Music

LABOR OF LOVE

Love .45 has made success come the hard way

The crowd of thousands goes wild as the band finishes up its last song and takes its exit. With roaring crowds still in the background, the band members are escorted into a room for their own private viewing of the Stanley Cup. What big-name band deserves such treatment? The name of the band is Love .45, and it may not be known worldwide yet, but it's well on its way.

Love .45 has climbed its way up the ranks by being one of the hardest working bands in Denver, said Paul Trinidad Jr. who plays the lead and rhythm guitar. The rest of the band-- which consists of Micki Shivers on rhythm guitar and lead vocals, Jim Messina on drums and percussion and Danny Elster who plays bass guitar-- agrees.

"We play all the time, every-where, every chance we get," Trinidad said.

"In Colorado Springs we had to move tables out of the way after people were done eating to make our own stage so we could play," Shivers recalled.

"We'll do whatever it takes. Some of the places we have played, we just look at each other and wonder what are we doing here?" Elster joked. "If we get through those then it doesn't get much worse. We make the best of everything we

do and it keeps us happy and keeps everything fresh." Every weekend they are either out on the road playing in Colorado mountain towns or playing shows around Denver. They have performed in every type of venue from the Bluebird to bookstores, sometimes play-ing only for a few and other times performing for the mass-es, like they did at the Colorado Convention Center February 2 at the NHL All-Star Fantasy.

Shivers used an analogy to describe his experience of shows in Denver.

"Playing in bands in Denver-- playing in bands pretty much anywhere when you're not a signed act-- is a lot like being a comedian, because you can get in front of a crowd one night and everything you do is genius," Shivers said. "You're doing basically the same thing you've been doing all along, it's just that the crowd is reacting to you and you start to react to the crowd and there's this reciprocative thing going on and everybody's having a good time. Then you play the exact same club a month later, and the people will absolutely hate you. It's the same club, the same songs, the only problem is you get no response and it kind of takes the wind out of your sails."

"Those nights are really hard to play because you still have to put out the energy. There still might be the few that you do reach," he added.

During the week, when they are not tending to their regular jobs, they are rehearsing, writing, or working on pre-production for their new CD expected for release in fall.

"We don't have a life really out-side of this. It's work and the band," Elster admitted with a look which meant he was only half joking.

"Jim was just saying last week, we could either be playing in the basement for each other or we can be out there playing, and we choose to be out there," Trinidad said.

Love .45 doesn't contribute all of its success to work ethic. "We feel like we have one of the better live shows in town," Trinidad said. "We're an ener-getic band, and we interact with the audience."

"We entertain them, that's what it's all about," Shivers said. "We like to have fun up there."

"And if you're having a good time, nine times out of ten, the audience is having a great time too," Elster added.

Even though each member of the band is influenced by different genres of music, they all come together to compose their own songs. Shivers writes most of the lyrics, but everyone contributes ideas and they throw it all together, Messina said.

"That's what I think makes our songs the way they are, because it's just this vast array of everything," Shivers said. "In the end, it's just good modern rock."

"It's what keeps us together," Messina said.

Every once in a while they will play some covers, but most of the time they rely on their own originals.

"We strategically play covers," Trinidad said. "Sometimes there are people who've never heard you, never seen you and they're sitting there saying, 'Why should we care about you?' And then you give them something they're familiar with. And then they're a little more open with what you are doing."

"Our own stuff is melodic and energetic enough, though, that it keeps the audience interested," Elster said.

So, what is to become of Love .45? They all agreed they would love to be a signed band with worldwide distribution, but they also said that even the smallest bit of success would suit them just fine.

"Just to get out and do it professionally," Elster said. "I mean what we're doing is professional, but this is kind of like the minor leagues."

"We want to just keep doing what we're doing," Trinidad said. "Writing and recording our own music and having fun while doing it." --Sarah Carney

CD Reviews

DRAGON AND THE HAWK SOUNDTRACK

It takes a certain personality to buy soundtracks. I'm not talking about the glorified compilation CDs released by studios to promote their teen flicks. I mean the actual full-length soundtracks of a movie's incidental music and orchestral themes. One must have a sense of drama to sit at home and listen to movie music: all those important swelling scores and sudden drum beats swirling around the room, making surfing the Internet feel as exciting as fighting for Scotland's freedom or running from a pack of wild dinosaurs.

