Sunday, February 23, 2014

Salem musician takes new direction, gains attention


The press kit for my new album "Inside The Box". 

Release date set for new album by Salem musician  

Kelly Taylor, a leader in the alternative Salem Oregon Metro music scene, has turned his highly skilled hand to electronic dance music (EDM) in a big way and it shows in his forthcoming album, “Inside The Box,” which will be released Feb. 27 on the boutique label Vitalistik Records, a electronic music label out of Knoxville, Tenn.
 
The album which is classified as Chill Out, a subgenre of EDM, consists of eight songs that bring an avant-garde approach to electronic music from a traditionally trained musician.



Each song is an exploration of electronic music and technology and brings to the music the same depth and dimension that fusion brings to jazz.

According to Taylor, each song has a back story.

“I was exploring chord progressions. The chord progressions in this song (“House Boat”) are based the chord progression I used in another song, “Mud Hut,” he said.

Parking Garage was written while I was sitting in parking garage in downtown Portland. There was all this energy around me and I wanted to express that.” The song contains sampled sounds of the city that he recorded while there.


“I wrote ‘I Play My Clarinet’ after listening to Penn Jillette interview comedian, Emo Philips, who speaks so musically I was inspired to write a song,” Taylor said.


Other songs are experiments in musical time signatures as well attempting to elicit specific moods and emotions in his listeners, the artist said.
“Riplets came about because I wanted to play musically with triplets, or a three quarter time signature; it transitions from four - four time,” he said.  I was inspired to write something energetic that made people feel happy, so I came up with “Move Your Butt.”

According to Taylor, “Anubus Rex” was his way of taking the listener back to the 80’s for that classic dance music feel.


“With “Melodica” I wanted something that was relaxed; that would leave someone feeling calm. “Melodious,” is a remix of “Melodica” (it comes right after it) and then ruins the relaxation that the listener would have gotten,” he said with a mischievous smile.
Taylor grew up surrounded by music and obsessed with sound. He comes from a family of musicians and music has always been a part of his life. He began his musical education as a young boy when his mother started teaching him piano. This skill would eventually be his entrance into the world of electronic music. A skilled pianist, organist, keyboardist and synth player, Taylor also plays the guitar and bass.


Described as a musical leader and visionary by his peers, Taylor weaves the various styles and his musical influences into the eclectic sound that is his own music. are as varied as his own music: The Pixies, The Flaming Lips, Tom Waits, Lyle Lovett, Elliott Smith, David Bowie, Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver, Mars Volta, Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails, Glitch Mob, Porter Robinson, the Ramones, the Clash, Acrobot, Alt J and Skrillex.  


Taylor began his music career as a bassist for the band, “Cynical Son,” a long-time staple of the Salem music scene, while still in high school. His lyrical poetry and song writing talents soon led to him co-writing lyrics and music for the band.



Not to be contained, Taylor made the leap to lead guitarist and lead singer/song writer. He fronted the alternative band, Come Back Maggie, which released two albums and drew large crowds to their shows and went on to form “We Are Street,” a three man, guitar heavy garage rock band, in which he was lead singer/songwriter and played guitar.


He has played in a variety of bands and his musical experiences run the gamut; Indy, punk, garage, Southern rock, and as a solo singer songwriter playing acoustic guitar in low key establishments.


A true Renaissance man in the classic fashion, not only does Taylor write poetry and prose as well and play several instruments, Taylor is an amazing artist who sketches in charcoal and paints in oil and is high skilled art photographer. A craftsman, he long maintained a day job as a furniture architect and designer as well as custom woodworker securing million dollar contracts for his company.


“Inside the Box” promises to be a rare gem in the music industry, innovative, interesting and a pleasure to listen to. The album can be purchased as a download on iTunes, BeatPort, Spotify and GrooveShark on Feb. 27 and selected songs are available to preview on SoundCloud, https://soundcloud.com/vitalistik.


Taylor is available for phone, Skype and in-person interviews. To schedule and interview, contact his management team at DMeantit Productions, (971)241-8256 or send email to dmeantit@gmail.com.