An irreverent and opinionated guide to jazz in Kansas City.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Now's the Time: Mike Dillon
Mike Dillon falls squarely in the tradition of versatile musicians who willingly embrace sound alternatives even though they probably would prefer to play jazz for a living. He's an accomplished player in metal, funk and jam band settings. A couple years ago I saw him add immeasurable depth and texture to a show by folkie Ani DiFranco. Dillon's jazz is better for this diverse background. He and his political funk-based jazz-pop band, Go-Go Jungle, perform tonight at Davey's Uptown. Two other Dillon-affiliated projects-Hairy Apes BMX and Malachy Papers- are also on the bill.
What makes you think he would prefer to play Jazz? Based on his MySpace and the Wikipedia entry, he seems most interested and content working in Minimalistic Electronica with a Hip-Hop beat and it seems an incredible stretch to say that he plays much of anything resembling jazz. But what do I know? Sounds interesting nonetheless. Enjoy!
"But guys also need to play to a 100+ paying customers"
Only if they rely on performance to make a living. Very few can make it without the "day job". Most of the players I've recently profiled on my blog are, if not primarily, at least nominally employed in the field of formal music education.
I can count on on my fingers the number of times I've played for paying customers. Thats not why I play. Others may have different motivations but the real musicians will play just to play and count themselves lucky if they can cash a check in the process. I know, it isn't a very good business model but it is what it is.
What makes you think he would prefer to play Jazz? Based on his MySpace and the Wikipedia entry, he seems most interested and content working in Minimalistic Electronica with a Hip-Hop beat and it seems an incredible stretch to say that he plays much of anything resembling jazz. But what do I know? Sounds interesting nonetheless. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteDoesn't every accomplished instrumental-based, non-classical musician yearn to play jazz? (I'm only half kidding.)
ReplyDeleteBut guys also need to play to a 100+ paying customers, as Dillon will do tonight.
"But guys also need to play to a 100+ paying customers"
ReplyDeleteOnly if they rely on performance to make a living. Very few can make it without the "day job". Most of the players I've recently profiled on my blog are, if not primarily, at least nominally employed in the field of formal music education.
I can count on on my fingers the number of times I've played for paying customers. Thats not why I play. Others may have different motivations but the real musicians will play just to play and count themselves lucky if they can cash a check in the process. I know, it isn't a very good business model but it is what it is.