Jason Kelly
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Leveraging The Internet
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Jason Kelly is a guitarist from West Virginia who is using the Internet and all of its resources and services (YouTube, MySpace, etc.) to help find an audience for his music. He submitted a four-song demo CD-R of instrumental rock songs that he multi-tracked with a simple, bare-bones beat box backing. He writes in a melodic rock style, shunning the shred techniques so popular in the instrumental guitar community in favor of songs which are closer to vocal tunes in style and substance ("Far Apart", "Where Is The Sky?"). An exception might be the last track on his demo, "Endgame", with its harmonized guitar parts and metallic main riff, but it doesn't have the expected guitar solo and has an unfinished feel (it clocks in at 2:38). It might be a good idea for Kelly, at this point, to try to 'round out' his demo songs by collaborating with other musicians in his area.
Born in 1974 in Cleveland, Ohio, Jason began playing guitar seriously at the age of 17. He practiced up to 16 hours a day, until he literally couldnšt feel his fingers anymore, and would then study music theory the rest of the time! By the time he was 19 he began giving lessons. After surviving a serious car accident around Christmas 2005, in which he and his family were hit by a drunk driver, Jason has approached his music with a new energy, determined not to procrastinate any further, reaffirming that life is unpredictable. Jason is currently working on his first album and the demo versions of the songs can be heard on his MySpace page, and ordered from there in the form of a 5-song CD. He states, "Through outlets such as MySpace and YouTube, Išve reached an audience I wouldnšt have had access to otherwise. Itšs often a surreal feeling, that I can write and record something, and almost instantly have it receive thousands of listens and comments."
Kelly is currently writing and recording new material, as well as redoing the material from the demos that appear on his web site. He hopes to eventually obtain a recording contract and to tour, in order to reach even more people with his music.
MP3 Songs
Endgame
Where Is The Sky?
Contact Information
Jason Kelly
United States
Web site:
www.myspace.com/jasonsnewmusic
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Tom Smith
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30 Years Of Amazing Playing
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With a common name like Tom Smith, it helps to be talented at something in order to distinguish yourself from all the other Tom Smith's out there. After years of seeing Tom Smith, the head of the regional grocery chain Food Lion, on television, another Tom Smith has popped into the consciousness of the nation, or the music world, at least. This is due in no small part to his CD-R release, entitled Juliet's Window, where he plays both guitar and banjo with great skill. Guitarists will love the slide work heard on "Like Ships In The Bay", while Kottke and Hedges fans (and fingerpicking devotees in general) will warm up immediately to songs such as "Child's Play". Banjo rolls and fills are not in anyone's comfort zone around here, but with his attention to detail where his guitar work is concerned, surely banjo lovers will give it a thumbs up. Worth a closer listen.
It's been said that Tom could be referred to as a mixture of Kaki King, Michael Hedges and Leo Kottke but that would be too limiting. His early influences were Thelonius Monk, Charles Mingus, Miles Davis and Bob Dylan. Since he began playing in 1966, Tom has performed in 30 states and three countries. His musical career has taken him from coffee houses in North Carolina and bars in San Francisco to concert halls and festival audiences of 10,000. He has done PBS shows and has shared the stage with Tuck and Patti, Michael Hedges, John Hammond, Robben Ford, John Fahey, Jesse Winchester, Todd Phillips, Livingston Taylor, Melanie, David Pomeroy, Reckless Johnny Wales, Odetta, Robin Ford and Dave Van Ronk.
In addition to some positive press about Juliet's Window from Sing Out Magazine (United States) and Akustik Gitarre Magazine (Germany), Smith's music was recently included on Akustik Gitarre's compilation CD, in the company of artists such as John Lennon, Eric Clapton, Ralph McTell and T-Bone Walker.
MP3 Songs
Child's Play
Like Ships In The Bay
Contact Information
Tom Smith
P.O. Box 8606
Hermitage, TN 37076
United States
E-mail:
Tom Smith
Web site:
www.tomsmithguitar.com
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