ETTORE SALATI
This month's Artist in Spotlight is Ettore Salati from Italy. Ettore is a sought after session guitarist by many prog musicians not just in Italy but all around the world. He started playing piano at a very young age (mostly classical music) but when he became a teenager and discovered the world of Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Genesis and 70's rock in general, he was immediately fascinated by guitar... more
KAT EPPLE (Emerald Web)
KAT EPPLE, flautist and composer, is our interview guest this month. She has won 8 Emmy awards, was nominated for a Grammy and she has released 18 albums internationally. Most of you know her as the other half of the legendary ambient/new age duo EMERALD WEB. She has a very large collection (over 200) of flutes that she gathered from all around the world during her travels. Kat composes original New Age/Jazz/World/orchestral music and has produced film scores and television soundtracks for National Geographic, Nova, CNN, Carl Sagan, Another World, The Travel Channel, Turner Broadcasting System, History Channel, HGN, The Guiding Light, PBS, and NASA among others, and was Music Director for the feature-length film, Captiva Island. She also owns a record company and works on both sides of the music industry as a musician and as a business woman... more
New Grass Revival / On The Boulevard
New Grass Revival are one of the pioneers of progressive bluegrass. Formed in 1971 by Sam Bush (mandolin/vocals), Curtis Burch (guitar), Ebo Walker (bass) and Courtney Johnson (banjo), they immediately got the attention from the industry both in a good and bad way. First of all, they were often told that their music was not bluegrass, and they knew it wasn’t “bluegrass” in its traditional sense, and it wasn’t what they were trying to achieve anyways. They were blending rock, soul and blues rhythms with the traditional bluegrass music. They were not wearing suites, but instead they had a more casual style along with long hair... more
Interview with GAYLE ELLETT OF DJAM KARET by Hande BURDG
We here at TheProgFiles are very excited to bring a recent interview we had with Gayle Ellett of Djam Karet to our readers. Djam Karet has been in the music scene for over 20 years with more than 15 albums. Although they don't really call their music progressive, they are categorized by many as a band that breathed new life into progressive rock. They are often compared to King Crimson, Pink Floyd or Porcupine Tree. Djam Karet (pronounced jam care-ray) is an Indonesian word that means elastic time. The band was founded in 1984 by guitarists Gayle Ellett and Mike Henderson, bassist Henry J. Osborne, and drummer Chuck Oken, Jr. The current members are: Gayle Ellett, Mike Henderson, Aaron Kenyon, Chuck Oken, Jr, & Henry Osborne. To get more information about this California based band you can visit their website at: www.djamkaret.com
TPF: People often describe you as "America's greatest undiscovered band". You have been around for over 20 years now and have a unique approach to progressive rock. How do you describe your music?
GE: I would say we are a totally self-indulgent band, and have been ever since the day we formed, many years ago. I say that proudly, and with a smile on my face, because our group, Djam Karet has never had high expectations of commercial success, which makes sense when you play instrumental songs that are 10 minutes long, and have no vocals! Yet at the same time, we hope to some day become "The peer of our idols". Not to sound like them, but to maybe become as good as the gods we look up to. This is really our over-reaching approach to music. Have fun, Try hard! We are not really trying to even be a "Progressive Band", though we do not mind the reference. Basically we do whatever we damn well want to do! Some of our CDs are Electronic, some are a bit Hard Rock, some have Fusion and progressive elements. We are freed from any single genre. And Djam Karet is the perfect group for that task. We have fun. If we like it, and have made a recording that we are proud of, then we've achieved our goals. If people like it… great. If not, no problem. But if enough people DO like it, then we'll have enough money to make another mass—produced CD. If no one likes what we do, then we'll still keep on making recorded music… we just would not release any of it, because making 1,000 CDs costs a fair amount of money. It's our fans who have allowed us to move forward, with mass-produced CDs for sale.
TPF: Your music contains elements of a lot of different genres like rock, new age, electronic, etc. Is this combination of genres a reflection of the band members' different musical backgrounds?
