NTB, September 1994
By Leif Gjerstad
Submitted by Ana
Translated by me
Oslo: The superlatives hail around Jeff Buckley's studio album "Grace". The album could well be called "Amazing Grace", but that title was already taken.
Jeff Buckley's highly personal mix of folk, rock, jazz and blues explains and defends the attention of the 27-year-old. But at the same time, interest in him is strengthened because of the origins. His father was Tim Buckley, one of the 70's great folk cult heroes who died of an overdose in 1975.
However, Jeff Buckley had minimal contact with his father. Apparently, they just met each other only once, shortly before Tim died. That's why we get told already before we meet Jeff Buckley that Tim Buckley is a non-topic for our conversation. On the other hand, he is more open about his mother.
"She is a musician, and from the time I was tiny I was surrounded by music. Some of the things that shaped me most were probably our car trips. The radio was always on, and since the 70's FM radio was more open than today, I was exposed to many types of music. I've had a lot of enjoyment later in life," says Jeff and cites Stevie Wonder, Velvet Underground, Van Morrison and Captain Beefheart as four early and important sources of inspiration.
Low-key and philosophical
Since 1990, Jeff has lived in New York and it is in this melting pot he has found his musical home. It is also the experience from this which has led to a record contract and a European tour, he says low-key to NTB. And leaves us to add that the Oslo concert before the weekend became an unconditional success.
Jeff Buckley speaks in lowercase letters, and seems more interested in talking about philosophy and the artist's place in today's society than about his own exploits. But he can still talk a little about the way to "Grace".
"My first concert in New York was a memorial concert in honor of my father, But otherwise, I focused on my own business. I played alone at small clubs around New York, and this resulted in the live CD "Live at Sin-E" and how I met the three who joined "Grace" and now make up my band."
Eclectic
On "Grace" Jeff Buckley moves painlessly over musical dividing lines, with his very elastic voice as an important link.
"I use the ingredients that I need to paint the mood I seek. The voice is important because it can both convey words and act as an instrument in line with all the others," says Buckley who has written seven of Grace's ten songs. One of the three "borrowed" songs is Cohen's song "Hallelujah".
"Cohen's songs have a quality that makes them fit well in completely different events," said Buckley, who thanks us nicely when we imply that his music is melancholy and dark.
"I like dark moods, without it meaning I'm depressed. Most of the songs I've actually written while I've been in love," Jeff replies and stresses the need to relate to both joy and pain.
"We need both to understand life. And for creative people, insight into life should be the most important thing. All experiences are reflected in what is being created, and the deeper the perception of life an artist has, the deeper and more truthful becomes the artistic expression. Which, in addition to reflecting the world as it is, should also convey ideas about how it should be."
Anti-commercial?
As a CD, Grace gets closer to the listener with every play, but might miss the instant availability that the record market wants?
"It's just the way the world is and nothing to bother with. The fear of the unknown has led to a narrow view for anything that does not have a market-minded soul," comments Buckley, and dismisses the myth of grunge as something alternative.
"I like a lot of it, but to argue that Pearl Jam & Co is nothing but pop is just nonsense. At all times there is an underground that feeds the reason with moods and ideas. Grunge is such an overground phenomenon, a fashionable pop variant that diverts people from the real underground. This is also one of the reasons why grunge has become so popular. It irritates 'forbidden' feelings in people, but never goes deep enough to make it uncomfortable or dangerous," says Jeff, mentioning to create music he has never heard before as an important goal.
Call his friends
There was something his father did, we suggest, and move further into the "forbidden" area by asking Jeff what his father's music meant to him?
"In his music he shows a picture of his soul to me. But if you would like to know more about my father, I have the phone numbers of many of his old friends.
They know a lot more about him than me," Jeff Buckley sums up elegantly, leaving the ball dead.
But, of course, we forgot the phone numbers to ask for.
By Leif Gjerstad
Submitted by Ana
Translated by me
Oslo: The superlatives hail around Jeff Buckley's studio album "Grace". The album could well be called "Amazing Grace", but that title was already taken.
Jeff Buckley's highly personal mix of folk, rock, jazz and blues explains and defends the attention of the 27-year-old. But at the same time, interest in him is strengthened because of the origins. His father was Tim Buckley, one of the 70's great folk cult heroes who died of an overdose in 1975.
However, Jeff Buckley had minimal contact with his father. Apparently, they just met each other only once, shortly before Tim died. That's why we get told already before we meet Jeff Buckley that Tim Buckley is a non-topic for our conversation. On the other hand, he is more open about his mother.
"She is a musician, and from the time I was tiny I was surrounded by music. Some of the things that shaped me most were probably our car trips. The radio was always on, and since the 70's FM radio was more open than today, I was exposed to many types of music. I've had a lot of enjoyment later in life," says Jeff and cites Stevie Wonder, Velvet Underground, Van Morrison and Captain Beefheart as four early and important sources of inspiration.
Low-key and philosophical
Since 1990, Jeff has lived in New York and it is in this melting pot he has found his musical home. It is also the experience from this which has led to a record contract and a European tour, he says low-key to NTB. And leaves us to add that the Oslo concert before the weekend became an unconditional success.
Jeff Buckley speaks in lowercase letters, and seems more interested in talking about philosophy and the artist's place in today's society than about his own exploits. But he can still talk a little about the way to "Grace".
"My first concert in New York was a memorial concert in honor of my father, But otherwise, I focused on my own business. I played alone at small clubs around New York, and this resulted in the live CD "Live at Sin-E" and how I met the three who joined "Grace" and now make up my band."
Eclectic
On "Grace" Jeff Buckley moves painlessly over musical dividing lines, with his very elastic voice as an important link.
"I use the ingredients that I need to paint the mood I seek. The voice is important because it can both convey words and act as an instrument in line with all the others," says Buckley who has written seven of Grace's ten songs. One of the three "borrowed" songs is Cohen's song "Hallelujah".
"Cohen's songs have a quality that makes them fit well in completely different events," said Buckley, who thanks us nicely when we imply that his music is melancholy and dark.
"I like dark moods, without it meaning I'm depressed. Most of the songs I've actually written while I've been in love," Jeff replies and stresses the need to relate to both joy and pain.
"We need both to understand life. And for creative people, insight into life should be the most important thing. All experiences are reflected in what is being created, and the deeper the perception of life an artist has, the deeper and more truthful becomes the artistic expression. Which, in addition to reflecting the world as it is, should also convey ideas about how it should be."
Anti-commercial?
As a CD, Grace gets closer to the listener with every play, but might miss the instant availability that the record market wants?
"It's just the way the world is and nothing to bother with. The fear of the unknown has led to a narrow view for anything that does not have a market-minded soul," comments Buckley, and dismisses the myth of grunge as something alternative.
"I like a lot of it, but to argue that Pearl Jam & Co is nothing but pop is just nonsense. At all times there is an underground that feeds the reason with moods and ideas. Grunge is such an overground phenomenon, a fashionable pop variant that diverts people from the real underground. This is also one of the reasons why grunge has become so popular. It irritates 'forbidden' feelings in people, but never goes deep enough to make it uncomfortable or dangerous," says Jeff, mentioning to create music he has never heard before as an important goal.
Call his friends
There was something his father did, we suggest, and move further into the "forbidden" area by asking Jeff what his father's music meant to him?
"In his music he shows a picture of his soul to me. But if you would like to know more about my father, I have the phone numbers of many of his old friends.
They know a lot more about him than me," Jeff Buckley sums up elegantly, leaving the ball dead.
But, of course, we forgot the phone numbers to ask for.
No comments:
Post a Comment