One day I was reading Leo Abrahams’ blog when I turned to my wife and said, “I want this guy’s life.” He had been describing the week’s activities, which might include a session with Brian Eno, live gigs with the likes of Bryan Ferry and Marianne Faithful, a solo guitar gig performing tunes from his instrumental records Scene Memory and Honeytrap, composing film music for The Lovely Bones, arranging strings for Ed Harcourt, or producing an up and coming band like Frightened Rabbit. Recently, with little time for his own music, he has managed to cobble together an EP of six-songs, Zero Sum. Though not a “guitar” record per se, it is chock full of guitar generated tones that will prick up your ears. I have interviewed the British musican before, most recently for a piece on using a laptop in live performance. Here we get a glimpse of the man’s beginnings, influences, and gear.
Category Archives: Interviews
Stian Westerhus: Modern Guitar Legend in the Making
If modern guitar has its own Jeff Beck or Jimi Hendrix it is Stian Westerhus. Like those iconic guitarists, Westerhus explores the outer reaches of sonic possibilities available from an electric guitar, an amplifier, and some effects (okay, in his case, a lot of effects), all the while exhibiting what can only be defined as star quality.
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Fennesz
In early polling there has been some interest in a piece on Christian Fennesz. Until I can get an exclusive Guitar Moderne interview, here is a short video of the Austrian soundscape artist talking to Last.fm.
and a performance at le Poisson Rouge that I am still trying to figure out how I missed.
Also, be sure to check out the great Create Digital Music interview.
Eivind Aarset
Guitar Moderne’s first artist article is a reprint of a piece on Eivind Aarset from the now defunct magazine EI. Michael Ross went to the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal to interview this icon of modern guitar. Be sure to check out Aarset’s latest, Live Extracts, on Jazzland.
