American Nobody, lyrics listeners relate to
Jessica Eshom-Hampton
Issue date: 1/27/10 Section: Opinion
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He goes by the name American Nobody but he certainly isn't a nobody. Independent musician Brian Granse has been featured on the PBS series "Road Trip Nation" along with musicians like Jack Johnson and Sufjan Stephens.
This 28 year old self taught guitarist, song writer, and performer is one of Portland's top looping artists. Live looping is a process where audio samples are recorded by the musician and played back in real time using either hardware or software. These audio clips are used in the show as layers to accompany the musician ultimately as a one man band.
In May 2009, American Nobody performed here at Peninsula College. I had an opportunity to see him again when he was in town on Saturday, January 16, at the Junction Roadhouse.
Granses' live looping show included an assortment of music and technology which was hypnotic to watch. His ability to sing, play the tambourine, harmonica, guitar, and maneuver the foot petals was impressive, not to mention the brief "beat box" loop he recorded.
The show consisted of many genres. He had the versatility to go from techno to country to mellow folk then to Celtic instrumental without disrupting the mood of the atmosphere.
He carefully tuned his electric acoustic guitar between songs and recorded "loops", but never ignored the crowd. He always remembered to keep us involved by telling the audience about his songs, upcoming plans which include work on a hip hop song, or just thanking the listeners and toasting them for coming out to the show.
"He reminds me of a young Bobby Dylan with a harmonica and guitar, only he has more musicality," said Bruce McCurdy.
We were introduced to some of his new songs coming out on his new album. My favorite 2 were "Strangers Dream" and an untitled one that I like to remember to myself as "Rust".
He began recording a new CD on January 19, which, after listening to his previous CD's, I will be looking forward to purchasing.
His songs are available online in i-Tunes and MP3 format at www.american-nobody.com. The website lists live shows. It's intriguing to see this versatile Indie artist work his music magic.
Brian Granse has two CD's recorded. "Earthrise", released under his name Brian Granse and self titled "American Nobody".
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