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BAND IPEAK
by MAH THOMPSON
SOLAR
Jonathan Cooper—piano
Michael Gray—bass
Jamie Shepard—drums
Chad Garrett—vocals, guitar
Recently formed Athens progressive pop-rock
quartet Solar had its genesis in Atlanta's Grout, a
progressive-fusion trio that had played around
the area for a couple of years. Taking a short
hiatus, the members of Grout decided they
wanted to do something a little differently musi
cally and move away from the whole fusion
thing.
Taking its history and mixing it with the
sounds of the likes of Sting, XTC and Rush, Solar
plays a song-oriented, mid-tempo blend of pop-
rock that recalls the more adventuresome efforts
of Joni Mitchell or Jeff Buckley. The band's
music is essentially focused on lyrics and song
structure, but with enough room for the band
members to flex their considerable chops. Solar
is currently working on a self-titled EP which it
hopes to have out the first of the year. Shepard
speaks:
What's the fundamental difference between
Grout and Solar?
"Grout was kind of fusion and experimental,
and this the other end of that spectrum. What's
interesting to me is everyone can play their
instruments, I mean really play. When they come
together, you got all the different elements
affecting the music which gives it the dimen
sions it has."
With only a few gigs under the band's collec
tive belt, where do you see the live show
going?
"We're working out the quirks and working
on a show. We're just working on putting on a
good show for people in all areas. It's not hard
rock and loud as fuck, but it's also not just
three-chord pop rock. It's cerebral."
So why should someone bother to see Solar?
"Not to be biased about it, but it's different
enough from anything else in town that people
should come check it out. I don't see to many
bands with cur instrumentation, and I think
people will dig it if they'd just lend us an ear."
Solar plays Tasty World on Thursday, August 10
with Chubby and Mike Ul.
JULIE POWELL TRIO
Julie Powell—acoustic guitar, vocals
Erik Hinds—"h'apreggione", fretless 7-string
guitar
Colin Bragg—electric guitar
Recently graduating from the University of
Georgia with a Master's Degree in Musical
Composition, singer-songwriter Julie Powell says
that writing songs is as valid an art form as
painting, sculpting or poetry. To her, art is all
about an individual's voice and perception of the
subject, and is dependent on interaction with
the audience. Instead of concentrating on
recording and touring, Powell and her trio con
centrate on what she
calls "playing for the
people," making that
connection through
art.
The current incar
nation of the trio,
featuring guitarists
Colin Bragg and Erik
Hinds (his "h'apreg
gione" is a custom-
made instrument
that combines cello,
double bass, guitar
and sitar), is more
song-oriented than the group's previous efforts.
Heavily inspired by Joni Mitchell, Powell says
the band plays folk-tinged music with an
emphasis on lyrics, yet with a free rhythmic
touch. The end result is something of a folk-jazz
fusion with Powell's lyrics at the forefront.
Powell speaks:
You called what you do "playing for the
people." What's that mean, exactly?
"To me, any art—certainly performance art—
is all about connecting with an audience. It
really doesn't exist without another person. The
only reason I do this is because of the reactions
you get in the moment. Otherwise, it's like a
conversation with yourself."
How would you explain that concept to
someone who doesn't see music as a legiti
mate art form like painting or poetry?
"1 ree every genre as an art form. You need
to look at each individual artist and where their
ability is. With Monet, it's light; he painted with
light and shadow. With someone like Bob Dylan,
he said things in the most profound way that
have been said a million times. Studying art in
school, you tend to be told only certain things
are art and artists are the elite. I've come to
believe it's a much more personal thing than
that and it's about each person's individual
voice. With a lot cf the music that's on pop radio
now, it's not neces
sarily bad; it's just
interchangeable. For
me, what I do, it's
about being honest."
How do you see
yourself in the
cannon of folks like
Bob Dylan, Joni
Mitchell or Patti
Smith?
"Ideally, I would
like to be in that line
in that I keep it an
art. The whole industry idea, I would like to
never fall into that trap of making a product to
be sold. Ideally, I'd like to pick up where Joni
Mitchell left off from the whole Jaco Pastorius
period and sav someone got what she was doing
there.”
How does jazz factor into all of this?
"I've been involved in jazz as it is, and I've
been respectful of it. To me musically, it's the
equivalent of talking; it's all about being in the
moment, the freedom of interaction with the
other musicians."
The Julie Powell Trio ploys the Flicker Theatre on
Thursday, August 10 at 8:30 p.m.
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