Opening for Xavier Rudd at The Coach House May 31, 2015 Somehow I didn’t feel like I had been travelling or exhausted at all really…the road has become another home. Even after being on the road for almost two months, when the opportunity arose we were more excited than ever. We have worked very hard this past year since the ‘Rise Up For Love’ Album was released, and this moment was one to be remembered, and a great reminder of what can come to be through strong work ethic, working hard musically, having a common vision and setting an intention to live a healthy lifestyle on the road. The last song we played was Say You Will and after the bridge, to hear that many people cheer like they did sent chills through my whole body…I let the song ring out and smiled from head to toe. The crowd that night was certianly one to be remembered. From Left to Right: Chris(flute), Xavier, Sherri Anne & Lisa His entire band were a treat to converse with. A true gentleman and man of great sincerity. So May 31st we performed to a sold-out crowd at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, California and Lisa and I had the opportunity to meet and chat with one of my greatest musical inspirations in so many ways – Xavier Rudd. He was also quite the performer, at one point he went bouncing round the stage with his didgeridoo and address the audience throughout with a confident and entertaining manner.Īll in all a great show, one that took me back.We are back in San Diego for a month working on new songs for an exciting summer tour in British Columbia! I can’t help but reflect on this incredible year of touring, and the highlight of our recent North America tour: we were in the middle trecking across country by plane, train, car, and transit when we were asked to open for Xavier Rudd and the United Nations! But all were catchy and I found myself hearing them in my head in the days following, especially the tracks like ‘Solace,' and ‘Let me Be’! He has kept this message in his general style as well, by using the didgeridoo in most of the tracks and through the use of aboriginal sample harmonies he's able to give the tracks a distinctive and earthy feel. He is also a great songwriter, many of his songs had a theme of spirituality, peace, nature running through them, kind of a modern ‘hippy’ feel to them. Me and some friends had tickets to see Jack Jackson in Byron Bay and luckily he was the support, and what a support! To say he's a multi-instrumentalist is an understatement! He is a complete one man band, he sat on stage hid behind an array of instruments, a drum kit, extra percussion instruments, a number of guitars and didgeridoos. I was travelling ‘down under’ at the time and had heard his name banded around but was yet to hear what all the fuss was about. When I first saw Xavier Rudd I had no idea what to expect, he was largely unknown to me. 2010 brought a new album and a new band to fit including bassist Tio Moloantoa and percussionist Andile Nqubezelo. Rudd’s 2007 tour in support of his 2007 album “White Moth” was lauded by critics for being entirely carbon-neutral and the album introduced darker themes which are observable in his follow-up “Dark Shades of Blue” in 2008. Rudd is widely known and appreciated on the festival circuits in Australia and Canada, and is equally appreciated in both countries for his socially conscious lyrics often regarding the mistreatment of aboriginals. Love & Special Sauce and later released the live album “Good Spirit” and the Studio album “Food in the Belly” in 2005. Becoming more well know Rudd toured with Jack Johnson and G. 13 and became a platinum selling album, due to distribution via Universal Records Australia. His sophomore released named “Solace” saw Rudd’s introduction to the Australian music chart debuting at No. Rudd’s first recording titled “Live in Canada” was released independently in 2001 and made way for his debut studio album “To Let” in 2002. Rudd has also perfected the art of circular breathing on the didgeridoo, often seen with jazz musicians, he is able to produce a singular drone sound that never falters. The list of instruments Rudd is able to play cannot be counted on a single pair of hands, from Weissenborn slide guitars and banjos, to harmonicas and Aztec Organettes, the Australian musician’s set up surrounds him with the capacity for sound. These skills were honed and expanded on during his years travelling and busking. Growing up Rudd learned to play the guitar, clarinet and saxophone however sought ways to overlap and interweave various instruments at once.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |