: Karaoke with DJ Jared--9:30; Karaoke
MO: Karaoke with DJ Jared--9; Karaoke
WE: Non Dairy Larry--9:30
CAFE PARADISO
115 W. BROADWAY 484-9933
TH: The Weepies--8; Folk Pop
FR: Rear Window--8; Film
SA: Rififi--8; Film
SU: Michael Roe, Terry Taylor, Theo--7:30
WE: Blood Simple--8; movie
CLUB TSUNAMI
2222 CENTENIAL BLVD.
TH: DJ Jared--9; Karaoke
SA: DJ Tekneek--10:30; Hip hop, R & B
COFFEE GROVE COOPERATIVE
510 E. MAIN ST., COTTAGE GR. 942-8847
FR: Fortune Cookie--8; Folk
SA: Chris James and Arial Flutter-7; Alt Rock
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| ROOTSTAND PLAY REGGAE AT COZMIC PIZZA FRIDAY |
COZMIC PIZZA@THE STRAND All Ages
8TH AVE. & CHARNELTON ST. 338-9333
TH: Satoris, The Dead Americans, Sammy S. Good Eye--8:30
FR: Christmas Song Sing-Along--5, Rootstand--8:30; Reggae
SA: KRVM 57th Anniversary Birthday Celebration--7
SU: Pocket Full of Change Benefit for FOOD for Lane County with Spun Honey--8; Folk Rock
TU: Rivers and Tides: Working with Nature; About the Art of Andy Goldsworthy--7; films
COUNTRY SIDE RESTAURANT
4740 MAIN ST. 744-1594
TH: Dance lessons--7
FR: Fenceline
SA: Fenceline
SU: Karaoke--8
MO: Karaoke--8
TU: Karaoke--8
WE: Dance lessons--7
DA HOUZE
915 OAK ST., DOWNSTAIRS 345-7878
MO: Metal Mondays--7
TU: Open mic, all ages--7; Over 21--9
WE: Hip-Hop Show--10
DIABLO'S
959 PEARL ST. 683-3855
TH: Ladies Night--10
FR: Eagle Park Slim, Walker T. Ryan-- 10
SA: House Nite with Vinyl Pimps--10
DOWNTOWN LOUNGE
959 PEARL ST. 343-2346
TH: Open turntables--10
FR: Fuzz, Lucidic-- 10
SA: Ende, Android Ethic, The Dimes--10
SU: Kung Fu Karaoke--10
MO: Mixdown Mondays--10
TU: Default--9
WE: Cheapskates Wednesday--10; Hip-Hop
EMBERS SUPPER CLUB
1811 HWY. 99 N. 688-6564
TH: Billy McCoy--9; Country
FR: Michael Anderson Trio—9; Variety, country
SA: Michael Anderson Trio—9; Variety, country
WE: Billy McCoy—9; Country
GOOD TIMES
375 E. 7TH AVE. 484-7181
TU: Rooster's Blues Jam--8
JO FEDERIGO'S
259 E. 5TH AVE. 343-8488
TH: Jo Fed's All Star Jam Session--9
FR: The Side Project—9
SA: Craig Marguardo Jazz Trio--9
SU: Mark Alan—9; Jazz
MO: Skip Jones Hammond Organ trio—8:30
TU: Barbara Dzuro—8:30; Jazz
WE: Jon Fiori Trio--9; Ladies Night
JOE'S BAR & GRILLE
25 W. 6TH 221-3360
TU: DJ Tekneek and DJ Smuv--10; Hip hop, R & B
JOGGER'S BAR & GRILL
710 WILLAMETTE ST. 343-0224
MO: Working Man's Blues Jam—9
TU: Dancing w/DJ Ty--19; Old School Hip-Hop
WE: Karaoke--5
TH: Karaoke--5
FR: Karaoke--15
SA: Dancing w/DJ Ty--19; Old School Hip-Hop
JOHN HENRY'S
77 W. BROADWAY 342-3358
TH: '80s Night w/Chris, Jenn and John--10
FR: John Henry's 2 Year Anniversary with Mini-KISS--9
SA: Blasphemous Abnormality reunion--10
SU: John Henry's Broadway Revue--10
MO: closed
TU: The Willows--10
WE: DJ Kal El vs DJ Tekneek--10; Hall vs Hip-Hop
THE KEG
4711 W. 11TH AVE. 345-5563
SA: Karaoke and dancing w/DJ Jared--9
LATITUDE 10 CAFE
2757 FRIENDLY 343-3460
SA: Ricardo Cardenas--6
LAVELLE'S WINE BAR & BISTRO
5TH ST. PUBLIC MARKET 338-9875
TH: Skip Jones New Orleans piano--6
FR: Jenny Payne--5
SA: Gus Russell--5
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| SHANE BARTELL, THE SENSATION JUNKIES ARE AT LUCKEY'S ON SATURDAY |
LUCKEY'S CLUB CIGAR
933 OLIVE ST. 687-4643
