By Don Allred
Ohio-launched singer/songwriter Tim Easton’s albums have moved from strong support by the likes of Lucinda Williams and members of Wilco, to less famous, long-time colleagues from Columbus, Nashville, Austin, and Brooklyn. As Easton described the process, “It’s not a ‘coming full circle’ kind of thing, but more the center point of a figure-8, where I am passing back through on my way to many other directions.” This also happens in (and to) many of his songs. A recent YouTube posting finds him once again in Japan, still not speaking much of the language, nevertheless bonding with local volunteers. Together, they deliver a twist of Lennon, an undercurrent of Pink Floyd, and a blast of Midwestern plaid punkiness. The song being performed, “Did Your Mother Teach You That?,” taunts and seriously queries the sources of bloody-minded self-righteousness, now transformed into safe, fun, musical violence.
Easton’s transparent vocals and seamlessly edited, seemingly stream-of-consciousness songs continue to kinetically re-direct familiar stylistic elements and life’s issues, especially on his two new albums. The congenially electric Beat the Band even finds discreet consolation in a sonically sublime vision of anatomy (and/or pickiness) as destiny, via long-lost, sweet home Columbus: “She takes her time/Gettin’ satisfied/And when the time is right/She wants you to take it too/All your desires/weren’t enough, to keep her free/From leavin’ you.” The solo acoustic Since 1966, Volume 1 was recorded in remote areas, way out West, where sunlight and shadows sound equally approachable, and almost equally unavoidable. Several softer tracks set the listener up for the punch of “Why Oh Why,” which could have been forbiddingly grief-stricken. Instead, it trains ears to wait for a certain catchy, yet sparingly applied ingredient, applied by a steady hand, amid unstoppable, unanswerable questions.
During this weekend of shows, Easton’s sporting accompaniment by the Madison Square Gardeners, a sextet including two of his road-tested Columbus-to-Brooklyn co-producers, multi-instrumentalists Aaron Lee Tasjan (former The OSU campus brat) and Mark Stepro. Along with the Gardeners, Easton will back one of his enduring role models, Columbus songwriter/film maker J.P. Olsen. Now that 100 of his own tunes are released and ready for further testing on stage (including solo interludes), Easton also reminds us, “There’s always a new song to drop on folks.”
Tim Easton will be performing with the Madison Square Gardeners and J.P. Olsen at the Rumba Cafe, on Friday, June 24, and Saturday, June 25. Both shows start at 10 p.m. $10 all audiences. Easton will also perform on the Comfest Main Stage, in Goodale Park, on Sunday, June 26. The show starts at 1 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, please visit www.timeaston.com or www.columbusrumbacafe.com. More on Porcupine and the Tim show: May 2009
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