Clementine, Gretchen Menn, Rob Preston, Mike Wells, Jim Bove
Influences
Robber barons turned benefactors. Audacity in thought, tenacity in movement. The digging out and the digging in. Purity of mind from a dissolute heart. The accidental chance and luck of the draw. Blindfold choices of wanderlust. Backseat woolgatherers with a side window moon and tires skimming the river of option. Dearth of practicality. Mirth of fatality. Middle fingers and exit rows. The unexpected, the misstep, the underneath thoughts and the other side of the looking glass.
"An illustrational form tells you through the intelligence immediately what the form is about, whereas a non-illustrational form works first upon sensation and then slowly leaks back into the fact." F. Bacon
Sounds Like
Electronic drum tracks, live drumset, stand-up drumkit played by vocalist, slide guitar, bass.
By a series of accidents and left turns, down alleys of intuition and wrong choices the songs developed. From the back of the band to the front of the band, crawling over drumset, under blocks, through the second-guess, words forced this project. After years of the body pounding out code, suddenly the tongue caught hold of meaning and is making its own demands.
"I should have been, I don’t know, a con-man, a robber or a prostitute. But it was vanity that made me choose painting, vanity and chance." F. Bacon
Francis Bakin is the solo project of Clementine, drummer for the Led Zeppelin powerhouse Zepparella.
Clem steps out from behind the drumset for this one into the role of songwriter / frontperson / vocalist. The songs are powerfully lyrical, melodically textured and percussive. They were written from the ground up, starting with electronic drumbeats which sparked the lyrical intent. From there the melodies grew from a banjitar, a keyboard, and vocal melodies. Zepparella guitarist Gretchen Menn developed the melodies with stunning slide guitar work. Robert Preston laid a heavy foundation with his fretless bass playing, and Clem incorporated live drumset playing over the electronic beats. The result is a unique sound with all her favorite things: interesting lyrics, slide guitar, danceable grooves, and things that go “boing.”
Clementine was a founding member of the NY heavy rock trio BOTTOM, and spent 3 years as Phyllis Rudd in the popular SF band AC/DShe. A founding member of Zepparella, she began writing songs in their foray into original music as The House of More.
Live, Clem fronts the band as main vocalist. She's now working with guitarist Martin Webb on the next batch of songs. The two perform as a duo in some situations, and for other shows she brings along a full band, with drummer Jim Bove, Martin and Rob.
The debut record, Conversation with Francis Bakin, is an 11-song journey into the strange mind of Clem. Along with Gretchen Menn and Robert Preston, there’s a guest appearance from Ted Savarese on "Waterway," and harmonica blowing from the great Kenny Preston. The album was recorded and mixed by Robert Preston at GetReel Productions in San Francisco, and was produced by Clem and Rob, and was released in January 2009. Copies are available here.
Thanks for visiting my page! Make sure to check out ARDEN of EDEN's page and listen to our new "Love Street" album. You can watch our msuci videos too! Let me know what you think!
LIVE 2009: 03 June, Sweden Rock (S) 13 June, Waldrock Festival (NL) 26 June, Metaltown (S) 03 July, Ruisrock (FIN) 04 July, Rosrock (NL) 08 July Hultsfred Festival (S) 29 July, Putte I Parken Festival (S)
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