The Gig Log: Sam Payne at Westfest

Sam Payne has been on my radar for a long time, probably ten years or more. He is a talented singer, songwriter, guitarist and performer, and I have a great respect for the depth of his music, as well as for him as a person. I met him a couple of years ago at my first Soundcheck Series event, and we had the opportunity to get to know each other by working with Soundcheck* after that for a year or so. 

So when I got a text message from Sam asking if I was available for a gig, I wasn't shocked, but I was surprised. Luckily, the date was available, and I agreed to play. It would be the first time I actually shared the stage with him as a performer. The other musicians on the gig were Steve Lemmon (of Sprial Studios fame), Aaron Ashton and bassist Matt Larson. It was a very good crew.

I was especially thrilled when I got the setlist, charts and recordings for the gig. Not only were there some old favorites among them, there were some new (to me) gems and a cover of Peter Gabriel's "Book of Love" that was immediately captivating. All of the music was appealing, not only from an aesthetic perspective, but also from the drummer's seat.

The rehearsal kit. Yes, that IS foam...

On the day of the gig we met in downtown SLC in a basement studio, ran through the forms and grooves, then headed out to West Valley City for Westfest for our headlining performance. Usually the festival format requires a band to set up and soundcheck in literally a matter of minutes, but luckily (for us, at least), the band performing before us had canceled at the last moment, so the stage was ours for the hour before our set started. We were able to get comfortably set up and had a relatively thorough sound check.  

It always amazes me how quickly a group of musicians can sound like a band, having never played together before. Much of that is the learned or innate ability to "speak the language," but some of it is just chemistry. And again, luckily for us, the chemistry was evident from the first sounds in rehearsal. Honestly, the actual performance set was a tiny bit shaky on my part, and the music went some places live that I don't think were planned in rehearsal.

HMS Drum Workshop.

During the performance, Sam's presence was the show. It was definitely his world, as it were, and the rest of us were just happy to be living in it. It was such great fun to not only perform the music and really play, but to not have any worry at all about any of the other musicians. I just got to sit back and play from the position of, "What can I add? How can my playing best achieve the message of the song and the intent of the music?" I can't say for certain how close I came to achieving that goal, but I know I enjoyed and learned from the experience very much. 

Set book and "tools."

Not only was the audience friendly and the staff at Westfest more than attentive and responsive (thanks so much!), but I gained some new friends and deepened my respect for a great musician. I also widened my own playing experience and now have some new avenues to pursue and areas of technique and knowledge to strengthen. On the whole, I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to play, and I look forward to playing with Sam and crew again soon.

Another gig in the books!

*I'm not gonna lie. Sam introduced me to at least a few new styles of food, not the least of which was Thai. Music and food? Yes. Yes, indeed. Thanks again, Sam.

The Gig Log: Cedar City

Clinic at Canyon View HS

It's a gig of sorts, for my work. Last week I had the good fortune to travel to Cedar City with Ryan Tilby and Aaron Ashton to work with orchestra students at Cedar High and Middle Schools, and Canyon View High and Middle Schools. It was awesome. Great teachers and students, and a lot of fun besides.

Our job was to talk to string players (violin, viola, cello and bass) about folk and Celtic music, and teach them some basic improvisation. Aside from that, I had the opportunity to work on some drum kits.

I've included just a few pics of one of the clinics and a couple of drum kits.

CVHS' Yamaha Kit

Aaron Ashton

Ryan Tilby

CHS' Pearl Masters Custom Kit

Pearl Kit from the back

Friday Feature: Aaron Ashton

ANNOUNCEMENT: Aaron Ashton, Ryan Tilby and Keith Sorensen (and possibly another special guest or two) will be performing an exclusive house concert in Cedar City this Saturday night, February 4, 2012. Details on the Facebook page.

Pretty darn excited to introduce you to one of the premier musicians in the intermountain area. Violinist Aaron Ashton has traveled many musical paths, and isn't afraid to blaze new ones. His repertoire ranges from classical to celtic, from folk to funk, and from jazz to just about everything else.

I first met Aaron when he was the concert master in the Utah State University Symphony Orchestra and I was the timpanist, circa 1999. It's sort of a funny/embarrassing story, actually. Aaron approached me after rehearsal one night and told me he was forming a band to play jazz and celtic music, and was looking for a drummer who might be interested. I pointed him in the direction of one of the guys in the department that I respected. (You know the closing scene of "Dumb and Dumber?" Yep, not so smart was I!)

Luckily for me, the other guy moved out of the area, and a couple of years later I ended up playing for Aaron's band, In One Ear. Not only did I get to know Aaron and his playing, I was introduced to many other great players and a mind set of playing, performing and composing both in and out of the box.

Since then, Aaron and I have worked together on a ton of projects, recordings, bands, shows, etc, including The Aaron Ashton Band, Hillside Nine, Lokalgrown and many more.

But all of that doesn't begin to scratch the surface of Aaron's career and accomplishments. He has played on countless film and TV soundtracks and video games, made cameo appearances on roughly a gazillion albums, and produced and engineered a gazillion more.

He was also a member of Enoch Train and founded Blue Sky Music Camps, a premier summer workshop for aspiring musicians.

Oh, and one more thing - Aaron is both an Aggie (Bachelor's degree from Utah State University) and a Cougar (Master's degree from Brigham Young University). True story.

By the way, I'm sorry if this sounds like a eulogy. Dude's not dead. In fact, he's well this side of forty, and still growing and evolving as a musician and as a person. I just respect the guy as a colleague and friend, and can't say enough good about him.

(I'd better stop myself. This is getting embarrassing.)

Just visit his webpage, buy his album and catch a concert. I'd say "or," but you should really do all three.

This was one of my favorite shows I've played with the Aaron Ashton Band. Great players all around.

Ryan Tilby - Amazing Dobro

While I'm at it, I can't leave this one out. This was the 2009 Blue Sky Faculty Jam/Concert at Westminster, and the first time I'd ever met Ryan Tilby. This performance left me speechless.

Keep in mind that this was recorded on somebody's cell phone.

Thank you, Aaron and Ryan.

For best results - seriously - put on some great headphones or the best speakers you can find, and turn it up LOUD.

The Gig Log - Aaron Ashton Band: Blue Sky Music Camp at Westminster College

Occasionally I have the privilege of playing with the Aaron Ashton Band. Check him out here. These videos are from a gig we played in July 2011 as part of Blue Sky Music Camps.

Featured in this video are (from your left to right): Sam Runolfson - Cello, Kendra Lowe - Keyboard/violin/banjo, Aaron Ashton - Violin, me, Ryan Tilby - Bass and Austin Weyand - Guitar. Easily the most talented band I've ever played with.



Also worth noting is that this was an audience of maybe 80 people, and they were LOUD and friendly. Awesome night!

The audio isn't as good on the next one, but it's one of my favorite tunes to play with Aaron.




As always, happy drumming!