Reviews

Interview with www.cincinnatimusic.com What got you first interested in music? I wanted to be just like Geddy Lee (Rush). I didn't want to sing like him but he was very inspiring to me as a young bassist. I think I was 14 when I got my first electric bass and I set out to learn every Rush song. Something clicked within me when I picked up the bass. I went through an intense period of four or five years where I was practicing for three hours a day. I was very driven to master the instrument. *How long have you been involved in the Cincinnati music scene?* It's been almost 20 years. (Damn, that's a long time...) My first real band was called 'The Attitude' and our first gig was at the Gold Star Chili near Kings Island. I think we got paid with 5-ways and cheese coneys. Then we graduated to Sudsy Malones. Back in the early 90's, that was THE place to be for music. Then I joined Native Sun. After that, it was Plow On Boy, Over The Rhine, Slant, Monk, Pay The Girl, Boom Boom Horshack, Lo-fi, The 4Track All-Stars and now Chrome. *You have obviously had some experience with the whole music business side of things. Are you still actively pursuing labels? Is that whole thing important to you?* Pursuing labels is not as important to me as it used to be. My focus, now more than ever, is to make good music with people I care about. If a record deal were to happen again, cool. But it would have to be more on my terms. *I was reading in your bio that you shared the stage with Jeff Buckley. What band were you with at the time and how was the gig?* That was at Sudsy's in 1992 or '93. Sudsy's asked Plow On Boy to open the show not realizing Jeff Buckley was bringing his own opening act. We almost didn't get to play but I think we compromised with Jeff's opener and played a shorter set. We had to set all of our gear in front of the other two band's equipment and there was literally no space left to stand on stage. I remember Jeff's road manager was pretty uptight and refused to move any of their gear out of the way. We were pissed off about that; we played our 30-minute set, packed up our stuff and split! I regret not sticking around to see Jeff perform. I had no idea who he was. *Lately you've been playing in the local cover band "Chrome", how did you get hooked up with that gig?* Is it as rewarding as playing original gigs? Glenn Kukla (the drummer) would email me whenever Chrome was looking for a bass player. I think I helped him find 2 or 3 bassists and then the last time I got the email, I decided to do the gig myself. I was really, really sick of working a day job. I was ready for something new and Chrome seemed like a great opportunity. It's been nearly two years so far and I'm really enjoying it. Aaron, Ryan and Glenn are a lot of fun to play with and fun to be around too. I wouldn't do it otherwise. They're also some of the very best musicians I've played with. One of the most rewarding things about playing with Chrome is playing out all the time. (I love to play bass!) We play 2 to 5 nights a week. I teach private lessons and along with the Chrome income, I can make a decent living doing what I love to do. I also get to play original music with the 4Track All-Stars crew and I play a lot of studio sessions (most recently with hip hop group Da Mutts) so I'm still actively creating. I get calls regularly to fill in for other bands (covers, original and jazz) which also keeps things interesting and challenging -- and I'm writing material for a new album and will be putting together a trio to play out with. People often say "you have to get out of Cincinnati if you want to make it", yet you've been in several bands that have landed decent record deals without having to go out of Cincinnati. What's your take on it? If you write good music that people want to hear, the music industry should eventually notice you. The most important thing a local band can do to get signed is to hire a manager or retain an entertainment lawyer with solid music industry connections. I think it's true that if you live somewhere like New York or Chicago, you're more likely to get noticed in the first place, and it's easier to find managers and entertainment lawyers too. Pay The Girl played a few showcases in Nashville for some big labels, but it was TVT Records that came to Cincinnati to see us play and they made us an offer three days later. This happened because Pay The Girl's manager Mark Liggett sent out dozens of demos and TVT was interested enough to come see us play. Most bands don't have the resources or the clout to be able to contact any of the bigger labels themselves -- unless they've got a huge regional following and are selling thousands of CDs on their own. I think bands have a lot more opportunities to build a following these days. With the internet, you can reach a lot of folks while living in Cincy. Myspace and itunes are changing the way we find music. We don't have to rely solely on radio or video for exposure anymore. That's great! I've sold copies of my CD 'The Line Between' to people all over the world only because they found me online. I think Cincinnati's music scene has devolved in the last 10 years and I have no idea why. It's sad; there's so much talent here yet you rarely find a full house of fans at an original show. I think the 2000 riots killed the fledgling Downtown music scene and it's never recovered. Clifton