Josh Kramon Two Night Stand In California
03/31/2010
.
Josh Kramon has booked a couple of upcoming southern California shows. His new album, Say It Now, is about being honest with who you are and living your life true to yourself so that at the end each day you're left with no regrets. Touching on the spiritual, but also the joys of the material world, this is a set of songs that is both introspective and celebratory, a paean to living and surviving in these perilous times. In other words, carpe diem… Seize the day. Just what Josh Kramon has done on Say It Now.
"I think that the ultimate challenge in life is stripping away the layers of illusion to get to that one ultimate truth and part of the reason that I made this record was to strip away some of that illusion to get closer to the truth."
Kramon recorded the songs which make up the new album in his home studio, recreating much of what he loved about the records he listened to growing up as a kid in L.A. Those influences include classic-rock like the Beatles, Bob Dylan, The Band and the Stones, as well as '70s singer-songwriters Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor and Jackson Browne, with elements of James Brown funk, Curtis Mayfield soul, OG hip-hop acts De La Soul, LL Cool J and Dr. Dre and even the lilt of old-school reggae from Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff thrown in.
"One of my the biggest songs that changed the way I looked at songs was when I heard Beck's "Loser" back in the 90's. I loved the way he mixed Hip Hop loops southern slide guitar and Dobro. Kid Rock has done that pretty well too.
After a pair of indie releases, Forward and Big World, Say It Now is Kramon's most accomplished work yet.
"I've kind of blocked everything else out to focus on this album," he says. "I felt I had a group of songs that deserved more than just throwing them on iTunes to see which ones would stick."
From the urgent declaration of the opening track, "I'm Alive," and the plea to speak your mind in "Say It Now" to the sing-song, tongue-in-cheek critique of the modern rat race in "End of the World" and the religious entreaties of "The Maker," Kramon touches on all the things that affect every one of us in a world that is more fragile, yet interconnected, than ever.
"The songs are about finding peace of mind and solace from the hustle and bustle of modern society," he says. "I'm trying to look for the best in things, offer a positive vibe, hope and optimism. And it's also about finding truth and meaning in our lives."
Kramon says, musically, the new album is based on "acoustic guitar, melody and groove," ranging from The Band-like R&B funk of "Soul," the Latin-gospel flavor of "Say It Now" and the Springsteen circa Greetings from Asbury Park lyricism of "End of the World" to the loping reggae beat and playground chant of "Beautiful Lady," the sensual Beatlesque Rubber Soul of "Lipstick Mama" and the horn-punctuated, elemental blues of "Shout Out."
"It's a very different process writing songs than it is composing themes and scores for TV," explains Josh. "I have to concentrate on either one or the other at any one time. Ideas for songs come to me all the time, so I carry a recorder to get them down. Making songs happen is a much less rushed, methodical process than scoring. Sometimes I have just three or four days to write 35-40 minutes of music for a TV show. Creating songs isn't as cerebral. It's a more instinctual, subconscious way of working."
"For television, I really have to strop out of myself to serve the project and in making records I have to step into myself, it's a totally different experience but I love them both."Here are the upcoming shows Monday, April 5th
Acoustic Lounge
Genghis Cohen
740 N. Fairfax Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90046
Time: 7PM
FREE
Josh will perform in-the-round/solo acoustic with 2 other singer songwriters.
Sunday, April 11th
Room 5/AMALFI
143 N. La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Time: 10PM
Cost: $5.00
Share this article on Twitter
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
Click here to read today's full Day in Pop report
Preview and Purchase Josh Kramon CDs
Josh Kramon Tour Dates/Tickets
Josh Kramon MP3 Downloads
| Was it Good for you? Please Fark it!, Stumble It, Digg it or more! |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Fark | Stumble Upon | Digg | Facebook |
|
tell a friend about this article know of a news item we should cover?  antiMUSIC News featured on RockNews.info and Yahoo News
.
...end |
