Paul Curreri

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Paul Curreri
London Roundhouse, March 06, 2008Image by David Jones
London Roundhouse, March 06, 2008
Image by David Jones
Background information
Birth name Paul Curreri
Born 1976
Origin Flag of the United States
Seattle, Washington
Genre(s) Folk, Blues
Occupation(s) Vocalist, Guitarist, Musician
Years active 2000 - Present
Label(s) City Salvage Records
Associated acts Matt Curreri, Devon Sproule, Kelly Joe Phelps,

Paul Curreri is an American musician and songwriter born in Seattle, WA in 1976. He married songwriter/guitarist Devon Sproule in May of 2005 and currently resides with her in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Contents

[edit] History

Raised in Richmond, Virginia, Paul now makes his home in Charlottesville with songwriter/guitarist Devon Sproule; the two were married in May of 2005. Though he grew up playing music, he ended up enrolling at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) to pursue painting and film. While his experiences at art school helped develop his ability to observe and record the visual world, his true passion again rose to the surface. By the time Paul graduated from RISD, he'd composed over 200 songs on guitar and piano. Turning down a job at MTV, he set to work carving out a life as a musician.

Following a spot at New York's Knitting Factory in 2001, Curreri received several tour invites from Kelly Joe Phelps. Over the next four years, the two would play over 100 concerts together.[1]

[edit] Recordings

In April of 2002, independent Brooklyn-based label City Salvage Records released Curreri's first album, From Long Gones to Hawkmoth. Deemed a fantastic debut record by many, others of the folk-stool school pined for the barer, stripped down sound of two semi-legendary demos, referred to simply as "the red one" and "the blue one," which contain early versions of well-known songs like "Bees" and "Senseless As A Cuckoo," as well as unreleased ballads.

In June 2003, City Salvage Records released Curreri's second album, Songs for Devon Sproule. Recorded by Kelly Joe Phelps, in the same studio he had recorded his own Roll Away The Stone and Shine Eyed Mister Zen albums, over the space of just two evenings. Songs for Devon Sproule captured Curreri at his simplest.

The album found Curreri accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, and the resulting sound is similar to his inspired and inspiring concert performances. However, Phelps did play guitar on "Beneath A Crozet Trestle Bridge."

Commenting on "Fishbowl," Curreri recounts how he'd written it in Kelly Joe's attic the night before.

"I was having a bit of trouble come recording, with this and that . . . doohickies, details and tempo. Well, Kelly Joe disappears in the back of the studio, and then comes skipping on back with a big wooden plank slung over his shoulder. He leans it against the wall, all grunting, and says to me, 'Play like that. Play like a post, Paul.' It only took one more take."

The resulting effort was an album of primarily original material nourished by, but not slavish to, the country-blues and folk traditions which lie at the heart of Curreri's musical influence.

The Spirit Of The Staircase, Curreri's 2004 release saw the return of Jeff Romano, who produced and performed on 2002's From Long Gones To Hawkmoth. The album presents the music of Paul Curreri via a new variety of musical accompaniment.

The title of the record comes from a French expression l'esprit d'escalier, which means: Things you think to say after it's too late and you're on your way out the door.

2006 saw the release of his first live album, Are You Going To Paul Curreri. Recorded in two evenings at Charlottesville's Gravity Lounge in in late January, the recording finds Curreri in fantastic form, and backed by two of Charlottesville, Virginia’s most versatile musicians – Randall Pharr (bass), and Spencer Lathrop (drums).

Curreri's fifth album, The Velvet Rut, was released in the UK on Tin Angel Records in June 2007. It was released in the States in October of 2007, again on Brooklyn's City Salvage Records. It is a decidedly darker record than many of Paul's others (though some call it his funniest). Uncut Magazine gave it four stars, and called it a "riveting trip." Mojo gave it an almost unheard of 5 stars. "The Velvet Rut" features a mass of sound surrounding eloquent guitarwork. Curreri played all the accompanying instruments himself.

[edit] Style and sound

Paul Curreri is renowned for his inspired songs, bright voice, and talented finger-style playing. Described by WTJU's Aer Stephen as "A ruffled gypsy gutter cowboy, a true life adventurer, a bright new voice", Paul Curreri has also been compared to Martin Sexton for his reputation for inspired live performances (and more elusive success in the studio). The Velvet Rut features a mass of sound surrounding his eloquent guitarwork. Curreri reportedly played all the accompanying instruments himself.

