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Re: Michael Monroe gig in City Center, Mpls today review



If you could find out if he has a web site I would appreciate it- I 
searched
but there is a big hair rocker with same name that screams to the top of 
all
searches-

Cliff

-----Original Message-----
From: Todd Madson <crash@waste.org>
To: Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com
<Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
Date: Wednesday, December 06, 2000 12:39 PM
Subject: Michael Monroe gig in City Center, Mpls today review


>I saw Michael Monroe do a free performance in the skyway of City
>Center in Minneapolis around noon today when I was on my lunch hour.
>
>This guy is freaking amazing.  Instruments: 1 Godin acoustic-electric
>classical guitar with synth pickup, Roland GR-1 synth, 1 Lexicon Jam
>Man, 1 dbx compressor, 1 alesis reverb effect, a mixer, a PA, and
>Michael on vocals, flute and ocarina.
>
>I've never seen looping done like this live:
>He'd play 8 bars of guitar with vocals, then add a harmony guitar
>AND vocal line, then add bass and organ (as triggered from the GR1),
>then add many layers of harmony vocals.  It was all done totally
>cleanly, clearly and professionally.  And then he could extend
>the arrangements - he'd play flute and it would get looped too.
>He'd use Ocarina to create a seagull cry effect.
>
>At one point, he had eight vocal harmonies in counterpoint, multiple
>guitar arrangements (not unlike King Crimson's "Discipline" era),
>with bass, drumming, organ/synth/strings/piano.  Beautiful stuff.
>
>Eventually, he'd fade the looping out and end the tunes or he'd
>go back down to one instrument and gradually fade more and different
>things in.  He did everything from reggae tunes, a Joni Mitchell
>piece, his own music, a few christmas tunes for good measure,
>and really had drawn quite a crowd.
>
>He basically had two Lexicon dual switch pedals to control the Jam
>Man, the footpedal of the GR1, his hands to play guitar, flute,
>control the audio mixer among other things.
>
>He even did a little demo on how looping works to the audience and
>did multiple levels of vocal harmony with himself.  He also showed
>off the GR1 and how that worked.
>
>I've heard great musicians live in that space, Billy McLaughlin is
>a notable example, but I've never seen a musician actually get
>applause and he got it multiple times.
>
>He'll be back tomorrow I'm told so if you're in the downtown Minneapolis
>area definetely check this guy out.
>
>-Todd
>--
>
>