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Screensize: 640 x 480 800 x 600 1024 x 768 1280 x 1024 UserName: Password: Format Mode: Basic  Help  Prompt  Format: Font Andale Mono Arial Arial Black Book Antiqua Century Gothic Comic Sans MS Courier New Georgia Impact Lucida Console Script MT Bold Stencil Tahoma Times New Roman Trebuchet MS Verdana   Size 1 2 3 4 5 6   Color Black Red Yellow Pink Green Orange Purple Blue Beige Brown Teal Navy Maroon LimeGreen Message: * HTML is OFF * Forum Code is ON Smilies [quote][i]Originally posted by Crispy Water[/i] [br]This is better than I expected from the local independent press. You can read it online at http://seemagazine.com/Issues/2006/1102/mus2.htm or below: Tales of a raider man Frank Black stays on the solo trail FRANK BLACK Thu, Nov 9, Edmonton Events Centre (WEM), 8 pm, Info: 451-8000 or www.ticketmaster.ca, $30 As frontman for the Pixies, Frank Black enjoyed artistic and creative freedom, earned the respect and admiration of his peers, and basked in critical and commercial success. Ten-plus years down the road, Black has been through the hills and valleys of the music business, and has still managed to maintain a realistic sense of self. As I catch up with the legendary frontman, he is strolling down a busy Toronto street–and he’s in a very strange mood, talking a mile a minute already, peppering his conversation with barbs and non-sequiturs. "I like these cups here, they remind me of something my mom would have bought," he says, stopping in a café for some quiet and a coffee. Truthfully, I’m a little relieved when I hear him order decaf. But the skepticism and distrust that colours our conversation isn’t unfounded. At one point I’m reminded, "...and it’s YOU, people like you–you know, the press–that come in and review an album. ‘Oh, this is good/this is bad.’ Forcing a context on things. But it’s all done through the filter of commerce. You’re just trying to move papers, without really considering how people will be affected." Deliberately coy and misleading with the press on details of a possible new Pixies album, Frank Black has instead chosen to continue to devote himself to his solo work. Making pilgrimages to Nashville, Black enlisted the services of legendary sidemen, including Levon Helm (The Band), Spooner Oldham (Aretha Franklin, Neil Young), and Steve Cropper (Otis Redding, Booker T. & the MG’s) among a host of other notables. The result of the sessions is Fast Man Raider Man, a double-album that stands as a testament to Black’s musical contributions over the years, while exploring a more mature side to his songwriting aspirations. "I just wanted to work with a certain caliber of musician," Black explains. "Basically you show up with a chord chart, and then you make the decisions about tempo and everything else there. Our budget was spent on getting these sessions and players together, so we had to be spontaneous and work with the takes we got. "But Bob Dylan or Van Morrison didn’t beat the life out of songs. A lot of what happens in the studio are gratifying accidents. You can spend the tedious hours making a perfect record, but often you’re just chasing your tail." Recorded over the course of two years, the sessions themselves were about three works worth, with the down time used to carefully select performances and edit the album into its final incarnation. The spontaneity of the sessions results in heartfelt and honest results, as the songs forgo studio sheen in favour of exploration and dynamic interplay between the musicians. "It’s a funny position to be in, just working on these songs like, ‘Oh, get rid of that Al Kooper organ there,’ or ‘lose that Steve Cropper guitar.’ You know, just get ‘em out of there. But these guys are legends for a reason. They don’t care; they work to serve the song. I didn’t want it to turn into this hootenanny with everyone playing all over everything." With plans to release a solo acoustic live record supplemented by hotel room performances and other such rarities, Black also reveals plans for another solo record. "I’ve also got plans to do another record that should feature some interesting collaboration. But no one’s calling up, so maybe it’s not going to happen. We’ll see. Thank you for not bringing up the Pixies by the way, that’s a rarity these days." Paring his live show down to guitar, bass, and drums ("Hey, it was good enough for the Beatles"), Black bristles when asked if it’s a challenge to reinterpret the studio versions of his songs on stage. "Reinterpret? Who cares? I’m not on a campaign out here trying to force the album on people. It sells what it does, I have a loyal following that allows me to do this, and I’m very appreciative of them. I’m just an out-of-touch 41-year-old who was in a band that everyone decided was hip trying to make music and have fun with it." JAMES STEWART Nothing is ever something. [/quote]   Check here to include your profile signature.