I Went To A Show

INTERVIEW: Kevin Buckley of Grace Basement

On the upcoming Grace Basement album, Wheel within a Wheel, virtuoso fiddler Kevin Buckley hones in less on opulent instrumentation and more on arrangements and songwriting through the eyes of a Midwesterner (a craft in which Buckley is more than well-versed). The couple tracks from the record that I’ve heard are affecting, deliberate, judicious. Wheel within a Wheel features some new originals and a smattering of carefully curated familiar tunes. The concept was simple enough: Buckley, searching for a way to organize his creative process, sat down and wrote a song a day for 3 weeks. Some of those songs made their way to the new record, and Buckley enlisted the help of a talented cast of St. Louis musicians: longtime collaborator Ian Walsh and guitar behemoth David Anderson, along with Bob Briedenbach, Eileen Gannon, Alan Murray, Greg Lamb, Dan Lowery, Jill Aboussie, Chris Weddle, and Theresa Hermann. Preview two tracks from Wheel within a Wheel below, and check out my interview with Kevin Buckley after the jump.

[Note: Grace Basement has a mere $600 bucks left to reach their Kickstarter goal. I'm not trying to sell y'all anything, but there will be just 300 pieces of vinyl made of this album, and wouldn't it be neat to own a square in the ever-expanding quilt that is modern St. Louis music history? Think about it.]

Kevin Buckley of Grace Basement. Photo by Nate Burrell.

You’ve traveled all over the world playing music. I was wondering if you’d tell us a bit about a particularly interesting person or people you’ve encountered along the way, and how they affected you in the short or long term as an artist.

I’ve come across some amazing people over the years in a variety of seemingly odd situations; a really skilled country blues singer/guitarist in the French Alps who could barely speak English; a hotel roommate-Buddhist-priest-claw-hammer-open-tuned-guitarist. House concerts put on by hard-drinking medieval Catholic sects. A blind guy in Winnepeg made me a sandwich at 4 in the morning once. We played a Grace Basement gig in Shreveport a while ago and Chloe Sevigny was there for some reason, definitely not to see us I can tell you. I crashed at a house where I’m pretty sure they were breeding and training pit bulls to kill people, like traveling musicians. I could go on and on.

Bringing it back home, how much or how little does St. Louis – culturally, structurally, etc. – influence your songwriting?

I find myself more and more looking to the city and region for inspiration. There’s a deep and rich musical history here, not all of it may be what people want to accept or view as trendy, but I’m digging my heels in and embracing the wonderful things that St. Louis represents. This is a blues, country, jazz, and classic rock town with a good dose of bluegrass, Irish, and old time. Can’t forget our hip hop…I remember seeing a bad-ass Nelly video in Ireland and being like, “Yeah, I’m from there.” They could tell I was from the streets. We also have a wonderful symphony orchestra. With all the Bosnian and Mexican immigrants, I’m very interested to see what happens in the next generation. Anyway, add in some 60s British Invasion and that’s where I’m coming from, though not in that particular order. The next record will delve into the sound of St. Louis even more…

You have a longstanding weekly gig at McGurk’s in Soulard (my neighborhood, as it happens). That lovely and traditional Irish pub brings in all types of folks. Got any stories of note from your time there?

In terms of playing in bars, I’ve seen it all, except for homicide. Although I’ve had homicidal urges from time to time towards annoying drunks, you realize these are places where people are supposed to cut loose and act crazy. It’s cathartic and releases many people’s inner exhibitionist [tendencies]. Maybe they don’t like their job or life kinda sucks, but they can drink a few beers, dance around and mingle. McGurk’s is a fantastic place to play and see music, although it may be perceived as more of a weekend hot spot. My weekly Monday night gig with Ian Walsh and early week days are quiet and you can really enjoy the music in a very intimate setting. Weekends are fun because you have to put on the entertainer hat and draw an audience in, sell some beer and make people happy.

