April 18, 2007
MUSIC
Electric Borrower
Is David Vandervelde in a T. Rex hex?
At first blush it's easy to mistake David Vandervelde as the second coming of T. Rex. The vocal stylings featured on his debut Moonstation House Band just scream Marc Bolan. It's almost uncanny.Subsequent listens conjure images of Ziggy-era Bowie, thus rendering Vandervelde's recent claims—“I don't even own a T. Rex album … or anything by Bowie”—curious.
“It's really an honor to be compared to something so cool,” he adds.
How trite. Oh wait—he's only 22. Seriously.
How such a youngster manages to compile an album as comprehensive and coherent as Moonstation makes the mind reel. Take into account the fact that Vandervelde's best friend and de facto landlord for the past three years just so happens to be former Wilco-ite Jay Bennett and suddenly it all makes sense.
“The fact that he's let me hang out in his little clubhouse of a studio and helped me along every step of this album trail is just awesome,” says Vandervelde.
Vandervelde is also quick to note that although the majority of the songs on Moonstation bear his name as writer, producer and performer, Bennett played a major role in “Jacket,” Moonstation's first single.
That track in particular invokes Bolan comparisons. It could've easily been a bonus track on an Electric Warrior reissue with nary a batted eye.
Vandervelde remains unfazed. “My favorite band right now is the Bee Gees,” he says. “[Vandervelde's drummer] Derek and I have been rocking the new three-disc box set with wild abandon recently. Talk about perfect pop. Man!”
Advanced listens to Moonstation reflect subtle Brothers Gibb influences while simultaneously exhibiting the perfection of pairing Vandervelde with Secretly Canadian labelmate Richard Swift on the touring circuit.
A cursory listen to Swift's latest offering Dressed up for the Letdown reveals several tracks that would seem at home on the Bee Gees' Odessa, teamed with a few that may have found comfort on John Lennon's Double Fantasy.
Just like Kevin Costner and Tim Robbins in Bull Durham, Swift is the Crash to Vandervelde's Meat. While he knows all about the hardships record companies can dish out to an artist, he thinks Vandervelde is equipped to deal.
“David's really got it goin' on,” says Swift. “His live sets differ so vastly from his studio stuff. That's a solid sign of artistic integrity. And he's so young. He'll learn from this tour and it'll make him more … seasoned.”
Seasoned is a mild term to describe what Swift's gone through with the labels. In fact, Dressed Up may be the most thinly veiled attack on the record industry in recent memory, especially the daggers-out damnation of “Artists and Repertoire,” in which Swift entwines his McCartney-esque vocals with rich piano melodies to corner label types.
Later, “Kisses for the Misses” perfectly illustrates and consequently celebrates the contributions made to music by those bands that typically fill programs like VH1's One Hit Wonders.
“I can't explain it all in intricate detail, but ‘Kisses' is for those artists who may have had a hit or two, but have mostly dealt out misses. They're the ones who've taken the risks and therefore achieved great strides in perfecting pop as an art. They never get any serious credit, but they totally deserve it.
“I'm incredibly possessive of my music. That's why Secretly Canadian was such a perfect fit for me. They let me take my sound in my own direction—it's like an artistic Valhalla.”
Swift's recent live shows have showcased the liberating effects of his newfound creative freedom, manifested in sublime reworkings of older material along with fresh, vigorous takes on the new stuff.
Vandervelde chooses to express himself in a subtler fashion, pulling out his blues-drenched cover of the Rolling Stones' middle-finger-to-the-majors classic “Cocksucker Blues” as his live show-stopper.
Whether you come for Swift and stay for the Vandervelde, or see Swift as an appetizer to nibble on before the main course, be sure to bring your appetite. By the time these troubadours are done dishing out the goods, there'll be scant room left for dessert.
David Vandervelde + Richard Swift
Wed., April 18, 9pm. $8. Johnny Brenda's, 1201 Frankford Ave. 215.739.9684. www.johnnybrendas.com
No comments:
Post a Comment