used to have a thriving music scene. In the Nineties, we had the Afghan Whigs, Over The Rhine, The Ass Ponies, Throneberry and a few other bands that were doing great things on a national level. I think it was Rolling Stone magazine who asked, "Is Cincinnati the next Seattle?" What the hell happened? I know a lot of musicians who have moved to more fertile music scenes and are thriving. If there was a better scene in town, these musicians wouldn't have to move somewhere else to work and/or find better opportunities. Unfortunately, Chrome plays out of town a lot for exactly this reason. One bright spot is the Mid Point Music Festival. The folks that put on that festival do a hell of a job! It's so nice to be downtown during the festival; to see the great musicians, hear all of the great music -- and to enjoy the community of musicians and music lovers. The 4Track All-Stars have played the last couple of festivals and that's been a great deal of fun. We need more events like Mid Point in Cincinnati. The Northside Tavern is also a thriving venue for the Cincinnati music scene. Any night of the week you can find great live music there. *What exactly happened with the whole Pay the Girl thing? Weren't you in the band but once you guys got a record deal they let you go? I remember hearing lots of rumors about that at the time.* Oh boy. That's a long story. Essentially, PTG was about the singer, Jason Phelps. It was his deal. Everyone else was more or less a hired gun. I think all of us knew that going in. A newly signed band has absolutely no power. You're completely at the mercy of the label. The label felt that my image was a little "too hard" for the band and I think they wanted some younger guys in the band as well. At that level, there's a lot of money involved and the label looks at the band as a "product" to sell. I'm afraid the music becomes secondary. It was all very hard to deal with at the time but I learned a lot about the music business and I got to reevaluate what was important to me musically. I made some good friends too -- I'm very thankful for that. *Out of all the great local acts you have been in which one was/has been the most fulfilling?* Hmmmmm. Good question. There've been a lot of great bands. They've all been fulfilling in different ways. I got to work with an amazing songwriter in Niki Buehrig (Plow on Boy) and that was my first real experience writing bass lines that served the music. With Over The Rhine, I got to tour all over the States and Europe and play in front of large crowds. In Slant, I learned how to stretch out musically and improvise as a band. With Monk, we played long improvised versions of Ric's tunes. In Pay The Girl, I learned a great deal about how the music industry works, good and bad. The 4Track All-Stars blend jazz melodies and improvisation over hip hop grooves. Each situation has been inspiring and I've learned something valuable. I really can't pick just one. Who are some of your favorite local Cincinnati bands/musicians? This list is in no way complete and in no particular order. I think guitarist Lou Larson is pretty amazing; the music he creates is something you'd expect to hear in New York or Chicago. Aaron Mahoney is a super-talent. He's a quadruple threat as a musician: singer, guitarist, keyboardist and producer. Nick Blasky is a phenomenal bass player. The Bluebirds Big Band is one of this area's best bands -- way too much talent for one band! (Their Sunday night shows at Allyn's Cafe are unreal.) Bluf is a great band. Wussy is cool. Scott Hacker, Ashley Sheppard, Freakbass, The Greenhorns, Kim Taylor, Ashley Peacock, Is What?, Campfire Crush -- I could go on and on... *You have many virtuoso type players/bands listed as influences. I'm curious... who are some of your influences when it comes strictly to songwriting?* I'm a Rock guy who fell in love with Jazz. In jazz, songwriting isn't quite as important as the improvisation. However, I think that good music is good music, whatever the genre. If you can distill a song down to an acoustic guitar, melody and the naked truth and it still works; then you've nailed it. With this in mind, I've found the following to be terrifically influential (in no particular order): Peter Gabriel, EmmyLou Harris, Tears for Fears, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Radiohead, Kate Bush and those two guys from Liverpool: John and Paul. As far as newer stuff, I like what Fall Out Boy and The Fray are doing. *Any last words you would like to share?* With Cincinnati's immense talent, it should be on the “must-see” map musically. It's largely up to those of us who live here to make that happen. Please support local music!
