Just checked in for my sabbatical today. Three months. Happy and excited. Praying it will be fruitful and healing and creative. So, no gigs for awhile.
Have three months to absorb new Sufjan record, new Lissie record, new Arcade Fire record, plus The National and other new favorites. So much to take in. What a wonderful world.
Reflecting on Jimmy's show Friday night: thanks to all my friends who came out. And got me lots of Guinness. What a great time.
My favorite moment had to be the finale, when we did "Wake Up" by Arcade Fire while the audience sang merrily along.
Songs like that = why I play music.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Space Traveler got a review from RadioIndy.com. Check it out here:
radioindyacoustic.blogspot.com/2010/08/space-traveler-by-charles-klamut.html
radioindyacoustic.blogspot.com/2010/08/space-traveler-by-charles-klamut.html
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Friday, August 6, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Thomas Merton once said that being a priest means being caught between the goodness of God and the evil of man... with no chance for escape.
All the more dramatic when the “evil of man” includes oneself.
The uneasy predicament is no doubt shared to a degree by all Christians.
A curious place to be trapped.
Though...
If one can resist the urge to escape...
a peculiarly fertile place
for producing poets
and saints.
All the more dramatic when the “evil of man” includes oneself.
The uneasy predicament is no doubt shared to a degree by all Christians.
A curious place to be trapped.
Though...
If one can resist the urge to escape...
a peculiarly fertile place
for producing poets
and saints.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Peoria band Waterstreet played at Crusens Saturday night. CD release show. Delightful. Amazing. Beautiful. And many other adjectives that I can’t think of at the moment. Make no mistake: these four guys ROCK!
Their new 5 song EP, “Of Gossip,” is their 4th album and their best yet. They performed all the new songs from the record plus a bunch more that are new but not on a record yet.
To watch the video for their new single "Psycho" click here:
www.myspace.com/waterstreetband
They opted for the 5-song EP because of some unfortunate issues with a past producer and a desire to put something out there NOW that represents who they truly are. Live, young, raw, alive, and full of ENERGY.
These guys radiate pure energy at their shows. They are what rock and roll is all about. Intense, fun, mad skills on their instruments. They are the antithesis of posers. And although they look like the awesomely cool rock dudes they are, for them it’s not a freakin fashion show. It’s about the MUSIC.
And they have added a new, awesome tool in their arsenal: consistently great songwriting. Not that they were ever bad. But they have found their definitive sound now, the lyrics are very cool and thoughtful and engaging, and singers Evan and Joe have really matured as vocalists. These guys are now at the height of their powers.
They started as teenagers, a mostly acoustic jam band with a hand percussionist. A few years ago they changed drummers and got alien Rob Gould, who brought a whole new vibe of pure rock and roll fire and passion. Many influences show through their music, including Radiohead (they covered 15 Step and Airbag flawlessly), Zeppelin, Soundgarden, but also with melodies and vocal harmonies reminiscent of the Beatles and the Doobie Brothers. But these guys defy comparison. Anymore, they simply sound like THEM. They are Waterstreet. Enough said.
I have known Mike since his senior year, and Joe since he was fifteen years old at Notre Dame High School. I still remember going to the Riverfront to hear Joe and Evan do acoustic Zeppelin covers at the Art Festival on a hot September Saturday. They had a certain chemistry even back then. It used to be that I’d go and hear Waterstreet and be like, “that’s cool, I know these guys!” But now, it’s more like, “Damn these guys kick major a - - !”
Whether I know them or not, these guys are the real deal. They have worked so hard and SO deserve to be heard by a much, much wider audience.
They are bringing back the awesome magic of rock and roll in a way both classic and modern. And utterly original. There’s none of this “let’s try to be edgy and ironic and impress the Pitchfork snobs” nonsense. They are real. They are honest. They are not trying to be ironic or hip. They do not whine. They are simply trying to write and perform great rock and roll that will make you want to rejoice in being young and alive. No matter how old you are.
These guys may well be on the verge of a major break out. In music, there’s a lot of luck involved. Being heard by the right people, etc. But these guys are READY. They may well end up the most rockingest thing to ever come out of Peoria (all due respect to Dan Fogelberg and Mudvayne). Though they now live and operate out of Chicago, they could put a very cool feather in our humble Peoria hat.
Whatever happens, I love these guys and am so proud of them. Their music has enriched my life, and their shows rock my world. And I am by far not the only one. If there is luck and justice in their future, there may be hundreds of thousands more one day.
Their new 5 song EP, “Of Gossip,” is their 4th album and their best yet. They performed all the new songs from the record plus a bunch more that are new but not on a record yet.
To watch the video for their new single "Psycho" click here:
www.myspace.com/waterstreetband
They opted for the 5-song EP because of some unfortunate issues with a past producer and a desire to put something out there NOW that represents who they truly are. Live, young, raw, alive, and full of ENERGY.
These guys radiate pure energy at their shows. They are what rock and roll is all about. Intense, fun, mad skills on their instruments. They are the antithesis of posers. And although they look like the awesomely cool rock dudes they are, for them it’s not a freakin fashion show. It’s about the MUSIC.
And they have added a new, awesome tool in their arsenal: consistently great songwriting. Not that they were ever bad. But they have found their definitive sound now, the lyrics are very cool and thoughtful and engaging, and singers Evan and Joe have really matured as vocalists. These guys are now at the height of their powers.
They started as teenagers, a mostly acoustic jam band with a hand percussionist. A few years ago they changed drummers and got alien Rob Gould, who brought a whole new vibe of pure rock and roll fire and passion. Many influences show through their music, including Radiohead (they covered 15 Step and Airbag flawlessly), Zeppelin, Soundgarden, but also with melodies and vocal harmonies reminiscent of the Beatles and the Doobie Brothers. But these guys defy comparison. Anymore, they simply sound like THEM. They are Waterstreet. Enough said.
I have known Mike since his senior year, and Joe since he was fifteen years old at Notre Dame High School. I still remember going to the Riverfront to hear Joe and Evan do acoustic Zeppelin covers at the Art Festival on a hot September Saturday. They had a certain chemistry even back then. It used to be that I’d go and hear Waterstreet and be like, “that’s cool, I know these guys!” But now, it’s more like, “Damn these guys kick major a - - !”
Whether I know them or not, these guys are the real deal. They have worked so hard and SO deserve to be heard by a much, much wider audience.
They are bringing back the awesome magic of rock and roll in a way both classic and modern. And utterly original. There’s none of this “let’s try to be edgy and ironic and impress the Pitchfork snobs” nonsense. They are real. They are honest. They are not trying to be ironic or hip. They do not whine. They are simply trying to write and perform great rock and roll that will make you want to rejoice in being young and alive. No matter how old you are.
These guys may well be on the verge of a major break out. In music, there’s a lot of luck involved. Being heard by the right people, etc. But these guys are READY. They may well end up the most rockingest thing to ever come out of Peoria (all due respect to Dan Fogelberg and Mudvayne). Though they now live and operate out of Chicago, they could put a very cool feather in our humble Peoria hat.
Whatever happens, I love these guys and am so proud of them. Their music has enriched my life, and their shows rock my world. And I am by far not the only one. If there is luck and justice in their future, there may be hundreds of thousands more one day.
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