Jason Harrod, Blueprint Music April 21, 2006

Presented by The Harrison Center for the Arts

All Ages $7, Doors at 7pm, Show at 8pm

Full Coffee Bar/Door Prizes



Jason Harrod draws from the best traditions of American music to create a sound all his own. As part of the Boston-based duo Harrod and Funck, he released three albums to critical acclaim, one of which, the pair's eponymous sophomore CD, reached number 38 on the CMJ AAA top 40 chart. Harrod and Funck toured across the country and sold a combined total of over 30,000 CDs before parting ways in 1998.



Back in his native North Carolina, Jason launched a solo career that allowed him to indulge his Southern and traditional folk influences more freely without abandoning the contemporary folk sound and excellent songwriting that characterized the music of Harrod and Funck. Sung in a rich, brooding tenor and underscored by inventive guitarwork, his songs about lost love, found joys, and spiritual longing have garnered him a loyal following across the country.



In 2000, Jason won first place in the bluegrass category of the Chris Austin Songwriting competition at the annual MerleFest, an honor held by Grammy Nominees Tift Merrit and Gillian Welch. He followed that up with a first place win in 2001 in the fourth annual songwriting contest sponsored by The North Carolina Songwriters Co-op, and in 2002 appeared on the Lengendary Arthur Smith's "Carolina Calling" television show along with Alison Krauss and Union Station.



Living in Skin, Jason Harrod's acoustic-based first album, contains the timeless Southern strains, alluring melodies, and incisive lyrics which have become Harrod's hallmarks. It features the award-winning songs "When I Get Home," and "Carolina," the latter of which which got heavy airpay on WUNC's "Back Porch Music," and was included on the compilation CD, Best of Back Porch Music.



Jason Harrod's new release, Bright As You, is a blues-infused foot-stomping affair, finding Harrod backed by a crack group of musicians featuring Phil Madeira (Emmylou Harris, Buddy Miller, Al Green, Mavis Staples), Kenny Meeks (Sixpence None the Richer), and the bedrock rhythm section of Dennis Holt (Kerry Livgren, Richie Furay) and Chris Donahue (Vigilantes of Love, Fleming and John). The songs, drenched in sunlight and dogged by shadow, range from the straight ahead blues-rock of "Kickin Mule" to the Beatlesque pop of "Bright As You," to the ambient psychedelic folk of "Goodnight Sunshine," and are, as one critic put it, "The kinds of songs that stay with you long after listening."



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BLUEPRINTMUSIC is an Indianapolis based quintet utilizing eight different instruments and numerous musical genres. Vocalist Kate Lamont and guitarist/ banjo player Doug Sauter have created a style of music that is stripped of the artificial and steeped in the long history of original American music. Soulful lyrics collide with progressive arrangements creating a seamless musical landscape that reflects the past as much as it is relevant to the future.



Kate Lamont has a natural vocal style that encompasses jazz, soul, southern and modern music. Her lyrics and melodies set stark images against charged emotion. Lamont's voice slides up and down the scales without the gaudy trills of the plethora of over-active singers.



Doug Sauter's creatively tuned guitars sing with rich harmony while delicate finger-style melodies are spliced into aggressively strummed rhythms. Sauter has taken the banjo from its' traditional, homespun heritage and fits it beautifully into a twenty-first century music world.



Adding to the final blueprint of BLUEPRINTMUSIC are Matt Koher's precise and omniscient skills on the mandolin and fiddle. Koher's subtle arrangement ideas add an edgy quality to the group. At the same time Grover Parido applies his smooth talents as a cellist. He creates a foundation of sound and strength that is boosted by his classical upbringing while reminiscent of a top shelf jazz bassist. Joshua Strodtman rounds out this exceptional quintet with percussion and guitar woven tastefully within the groups' layers. Strodtman adds a distinction to BLUEPRINTMUSIC with his background in West African drumming and his dedication to finding new sounds. All of these elements combine to create an innovative and unforgettable live experience that match BLUEPRINTMUSIC's two CD releases; 2004's "Ghost's and Eskimo's" and 2002's "Released."



BLUEPRINTMUSIC is a refreshing blend of equal parts and tasteful restraint. It is undoubtedly American music that gains its' strength from the passion and diversity of the musicians who created it.

Event submitted by Eventful on behalf of gregor.