Praise for the Bass "If you have ever been a band and done time in a recording studio, you know the most common words from the bass player's lips are 'turn up the bass' or 'needs more low end.' Bassist Mike Georgin gets sweet revenge on all those guitar heroes and prima donna vocalists with eclectic new instrumental release, The Line Between. Not to say that Georgin, who has played with Plow On Boy and Over The Rhine, and is currently in the progressive Jazz trio Slant, has produced some sort of vanity project here, with endless solos and grooves. The bassist understands composition and arrangement as well as he masterfully knows how to get around the bass. On the album's nine tracks, Georgin creates vivid, soulful sonic images that are often spacious and atmospheric, while subtly infusing layers of intricate sounds. Georgin also teams with fellow Slant mates for some contemporary, airy Jazz, mining different ground than what was on that band's superb debut, Glossalalia. All in all, a surprising and refreshing entry into the local music discography circa 1999. Georgin's release party is Friday at the York St. Cafe." ----- Mike Breen, Cincinnati's Citybeat Magazine Mike Georgin, bass player for the local avant-garde jazz band Slant, has arrived as a solo artist with the release of The Line Between. For the most part, solo Georgin, like Slant, straddles a line between middle period Pink Floyd jazz oddities and contemporary Middle Eastern trance music. Throw in a little Charles Mingus/ Miles Davis and you have a good idea of the scope of The Line Between . The songs on the album range from jazzy, Saturday morning cartoons to plodding bass with no percussion or accompaniment that, while they may not be perfect takes, are impeccible aesthetically. The production on the album lays every sound out seperately for you to focus on or file away, while the sheer length of the individual tracks, such as the eight- minute opus "So What", is pretty effective in driving home the themes and feelings that Georgin is shooting for. ----- Michael Milton, Cincinnati's Everybody's News Slanted and Enchanted Slant is Cincinnati-based Jazz Fusion band led by guitarist Lou Larson, with Mike Georgin on bass and Mark Samson on drums. The group was recently nominated for two Cincinnati Music Association awards- Best Small Jazz Combo and Best Instrumentalist. Larson's King Crimson inspired improvisations are at times angry, angular and hypnotic, and at other times lyrically heartfelt. There is a good comfort level between the players and a tight group sound. These guys must play ALOT together. "Snipe Hunt" is a tune torn straight from the pages of a Tribal Tech / Return to Forever fakebook, while "Triple XXX" straddles the line between John Zorn and Black Sabbath. Bassist Mike Georgin has a nice tone and is a well-rounded musician capable of wearing all of the hats ( and sometimes be willing to throw them out the window ) necessary to play music with this level of freedom. Check out the slinky swing thing Georgin and Samson get going on their version of Coltrane's "Equinox". This is a good group that should seek the attention of a Jazz label. ----- Bass Frontiers Magazine Local trio Slant will celebrate the release of their CD Glossalalia with a show at York St. Cafe on Saturday. The group- featuring former Plow On Boy and Over The Rhine bassist Mike Georgin and guitarist Lou Larson ( Mark Samson plays drums on the record while Greg Slone joins the band for Saturday's show ) - is often called a Jazz band, but there's much more to the group, as their debut delectably shows. "Look Homeward" opens the set on a fairly straight forward note, with Georgin's climbing bass lines, Samson's syncopated drums and Larson's angular guitar meshing as you'd expect a Jazz ensemble to, save the half-time, dreamy middle section. It's great stuff, but it's what follows that really sets the tone for the record and represents Slant's strength and originality. Slant's explorations in Jazz Fusion are led by Larson's guitar, which incorporates Jazz and Rock scaling in a way that is reminiscent of Robert Fripp's innovative work in King Crimson and as a solo artist. Larson's fluttering, circular signatures are utterly hypnotic at times, giving the compositions their mesmerizing quality. Georgin and Samson carry the tracks to new dimensions by creatively working around Larson's sumptuous string work in ways that are unexpected and original, with Georgin playing Tony Levin to Larson's Fripp and Samson providing more than just a simple backbeat. "Snipe Hunt" explodes into a whirlwind of rhythmic noise, sounding like a mushroom trip where someone blindfolds you, spins you around and sets you loose in an industrial warehouse (in, you know, a good way). "Triple XXX" is a surprisingly heavy dirge, while "Why?" is more sparse and somewhat ambient, rising and falling with a sublime tension. Another highlight is "Gorilla Sweater", which builds into a manic, groove meditation with muscular, doubled-up bass and guitar riffing blissfully pushing the boundaries between Jazz and Hard Rock. The rounded riffs and versatile musicianship might remind some of Phish's more intricate instrumental breaks, but Slant indeed has more in common with a Jazz band than any of today's jam-oriented groove acts. The group's engulfing, intriguing sound sculptures are a welcome and refreshingly unique addition to the Cincinnati music scene. ----- Mike Breen, Cincinnati's CityBeat Magazine Improvisational bands are a high-risk proposition . It's a rare to find musicians who can come up with compelling compositions and also have the chops to spin solos that don't lose momentum. But from the opening track of their debut CD, Lou Larson, Mike Georgin, and Mark Samson show they've got what it takes. * * * 1/ 2 (out of four) ----- Larry Nager , Cincinnati Enquirer What impresses me most about this music is the emotional content. No matter how technically fascinating the band plays, you're always aware of the emotional power behind the technique. ----- Art Gore, drummer with "George Benson", "Lonnie Liston Smith"