". . on Mantra, the opening track of The Velvet Rut, he has turned all dirty Delta blues. But by God it sounds good. Kicking off with a smokers cough and edgy drumming, the song sounds nastier than a Memphis night on bad bootleg. Then again, should I be surprised that the Charlottesville singer has that darkness inside him? He is Kelly Joe Phelps's protégé after all."[2]

—Danuta Kean, MusicOMH.com

"He lets his quirks hang out, his funky crazy characters run wild, and his own whims, sometimes silliness, sometimes pain, and always humanness become his Velvet Rut . . Curreri reminds me of guitar master, Rene Lawrence, with a crazy intricate, crashing, dancing fingerpicking that simply makes sense in context with his themes . . The Velvet Rut comes on edgy and dirty, moves into rootsy, bluesy places, feels a little Appalachian at times, and maybe a bit like folk, but it doesn't make a commitment to any of them . . Acoustic, electric, electronica, distorted, fragile, in your face all thrown into the mix for a delightful listen. "

—Christy Claxton, Stave Magazine

". . pick a night, an evening with rain or mist and a shy moon, and get caught in the current of his clockwork acoustic guitar, get showered by the notes that arc off the strings like sparks. Curreri wrings bent and worried tones and hacks ringing, open-ended chords to punctuate points, or question arguments, or second emotions. It's a more lively conversation -- among himself, his guitar, his characters, his listeners -- than you get in a roomful of people."[3]

—Mike Parisi, Music Columnist The Hook

"A dark and intimidating sonic assault on the mind...a lyrical master class. Paul is a true avant-garde Americana poet -- a deeper and darker hybrid of John Cooper Clarke and Beck -- and one heckuva guitarist."

—Maverick Magazine

"Paul Curreri gives us what too few other songwriters can -- real stories to follow, real words to listen to, all bound tight in invigorating guitar and harmonica. His brilliance, like his lovely voice, is quiet and relaxed enough to almost distract you from its intensity. But it hits you soon, and hard, that you're hearing something exquisite."[4]

—Matt Dellinger, The New Yorker Magazine

"Gentle in thought, perceptive in lyric and melodic in finely tuned fretwork . . Curreri's finger-picking style is lilting and fluid, and there's a languid tension throughout that's created by a strong and sure dynamic sense. The flicking and scampering of his fingers weave an aural magic that complements his elusive and playful vocal style perfectly. Lyrically, Curreri is full of taste and truth, poetic jewels."[5]

—9x Magazine

"Curreri sounds like the sum of the best folk musicians from across the country, ground up into pulp, and deposited into one hip vessel."[6]

—The Hook, July 28, 2002

"5 STARS... With his instinctive, sensual gift for melody, Curreri's songs are saturated in colour and feeling, the sonic equivalent of William Eggleston's photography. Superb."

—Mojo

"Curreri's weaving guitar lines, faster than light finger-picking, and melodies often appearing to have come from above, make him an instant favorite of most who have had the pleasure of seeing him, or hearing one of his two albums."[7]

—The Hook, June 12, 2003

[edit] Discography

[edit] Distinctions and awards

"His idiosyncratic brand of fingerpicked folk-blues comes highly recommended, and in terms of guitar virtuosity he's certainly up there with the John Renbourns and Tommy Emmanuels of the guitar world. Great stuff."[8]

—jacoustic, last.fm

BEST LOCAL SOLO MUSICIAN 2001 -- In the words of the second of his two self-titled discs, the intended daydream has hit the street. Curreri can be just as elusive and charismatic as a 1962 Dylan ... and full of himself, in a self-celebrating, fun, Whitmanesque kind of way. Plus, the well-traveled Richmond native's got rakish good looks, literary chops, and a vision of America chock full o' trains, fair maidens by rivers, and country roads.[9]

—C-Ville Weekly, "BEST OF 2001" issue

[edit] Reviews, articles, interviews

[edit] References

  1. ^ Official Website
  2. ^ "Paul Curreri - The Velvet Rut (Tin Angel)" by Danuta Kean, UK release date: 11 June 2007, (four out of five stars) in MusicOMH.com.
  3. ^ http://www.readthehook.com/ The Hook
  4. ^ http://www.newyorker.com/ The New Yorker Magazine
  5. ^ http://www.plan9music.com/Magazine 9x Magazine
  6. ^ "Sonic boom: Local sound scene doesn't just rock" COVER STORY by Mark Grabowski, published July 28, 2002, in issue #25 of The Hook.
  7. ^ "Long night: Music better in small bites. Meredith Bragg, Paul Curreri, and James Mason @ Tokyo Rose Thursday, June 5" MUSIC REVIEW by Mark Grabowsky, published June 12, 2003 in issue #0223 of The Hook.
  8. ^ "Paul Curreri @ The Spitz, London, 23/06/2007" by jacoustic in Seen Live in 2007 (with brief reviews) 24 Jun 2007 last.fm.
  9. ^ http://www.c-ville.com/ C-Ville Weekly

[edit] See also

Portal:Guitar

[edit] External links

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