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Built to Spill starts tour at Big Easy
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Mark your calendar. Boise’s favorite sons, Built To Spill, are taking the stage at The Big Easy on Tuesday night.
Built To Spill’s latest album, “Ancient Melodies Of The Future” blends transcendental guitar layering with thoughtful poetic lyrics and strong, inventive rhythms. The end result is a deeply hypnotic and intelligent mixture of evoking modern rock.
Built To Spill’s melodious sound spawned from the popular indie band, Tree People, where singer-songwriter Doug Martsch first honed his vision of the band’s concept of producing tight, evocative guitar music.
Martsch, a native Boisean, formed Built To Spill after Tree People disbanded in the early “90s. When Martsch first started the band, he was the only full-time member. For several years he had a rotating rhythm section, not until 1997 did Built To Spill have a solid lineup.
With the help of Scott Plouf on drums and Brett Nelson on bass, Martsch finally amassed the perfect rhythm section to accompany his textured guitar styling.
“A drummer’s role is pretty different in different groups, and with this one it’s really guitar driven. So I feel like the drums just need to be steady and solid – nothing too outrageous because it would take away from what the guitar is doing,” Plouf said.
Although Martsch is the leader of Built To Spill, their hypnotic driving force is possible due to all three musicians” capability and commitment to produce high-quality, introspective music.
Many critics have lauded Martsch as one of the most innovative guitar players in the industry as well as one of the most talented songwriters of his generation, but he is humble about being labeled a “guitar hero.”
I think it’s really strange that people think I’m a great guitarist because I really am not even mediocre. The only thing I’ve ever had going for me as a guitarist is that I’m kind of bold. I play hard and that kind of gives the impression that I’m better than I am,” Martsch said.
This humility paired with Built To Spill’s indie sensibilities has given them an ardent following of devoted fans over the years.
Their seventh album, “Ancient Melodies” infuses post-punk impressions with astute lyrics and intense rhythms steeped heavily in guitar-influenced classic rock.
The track, “The Host” conjures up memories of the legendary Velvet Underground’s warped melodies, yet stands alone as an original entity, which is purely Built To Spill. And “Strange” displays Martcsh’s inventive guitar capabilities and prowess for tight melodies perfectly accompanied by Plouf and Nelson.
Since 1994, producer Phil Ek has helped Built To Spill translate their musical uniqueness to recorded format and feels “Ancient Melodies” is one their most mature efforts to date.
“I think there’s something kind of lush and dirty about it at the same time. It has an older, classic rock sonic quality to it in its clean dirtiness. It has an edge to it, but it also sounds like one big sound,” Ek said.
“Ancient Melodies” transports the listener back in time and pushes them a thousand light years ahead simultaneously. “You Are” undulates with high octave dreaminess underscored by steady bass work and tight drumming.
“The Weather” is a cozy number that personifies Martsch’s songwriting greatness. The keyboards warp and expand like a cosmic clarinet, the whole time in syncopation to the rhythm and augmented melody.
Martsch is the first one to admit when the band goes into the studio that things don’t always go as planned.
“Basically, I work on songs for hours and hours and just come up with moments of to use. It’s a lot like trial and error, I guess. Everything basically happens by accident, but then you decide which accidents are worth using,” Martsch said.
J. Patrick Kelly