Folks come down, not necessarily for a specific band, but knowing there’s live music and good times. There’s no pretense of a concert, so people just walk up to you while you’re playing, request songs or just want to say hi. They really don’t care who you are and that anonymity can be very freeing.  By the end of a good night, every one is very appreciative and that is sweet.  It’s instant gratification in many ways, playing bar gigs, but it also requires lots of patience and a thick skin. I’ve played in bars all over the world and it’s always frustrating to see a really great performance ignored by a noisy crowd.  It is suffice to say that songwriters and musicians all strive to play rooms where they have the audience’s undivided attention, so stage concerts are definitely the pinnacle.

You’re a multi-instrumentalist who has single-handedly recorded full albums on your own in the past. What are the advantages of adding more musician friends into the mix for this upcoming record?

Well, I can do a handful of things well enough to get by in the studio, but it’s nice to make the instrumental pallet bigger. Every musician has a unique voice and style and I am fortunate enough to know a lot of players, so I can get the right person for the job. I played much of the music on this record, but almost each song features another musician or instrument under a little spotlight;  I didn’t play any solos on this record (except for some fiddle on “The Almoner”). Instead, I focused my efforts on singing, playing acoustic guitar, and arranging. For instance, “Water Flowing over a Mountain” prominently features Chris Weddle’s bodhran (Irish drum) and “An Apple Will Do” has Bob Briedenbach and David Anderson trading some licks. I should also note that this is the first time I’ve had other people singing – Jill Aboussie, Theresa Hermann (my cousin), Alan Murray, and Dan Lowery. I play with Murray and Lowery at Mcgurk’s and in Las Vegas as the Bronx Boys and/or Capt. Rock.

Tell us an origin story about the creation of one of the tracks on Wheel within a Wheel.

“The Way to Be” was the first song written in a 21-day songwriting project with fellow musician Joe Kile; 21 songs in 21 days each…that sort of thing. After floundering around for a couple years, I didn’t really have any idea what I wanted to do next, but this one got me back on track. It came together very quickly, written on bass guitar and [it] introduced the simple sound I was looking for. It’s one of my favorite songs to sing as well.

Speaking of the record, you’re running a Kickstarter to fund its release. Update us on progress of the campaign and some of the rewards fans can expect if they support the album this way.

From the beginning, this album was crafted  to spin on a record a player, and I thought it would be cool to only make 300 and move on. It’s just more special and unique. However, even a short run of 300 is really expensive, so I decided to try this Kickstarter thing out.

I have no idea what to expect and it’s quite stressful to put yourself out there in such a way. Currently halfway through the campaign, I’ve got about 77% of the funds raised.  My goal is quite modest considering all the costs that have incurred. I’m basically funding the material portion of the release….the actual records and CDs, that way backers can actually get something real for their money. So, there’s the album in a variety of formats, but I’ve also included some other goodies: a b-side called “Glass”, which didn’t make it on the album but does not lack in quality; a little CD of three covers by Bob Dylan, Paul Simon and Tom Waits……a few popular numbers people might like to hear new versions of. I’m also throwing in the Broke Up Man 7” from a previous Record Store Day – there’s only a few of those left in the world. I have some other limited items – test pressings, unreleased recordings, original artwork (those are all gone now), house concerts, recording time at my studio, Avonmore, and a deal on music lessons. In other words, anything you could possibly want or need.

We’re a live music-focused blog. What should our readers expect at the May 3rd Record Release at Off Broadway?

This will be the biggest Grace Basement ensemble ever. I’ve usually gone lean and mean, which resulted in very straight ahead rock shows. I’m hoping to emphasize more sonic variety and take advantage of the pool of talent. We’ll play the new record and several songs from the upcoming record as well as a few little surprises.  It should range from solo acoustic numbers to a string band sound to loud rock and roll. Cassie Morgan and the Lonely Pine open.

Lineup for the Grace Basement Release:

– Kevin
– Ian Walsh – fiddle and mandolin
– David Anderson – guitar and pedal steel
– Greg Lamb – bass, vocals
– Jill Aboussie – drums, vocals
– Kaleb Kirby – drums
– Maureen Sullivan – vocals, piano
– Jesse Irwin – vocals, guitar

12. April 2013 by Jess
Categories: Interviews, Local Features, Show Preview | Tags: Cassie Morgan & the Lonely Pine, Grace Basement, Kevin Buckley, Kickstarter, Off Broadway, Vinyl, Wheel Within a Wheel | 1 comment