Marco Mahler - Otmar Elmer
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As you might have guessed, I have about five or six articles already pre-written and I queue them up to be published days in advance. This article below, I had meant it to go live on Sunday, but I got such a positive feedback (and great working material) from the artist, that I've decided to publish the article tonight. Please let me know what you think! There will be a surprise treat for you!
Anyway, according to Marco Mahler's press release, he's influenced by Stephen Malkmus, Belle and Sebastian [W♥M] and Bert Jansch. Since I liked all those musicians, I decided to give Mahler a try.
Reading his biography, it would seem that Mahler has a dual citizen in the US and Switzerland. He's currently based out of Brooklyn, New York, and he released Design In Quick Rotation last month.
My favorite track off of Design In Quick Rotation is "Otmar Elmer". You can just hear Mahler's very skilled guitar-playing in this song.
Unfortunately it's an instrumental track, so it's a bit unfair to represent Mahler's sound with this song. I suggest you head over to his myspace and listen to any of his songs he has on there. "Orange Chinese Car" is a pretty solid track.
I was curious about Otmar Elmer's origin and why it seems to conjure up images of a Spanish/Flamenco music when I first listened to it. I asked Mahler, who wrote back this very detailed reply:
I see it (even though it is somewhat different) as sort of my contemporary version of Bert Jansch’s “Angie” (from his 1965 debut album “Bert Jansch”). Sort of an evolutionary step/version. Bert Jansch got it from Davey Graham’s “Angi” (from his 1962 debut album “3/4 AD”) who, if I remember this right (I just googled it but couldn’t find anything on it off hand), got it from a tune by Thelonious Monk. I think “Otmar Elmer” has, in an abstract way, simple elements of electronic music and hiphop to it, which I’ve listened to a lot, too, over the years. I also think there’s a lot of hiphop in Bert Jansch’s guitar playing.
Bert Jansch is a major influence on my music (if you’re not familiar with his music I recommend his first album “Bert Jansch” as well as “Jack Orion” and the 1968 debut of his band Pentangle called “The Pentangle”). When I really got into playing music I got all of his records and figured out how to play them. I lived in Switzerland at the time and I hitch-hiked up to London a few times and went to see him play at the 12 Bar Club and a bunch of other places. I thought about calling it “Otmar Elmer (for Bert Jansch)” but then I thought it just isn’t as strong as the meaning his music had and still has to me.
As far as you saying it reminds you of Spanish guitars/flamenco: The chord progression (Am, G, F, E) is quite common in traditional Spanish music. But also, Davey Graham, when he came up with “Angi”, was strongly influenced by Steve Benbow, who was strongly influenced by Moroccan music, which shares elements with Spanish music.
So go ahead and listen to "Otmar Elmer" and let me know what you think. Does it exceed the original Angi song or does it a pale comparison? I personally think they're both equally great! And they are two different songs.
PS, As a special treat, I've dugged up Simon & Garfunkel's version of "Anji". This is a live version that appears on their Old Friends (1997) boxset. I believe the studio version appears on their 1966 album Sounds of Silence.
PPS, Unfortunately I have never heard of Davey Graham prior to this article so obviously I don't have any of his music. But judging from Jansch's version, I would have to agree that it's very good.
I did check up on Davey Graham and he is going to be on tour in the UK in October.
Bert Jansch released a new album The Black Swan last year, and have finished wrapping up tour a few weeks ago.
July 28, 2007 12:02 AM
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