Downtown Tucsonan - October 2008 - (Page 10)

Downtown Songs for Nightbirds Low Ones Track 9 Records by Jamie Manser ongs for Nightbirds is ten tracks of human vulnerability – marinated in melancholy that’s tossed with some bitterness and pragmatism – played con amore. the music viscerally translates in the mind’s eye as soft-focused dream sequences - shot in dusk’s slate grey light, tinged with black edges. the album opens with Come on Home, a sweet languid track that resonates with anyone who has longed for a loved one to return to domicile comforts. Jeremy Michael cashman’s lap-steel adds amazing atmosphere to the song’s lyrics: “You’ve been out there, riding so hard, chasing suns and moons and stars. come on home now, it’s time to sleep now. It’s time to lay your burden down.” On Song 2, M. Brielle adds her vocal lilt to chris Gunn’s drone on the chorus “You walk with such a sadness, and you see things I don’t see, and…I wish that this could last.” cashman’s baritone guitar provides depth and confidence, with christopher stevens’ aptly understated drumming completing the framework. an unexpected delight on a handful of the cuts, such as Overstep, is the xylophone. there’s a certain je ne sais quoi surrounding the melodic tink tink tink of that sound. Gunn described the instrument as adding a childlike quality to the tunes, which makes its use in Overstep apropos for the dark, down tempo lullaby. the fourth cut, Lovely Eyes, is easily the most haunted song on the disk which quietly tells the tale of a woman who “went swimming in a sea of gin, she never reached the other side. she left her clothes piled on the shore; she had nothing left to hide. Lovely eyes and lovely hair, she looked so lovely floating there. Painted smile upon her face that tide and time could not erase. a broken heart beats in her chest, not for long, though, not for long.” Hailing from a small northern Puget sound town where their grandparents were also reared, Brielle and Gunn document their 1600-mile move to the old Pueblo in Port Townsend to Tucson. “Having spent all of our ‘early lives’ in Live S washington living by the water, we both decided we needed a change and there was no bigger change than moving to the desert,” Gunn explained. “our friend Mark (Matos, campo Bravo) had lived in tucson and we’d been down to visit him and we just both loved tucson. “It’s got a great local radio station (KXcI, 91.3 FM) and cool venues to play at.” the last nine years have seen Brielle and Gunn playing together in various bands and they created Low ones in 2003. “we’ve been lucky to have lots of talented folks join us over the years and right now christopher stevens (drums, etc.) is our third member,” Gunn said via email. “He’s been with us for going on two years and contributed immensely to our last cd Swimming to the Moon and the new Songs for Nightbirds. “also, Jeremy Michael cashman has been sitting in as of late on guitar and lap-steel. He stays pretty busy with his own band, but it’s magical when he joins us for recordings and shows.” cashman contributes beauteous lap-steel on Port Townsend to Tucson, delivering a fabulous sonic shimmer right before Gunn and Brielle sing, “scorched Pueblo in summer. summertime in tucson, it’ll make or break you. It’ll make or break you. It’ll really test you, really test you.” the next track, In the End, questions the practicality of sentiment. “In the end, what does it matter, all the years pass in seconds, all your fears they grow like weeds, all the lovers they never show up, and all the times spent wondering why.” a partial list of their influences on www.Myspace. com/lowones fittingly includes the Velvet underground & nico, tom waits, neil Young & crazy Horse, Leonard cohen, Howe Gelb & Giant sand, Yo La tengo. Recorded at Loveland studios, nathan sabatino lent his deft touch to the mixing and mastering of another moony and groovy tucson band. Low Ones play Red Room at Grill Saturday, October 25 with Jeremy Michael Cashman. The Album Breakdown Who’s on What: M. Brielle (bass, electric guitar); chris Gunn (guitar, keyboard, bass, vocals, banjo, harmonica); christopher stevens (drums, xylophone, wurlitzer, keyboards, vocals). Musical guests: Jeremy Michael cashman (lap steel, baritone electric guitar on tracks 1, 2, 5); Felipe Gunn (backing vocals on track 1). Cover Art: Patsy Gelb. Recorded, Mixed, Mastered: Loveland studios/nathan sabatino. ty-one and was really heartbroken for the first time. First memory of falling in love with music: It was an uncle playing “norwegian wood” on an acoustic guitar when I was in the 5th grade…also, a friend turning me on to the Ramones in 7th grade. How long have y’all been playing your respective instruments: a long time, but we’ve been experimenting lately with switching instruments and that adds a cool new dimension to things. Ages of the band members: old enough to know better, but young enough to keep trying - the mid-thirties. Do you have day jobs: Yes, luckily. Have your toured: It’s in the planning stages, so no, not yet. What’s in store for the future: we’ve already been working on songs for our next recording and we’re looking to play some gigs with a lot of other tucson bands. Song Writing: For the most part the songs are written by candle-light and it seems harder to write a song when you’re happy than when you’re sad. we also just try to write simple songs that convey “real” everyday feelings. Initial foray into songwriting: Maybe when I turned twen- Chris Gunn’s answers on - 10 downtown tucsonan.october.08 http://www.MySpace.com/lowones http://www.MySpace.com/lowones

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Downtown Tucsonan - October 2008

Downtown Tucsonan - October 2008 Contents Downtown Lowdown Vital Signs Downtown Live Arts Galleries Performing Arts Film Events Museums Historic Downtown Guest Editoral Billboard Classifieds

Downtown Tucsonan - October 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.