Interview with www.cincinnatimusic.com

What got you first interested in music?

I wanted to be just like Geddy Lee (Rush). I didn't want to sing like him but he was very inspiring to me as a young bassist. I think I was 14 when I got my first electric bass and I set out to learn every Rush song. Something clicked within me when I picked up the bass. I went through an intense period of four or five years where I was practicing for three hours a day. I was very driven to master the instrument.

How long have you been involved in the Cincinnati music scene?

It's been almost 20 years. (Damn, that's a long time...) My first real band was called 'The Attitude' and our first gig was at the Gold Star Chili near Kings Island. I think we got paid with 5-ways and cheese coneys. Then we graduated to Sudsy Malones. Back in the early 90's, that was THE place to be for music. Then I joined Native Sun. After that, it was Plow On Boy, Over The Rhine, Slant, Monk, Pay The Girl, Boom Boom Horshack, Lo-fi, The 4Track All-Stars and now Chrome.

You have obviously had some experience with the whole music business side of things. Are you still actively pursuing labels? Is that whole thing important to you?

Pursuing labels is not as important to me as it used to be. My focus, now more than ever, is to make good music with people I care about. If a record deal were to happen again, cool. But it would have to be more on my terms.

I was reading in your bio that you shared the stage with Jeff Buckley. What band were you with at the time and how was the gig?

That was at Sudsy's in 1992 or '93. Sudsy's asked Plow On Boy to open the show not realizing Jeff Buckley was bringing his own opening act. We almost didn't get to play but I think we compromised with Jeff's opener and played a shorter set. We had to set all of our gear in front of the other two band's equipment and there was literally no space left to stand on stage. I remember Jeff's road manager was pretty uptight and refused to move any of their gear out of the way. We were pissed off about that; we played our 30-minute set, packed up our stuff and split! I regret not sticking around to see Jeff perform. I had no idea who he was.

Lately you've been playing in the local cover band "Chrome", how did you get hooked up with that gig? Is it as rewarding as playing original gigs?

Glenn Kukla (the drummer) would email me whenever Chrome was looking for a bass player. I think I helped him find 2 or 3 bassists and then the last time I got the email, I decided to do the gig myself. I was really, really sick of working a day job. I was ready for something new and Chrome seemed like a great opportunity. It's been nearly two years so far and I'm really enjoying it. Aaron, Ryan and Glenn are a lot of fun to play with and fun to be around too. I wouldn't do it otherwise. They're also some of the very best musicians I've played with.
One of the most rewarding things about playing with Chrome is playing out all the time. (I love to play bass!) We play 2 to 5 nights a week. I teach private lessons and along with the Chrome income, I can make a decent living doing what I love to do.
I also get to play original music with the 4Track All-Stars crew and I play a lot of studio sessions (most recently with hip hop group Da Mutts) so I'm still actively creating. I get calls regularly to fill in for other bands (covers, original and jazz) which also keeps things interesting and challenging -- and I'm writing material for a new album and will be putting together a trio to play out with.

People often say "you have to get out of Cincinnati if you want to make it", yet you've been in several bands that have landed decent record deals without having to go out of Cincinnati. What's your take on it?

If you write good music that people want to hear, the music industry should eventually notice you. The most important thing a local band can do to get signed is to hire a manager or retain an entertainment lawyer with solid music industry connections. I think it's true that if you live somewhere like New York or Chicago, you're more likely to get noticed in the first place, and it's easier to find managers and entertainment lawyers too. Pay The Girl played a few showcases in Nashville for some big labels, but it was TVT Records that came to Cincinnati to see us play and they made us an offer three days later. This happened because Pay The Girl's manager Mark Liggett sent out dozens of demos and TVT was interested enough to come see us play. Most bands don't have the resources or the clout to be able to contact any of the bigger labels themselves -- unless they've got a huge regional following and are selling thousands of CDs on their own. I think bands have a lot more opportunities to build a following these days. With the internet, you can reach a lot of folks while living in Cincy. Myspace and itunes are changing the way we find music. We don't have to rely solely on radio or video for exposure anymore. That's great! I've sold copies of my CD 'The Line Between' to people all over the world only because they found me online.