GE: Our group is a reflection of who we are, and what music styles we like. And we all do like a very wide variety of music. But we also all have very similar tastes. As I said, it is not an attempt to become popular. So we are freed to make "Art Music"… music as an art-form. The difference between "art" and "craft" is hard to see, yet it is VERY important! Music made to sell, is a craft. If it fails to sell, the project has failed. Music made as art, is made in pursuit of artist's goals, such as: expanding your world and learning about yourself, expressing unique visions, etc. We have been hugely successful in making music as art. We've been a total flop in making music as a sellable craft. We are quite happy with our situation! So, even though the first two years we were formed, ALL of our rehearsals and gigs were totally improvised… we later added in more structure, so that we could adequately use some new instruments and techniques, like taped-field recordings, and synthesizers and samplers. Our group is free to do whatever we want to. And we do! It's the best situation a musician could find himself in. Our group is an accurate reflection of who we are, and the music we like. I think that's the main reason we have received so many totally positive reviews in huge magazines like ROLLING STONE and BILLBOARD. Those reviewers can somehow tell that we have a vision and drive that is unique. It's our non-commercial attitude, that has helped us earn so much commercial success and praise. It's all kinda weird and beautiful, when you think about it!
TPF: In the past 3 decades progressive rock has changed a lot (not always in a positive direction as far as the originality of the musicians goes). What are your thoughts about the progressive rock today? Or where do you see it?
GE: I don't really understand where Progressive Rock music is going. And I say that because so many of today's Progressive groups seem to be totally absorbed in trying to become commercial success, not artist visionaries. I believe that many of today's prog groups would be better off giving up on becoming famous, and instead they should focus on art. Yes, the Beatles made millions of dollars making music that was BOTH art and Pop. But that group was very rare and unusual, and the times have changed! Now, the big record companies only want mega-hits. If you are not now currently a top-shelf model or actor (Beyonce or Jamie Fox), you have no chance in hell of making it huge as a "musician". Now, it's all about being an "entertainer", not being a musician. And the guys in my group would make you puke… if you saw us in bathing suits!! So we know better then to pursue some lame commercial dream. It is beyond our abilities. We're too old and ugly! As a side-note, I do make commercial music for clients, and when I do, I don't make it artsy-fartsy. I just make it exactly how the client wants it, so he'll be happy and hire me again! I am very fortunate to be able to keep these worlds separate, the art and craft sides of music. For me, I don't blend them.
TPF: I will honestly tell you that I am still "learning" your music. To explain why I used the word "learn" I will give you this example: If someone looks at a Picasso painting and says "Wow! This is beautiful!" it would only be their first impression about the painting. However, one can make better sense out of Picasso's art once they know what Cubism is all about. Your music definitely creates a first impression for people to want to know more about it. I believe that's what makes "art", art. But not necessarily everything that is "different" can be described as art. Musically speaking, what are your thoughts about it? What makes a certain type of music art, or craft?
GE: It's what I was saying before, if you can realize your dreams by making a CD that you are proud of, then you are on the path to making "art". If making money off your music is your goal, then you are making "commerce" or a craft, and that is fine, but "commerce" is NOT art. If you make art, and you've succeeded in making it well, then you've achieved your goals, even if it does not sell well. But if you are making a commercial product and it does not sell well… then you have totally failed at everything. That's why I believe that you are more likely to succeed pursuing the former path, then the latter.
TPF: You have over 20 songs in the movie "Black Dahlia" by Ramzi Abed. Are these all brand new songs? Can you tell us more about how you got involved with this project?
GE: Ramzi owed us a ton of money from a drug deal gone bad, and I told him that if he didn't use our music in his new film, we would kill him! Just Kidding! Actually, he went to the same college as Chuck and I did (Pitzer College), and he contacted us out of the blue. He was already a huge fan of our music, so he found us and asked if we would like to work on his new film. Basically, he used pre-existing tracks from our earlier CDs, and he also sometimes re-combined the music tracks on top of each other to make new hybrid-tracks. So none of the music on that film was created specially for him. His budget was too low. But we are very happy to be involved with his film. We'd like to work with him more in the future.
TPF: What is Ukab Maerd? How was it created? Can you describe their music and their differences and similarities with Djam Karet?
GE: Ukab Maerd is really Chuck Oken, jr's project. It stems from his huge passion for electronic music, which we all also share. He asked me if I wanted to join him for some gigs and a future CD, and I told him I would love to. I greatly love electronic music. I have a few cool old analog synths, and Chuck has about 40 GREAT classic synths at his studios, and at his store:www.AnalogueHaven.com so we are well situated to make this type of music. We are planning on releasing a CD of Ukab Maerd music maybe sometime later this year. Right now, we only have a few hours of live recordings, later on we'll begin making some high-quality studio recordings for a CD. You can hear about 25 minutes of some of our live shows, digitally recorded, (taped at gigs at Pitzer College, and Chuck's synth store at: www.myspace.com/UkabMaerd
TPF: The music industry today seems to mostly care about how people look, rather than how their music sounds. Millions of dollars are wasted every day on worthless trendy things. Do you think that independent music, and musicians have the chance to survive?