That said, a soundtrack can only be judged on what it evokes, and Dragon and the Hawk's music cues evoke a genuinely creepy atmosphere befitting this local movie's tale of a kidnapper gone seriously evil. Scoring an action movie on all-electronic equipment is a tricky task-- we've all heard the typical late-night HBO action movie's hackneyed use of throbbing bass notes and cheesy romantic synthesizers. Composer Guy Bianchini does a marvelous job creating a professional (and at times, moving) soundtrack without the budget for a full orchestra. Only a few isolated moments on the album come across as cheesy: the cue called "The Team," which has the feel of a Super Nintendo game, and the single "Now You're Mine!" which, to be honest, is just plain goofy. The other 90 percent of the music stands far and above any other low-budget action movie's soundtrack I've ever heard (and with my insomniac cable-watching habits, that's a lot of soundtracks).

Overall, this is an impressive effort, and well worth buying if you're the type to imagine you're fighting ninjas while sitting on the couch at home. B --Chris J. Magyar

CD Reviews

This is an unusual but extremely intriguing CD. Seth Geltman assembled 13 jazz, classical, and rock musicians from around town to play on a bunch of tracks arranged by another friend of his, Thomas Blomster. The result becomes an intermingling of unorthodox instrumentation featuring the "normal" band instruments of drums, guitars and bass but wisely and deftly including a tuba, clarinet, violin, marimba, vibes and saxophones. Geltman's minimally monotone, sweet and sad vocals add a sort of bemused quality to the pot.

Each track stands on its own in terms of style, instrumentation and groove. As the disc plays, one tune with a Brazilian-jazz feel (" Almost") leads to "Promise Me," a song that local band The Czars could have easily included on its own record. By the time "It's Good," comes around as the tenth track, its sprightly busyness and added female vocals seem to lift the clouds from our recent snowy winter days.

Pale Boy is a serious and professional record in all ways. Blomster provides the complex and unique arrangement of each song. The musicians on the project are stellar. But, Pale Boy also has a tricky sense of humor. Geltman's lyrics are political, thoughtful, disarming and sometimes, downright strange. Irony and wordplay ooze all over the place. And, as good as Mary Jungerman is on bass clarinet, it still sounds goofy blooting along underneath the higher ranged instruments. "Chloe" is a beautiful instrumental, perfect for a little beach bungalow daydream. Fans of Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart, Leonard Cohen, David Byrne, Steve Reich and Kurt Weill will certainly enjoy a listen.

The independent spirit of the record runs parallel with Geltman's conviction for producing this musical offering. Aspiring artists know how hard it can be to find talent, funds, and continued motivation for a project that does not quite fit into the corporate mainstream. With the help of an insurance check from a timely car accident, Geltman finished the project after receiving help and acclaim from the Jim Beam Benefiting Emerging Artists in Music (BEAM) grant. A-
--Judy B.

BEAT DIET

INTERVIEW WITH GEL-O

Go-Go: What was the name of the first party you attended?

Gel-O: "Enchanted" in Houston, 1994.

Go-Go: When did you decide you were going to be a DJ?

Gel-O: Later that year, I started fooling around with MIDI. I was pretty hardcore into computers growing up.

Go-Go: What was the first record you purchased?

Gel-O: Uberzone's Botz.

Go-Go: What is your favorite record store?

Gel-O: Amoeba in San Francisco.

Go-Go: What are your top five favorite records?

Gel-O: Buzzthrill: Soul Music; DJ Icey: We Do It Like This; Hudia Hudia: C'mon Breakdown; Whitelabel Bootleg: Big $; Cajmiere: The Percolator.

Go-Go: What has been your worst experience as a DJ?

Gel-O: $1,000 noise ticket from the Boulder P. D.

Go-Go: What has been your best experience as a DJ?

Gel-O: Spinning on four decks with DJ Spice at Yellow 69's "Glass Elevator."

Go-Go: How long have you been doing live PA?

Gel-O: My partner Matt and I have been throwing down low key since the summer of 2000, but D. L. is about to turn into R-E-A-L.

Go-Go: How did it feel to open for Space Girl at "Hypnosis"?

Gel-O: Inspirational. Go-Go: Where can I buy your record?

Gel-O: I am releasing the first 50 copies at Bart's on Pearl Street in Boulder towards the end of February.

Go-Go: What does the future hold for Clean Cut Recordings?

Gel-O: My tracks, along with other local musicians, will be included on the first Clean Cut Recordings CD compilation later this spring.

--orange peel moses

For booking information on Dig Interactive/ Underground resident Gel-O, drop him a line in cyberspace at norausky@colorado.edu