TH: Dance Card, The Fast Computers--10; Rock
FR: The Ovulators, The Audio Schizophrenic, Launchpad--9:30; Punk
SA: Shane Bartell, Sensation Junkies
TU: The Cubist Cortet--10; Jazz
WE: 11 Eyes--10; Future Rock
LUNA
30 E. BROADWAY 434-5862
WE: Harry Manx--8; Delta & Far East
MAC'S AT THE VET'S
1626 WILLAMETTE ST. 344-8600
TH: Mac and Mo's Blues Jam--9
FR: Bad Samaritans; Rock & Blues
SA: Deb Cleveland and The Vipers; Soul
WE: Christie and McCallum
MONROE STREET CAFE
1193 MONROE ST. 343-0863
FR: Ila Rose and Ryan--7; Acoustic
SA: Carl Marsh and Kimberly Freeman--7; Acoustic
SU: Jeremy Frog and Jordan--7; Acoustic
MO: Poetry Open Mic--7
WE: Open Mic--7
THE O BAR
155 COMMONS WAY 349-0707
TH: Thirsty Thursdays: DJ Johnny--9; Karaoke
TU: DJ Jared--9; Karaoke, dance
OREGON ELECTRIC STATION
27 E. 5TH 485-4444
FR & SA: --8; Jazz
OVERTIME TAVERN
770 S. BERTELSEN 342-5028
TH: Blus Jam--8
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| PATRICK AND GIRI (AND SOMETIMES AXEL) DO THE ACOUSTIC THING AT PEABODY'S ON TUESDAY. |
PEABODY'S
444 E. 3RD AVE. 484-2927
TH: Gordon Kaswell--6; Piano
FR: Peter Giri Project--8; Acoustic
SA: Open Mic Music Jam
TU: Patrick and Giri--7; Acoustic
PERUGINO
767 WILLAMETTE ST. 687-9102
WE: Irish Jam--7; Celtic
PRIME TIME SPORTS BAR
1360 MOHAWK 746-0549
SU: DJ Jared--9:30; Karaoke
QUACKER'S
2105 W. 7TH 485-5925
MO: Karaoke--9
RAMADA INN
225 COBURG 342-5181
FR & SA: Rock It--9:15; Rock
SAM BOND'S GARAGE
407 BLAIR 431-6603
TH: Abandon Ship, Carise Bean Blue--9; Pop Rock
FR: Los Mex Pistoles, Deke Falcon--9:30; Rock
SA: Jasper the Singing Boy with his old man--6; Yeltsin, Cocks in the Henhouse, the Juanita Family--9:30; Rock
SU: Laura Kemp, TR Kelly--8:30; Americana
MO: Jaime Maderas--9; Flamenco
TU: Sam Bonds Bluegrass Jam--9
WE: Artis the Spoonman--9
SAM'S PLACE
825 WILSON ST. 484-4455
FR: Juke Joint Blue--9:30; Jazz, Blues
SA: Scoundrel--9; Classic Rock
SAMURAI DUCK
980 OAK ST. 345-6577
SA: Domesticide, Vexium—10: Metal
STACY'S COVERED BRIDGE
401 E. MAIN ST., COTTAGE GROVE 767-0320
WE: Open Mic Night w/Ron O'Keefe--8:30
SWEETWATER'S
VALLEY RIVER INN 687-0123
FR The Kid Lopez Band--8:30; R&B
SA: The Kid Lopez Band--8:30; R&B
TAP 'N' KEG
1704 MAIN ST., COTTAGE GROVE 942-8713
WE: DJ Jared--9; Karaoke
TAYLOR'S BAR AND GRILL
894 E. 13TH AVE. 554-5320
TH: DJ Smuv--10; Funk, 80s
FR: DJs Smuv & DJ Tekneek--10; Hip hop, R & B
WETLANDS
922 GARFIELD ST. 345-3606
SA: The Wobblies, PB Army, Sledgeback, Busholini, Contra--9; Punk
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| FUCK, BUILT LIKE ALASKA, PANTY LIONS PLAY EXPERIMENTAL MUSIC AT THE WOW HALL THURSDAY |
WOW HALL All Ages
291 W. 8TH AVE. 687-2746
TH: Fuck, Built Like Alaska, Panty Lions--8:30; Experimental
FR: Iron & Wine with Sam Jayne--8:30; Folk Rock
SU: Strung Out, Hasten the Day, Only Crime, A Wilhelm Scream--7:30; Punk
WE: Jonathan Richman, Tommy Larkins--8; Acoustic Rock
YUKON JACK'S
4TH AND W. BRDWY., VENETA 935-1921
FR: Go 211--9; Rock
SA: Go 211--9; Rock
CORVALLIS
INTABA'S KITCHEN All Ages
1115 S. THIRD ST. 754-6958
FR: Yavoshalom,--8; Jewish
SA: Tony Wright, John Meade--8; Appalachian
PLATINUM
126 SW 4TH ST. 738-6996
FR: Salsa night
SA: Karaoke with Patches