I think Cincinnati's music scene has devolved in the last 10 years and I have no idea why. It's sad; there's so much talent here yet you rarely find a full house of fans at an original show. I think the 2000 riots killed the fledgling Downtown music scene and it's never recovered. Clifton used to have a thriving music scene. In the Nineties, we had the Afghan Whigs, Over The Rhine, The Ass Ponies, Throneberry and a few other bands that were doing great things on a national level. I think it was Rolling Stone magazine who asked, "Is Cincinnati the next Seattle?" What the hell happened? I know a lot of musicians who have moved to more fertile music scenes and are thriving. If there was a better scene in town, these musicians wouldn't have to move somewhere else to work and/or find better opportunities. Unfortunately, Chrome plays out of town a lot for exactly this reason.
One bright spot is the Mid Point Music Festival. The folks that put on that festival do a hell of a job! It's so nice to be downtown during the festival; to see the great musicians, hear all of the great music -- and to enjoy the community of musicians and music lovers. The 4Track All-Stars have played the last couple of festivals and that's been a great deal of fun. We need more events like Mid Point in Cincinnati. The Northside Tavern is also a thriving venue for the Cincinnati music scene. Any night of the week you can find great live music there.

What exactly happened with the whole Pay the Girl thing? Weren't you in the band but once you guys got a record deal they let you go? I remember hearing lots of rumors about that at the time.

Oh boy. That's a long story. Essentially, PTG was about the singer, Jason Phelps. It was his deal. Everyone else was more or less a hired gun. I think all of us knew that going in. A newly signed band has absolutely no power. You're completely at the mercy of the label. The label felt that my image was a little "too hard" for the band and I think they wanted some younger guys in the band as well. At that level, there's a lot of money involved and the label looks at the band as a "product" to sell. I'm afraid the music becomes secondary. It was all very hard to deal with at the time but I learned a lot about the music business and I got to reevaluate what was important to me musically. I made some good friends too -- I'm very thankful for that.

Out of all the great local acts you have been in which one was/has been the most fulfilling?

Hmmmmm. Good question. There've been a lot of great bands. They've all been fulfilling in different ways. I got to work with an amazing songwriter in Niki Buehrig (Plow on Boy) and that was my first real experience writing bass lines that served the music. With Over The Rhine, I got to tour all over the States and Europe and play in front of large crowds. In Slant, I learned how to stretch out musically and improvise as a band. With Monk, we played long improvised versions of Ric's tunes. In Pay The Girl, I learned a great deal about how the music industry works, good and bad. The 4Track All-Stars blend jazz melodies and improvisation over hip hop grooves. Each situation has been inspiring and I've learned something valuable. I really can't pick just one.

Who are some of your favorite local Cincinnati bands/musicians?

This list is in no way complete and in no particular order. I think guitarist Lou Larson is pretty amazing; the music he creates is something you'd expect to hear in New York or Chicago. Aaron Mahoney is a super-talent. He's a quadruple threat as a musician: singer, guitarist, keyboardist and producer. Nick Blasky is a phenomenal bass player. The Bluebirds Big Band is one of this area's best bands -- way too much talent for one band! (Their Sunday night shows at Allyn's Cafe are unreal.) Bluf is a great band. Wussy is cool. Scott Hacker, Ashley Sheppard, Freakbass, The Greenhorns, Kim Taylor, Ashley Peacock, Is What?, Campfire Crush -- I could go on and on...

You have many virtuoso type players/bands listed as influences. I'm curious... who are some of your influences when it comes strictly to songwriting?

I'm a Rock guy who fell in love with Jazz. In jazz, songwriting isn't quite as important as the improvisation. However, I think that good music is good music, whatever the genre. If you can distill a song down to an acoustic guitar, melody and the naked truth and it still works; then you've nailed it. With this in mind, I've found the following to be terrifically influential (in no particular order): Peter Gabriel, EmmyLou Harris, Tears for Fears, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Radiohead, Kate Bush and those two guys from Liverpool: John and Paul. As far as newer stuff, I like what Fall Out Boy and The Fray are doing.

Any last words you would like to share?

With Cincinnati's immense talent, it should be on the “must-see” map musically. It's largely up to those of us who live here to make that happen. Please support local music!