GE: I absolutely believe independent music will survive. Remember: independent music NEVER made any money for the musicians involved. They do it because they love it. That will not change. Yes, fewer and fewer professional musicians will be able to make a living each year, it is an ever-narrowing field. And I've read that music consumption over-all is decreasing. Even when you add in legal downloads and illegal downloads… over-all, people are listening to less music. But you can't blame them… most music stinks! And it is very hard for us adults to find music we want to buy… even when I have money to spend. How many more Led Zepplin CDs can I buy? I have them all, already! But what worries me is: How are the new kids of today ever going to learn to play cool, real, music… when there is almost no real music being played on the radio? These days, nearly all music is computer driven, and nearly all the singers have their voices pitch-corrected. It's a real problem.
TPF: What are the advantages and disadvantages of being an indie band and working with an indie label?
GE: The advantage is… you can do what you want to, you're free. There is no worry about maintaining your super-star status… because you're a nobody! Life is easy, and simple. You can go out to eat at a restaurant, and no one hassles you for autographs. The disadvantage is, when you are an independent group, you are really shut out of the mainstream press and outlets. Only by being a part of a huge corporation that will lend you $500,000 for a music video, can you be a real viable player, on the global stage. Its easier to make art, when you are independent. Its always hard to make money in music, no matter what!
TPF: Are there any new projects in the works?
GE: There is a whole lot going on right now for us. I am just about ready to release a new CD by my new all-acoustic side-group called "Fernwood", with my pal Todd Montgomery. Like me, he's been playing professionally for over thirty years. So he really knows what he's doing. He's a great player, and he likes to work hard. On our new CD titled "Almeria", he plays the sitar, Irish bouzouki, mandolin, guitar, and other instruments. I'm playing Greek bouzouki, Chinese ruan, guitar, oud, harmonium, bulbul tarang, dotara, gimbri, rabahah, gobijen, Rhodes piano and up-right bass. Our CD "Almeria" should be available by March 1st 2008. You can hear some of our music at: www.virb.com/Fernwood It's very pastoral and beautiful, exotic and familiar. Very cinematic… which is good, because we are currently working with a few film directors from around the world, on numerous film projects. A trailer for a film we worked on "Agnan-Agnan Dreams" from the Phillipines, can be seen at our website. Also, I have some of music on MTV-International where you can hear me playing my Japanese Koto in the animation "Fuggy Fuggy" (www.fuggyfuggy.com). And you can also hear my Koto playing in the TV commercial for "Priceline", featuring William Shatner. You can find much up-to-date information about all our new projects (including the 50 CDs I've played on) at: www.virb.com/GayleEllett Also, as I said Ukab Maerd is planning on releasing a CD soon. But I don't have any details on it. And also Chuck Oken will be releasing a solo CD. It should be great. He's been working really hard, for many years, on his cool analog synth music, and I really dig it. Hopefully I'll be playing a bit on it too. And we are talking about making a new Djam Karet CD! We have some great musical ideas and directions that we have been discussing, and we are planning on beginning this project soon. But right now, it remains a bit vague, and I can't really comment on it too much, until I myself know more about where that CD will be headed. I am sorry for leaving this unclear. And I'm not trying to be coy, I just don't have any real info on it.
TPF: And lastly, what are you guys listening to these days?
GE: OPETH! They rule! We also like all of the CDs by: Bill Laswell, John McLaughlin, Porcupine Tree, Ozric Tentalcles, No Man, Air, Steve Tibbetts, and also old Allman Brothers, Eno, Floyd, and Crimson CDs. Also a lot of World music, and European jazz. I mostly only listen to instrumental music, I don't want to hear some singer "narrate" to me what the music is about, I can figure it out for myself!
In closing, I'd like to thank Hande and TheProgFiles.com for the chance to ramble on about our music, and for the exposure. We greatly appreciate it!
TPF: We thank YOU Gayle for granting us this interview! We are looking forward to hearing the new projects!
