Lauris Glen Vidal, Jr. , along with various and sundry other dark characters...particularly a rhythm section that moves me like no other.
Influences
Mingus. Waits. Stones. Lovin Spoonful. Booker T and the MG's. Brother Ray Charles. Hank Sr. Hank Snow. Cash. Janes. Kinks. M Ward. The Lucky Bastards. Billy Thames. Muddy Waters. Hendrix. My Fam. Little Triangle Side Windows In Old Cars. Fresh Fish. Barefeet. Sand in your pants. Sunburn. Waves. Polynesian voices and Ukuleles with slack key guitar.
Sounds Like
!!!!BETTER PART LIVE!!!!!
!!!!!SKELETONS LIVE!!!!!
one of the best reviews ever of my show- "sinister yet effervescent" -I like it.
"Kitchen sink beat-blues with off-kilter percussion and an affected sense of swampy melodrama (straight from the Franks Wild Years school) from an ultra-indie Fl., solo artist"
- Jim Reed -CONNECT SAVANNAH
for a nice article about me, check this write up in the amazing regional magazine REAX:____________
http://www.reaxmusic.com/articles/view/interview_with_lauris_vidal-277
A VIDEO FROM GOOD FRIEND AND AMAZING ARTIST DAAS-
OF HIM RIDING HIS BIKE THROUGH OSAKA JAPAN
SET TO MY MUSIC...CHECK HIS SITE WWW.DAAS-ART.COM
THE SOUND RECORDING THAT ACCOMPANIES THIS VIDEO WAS DONE BY GOOD FRIEND AND NOTABLE MUSICIAN WAYNE MATTHEWS OF DELAND, FL
THE RECORDING IS OF OUR LIVE SHOW AT THIS YEAR'S
DELAND FALL FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS
THANK YOU WAYNE!!!!
"Opening was folk troubadour Lauris Vidal. One of the most active and credible ambassadors of the DeLand scene, he’s a champion of the new old-timey, digging through the dusty trunk of folk music like an impassioned archivist and breathing life – even youth – into it. Though he was without his band, he was a one-man force who delivered a finale that had the entire crowd clapping along to his stomping." -BAO LE HUU- Orlando Weekly
"Lauris Vidal creates innovative and unique folk music with dark undertones, but always carrying a message of hope. His lively performances include ukulele, tenor banjo, lap steel, guitar and sometimes even lap bass. Seeing Lauris Vidal is an experience all its own; we cannot tell you quite what to expect." -WMNF 88.5FM TAMPA
The EP "SHOOT SHOOT YOUR SKELETONS" was released to the world officially October 13th with a large party at a unique venue- Caffe da Vinci in Deland, FL. It is now available at CDBABY.com and other local record stores, with more to follow.
The recording was created in a brick room during the first 2 weeks of the month of June, 2006. Jason Pratile deftly helmed the drumkit and various percussion duties on the tunes "Body Bags," "Good Years, Dark Clouds," "Freed," and "Skeletons." He also worked the knobs and faders during session tracking on most of the other songs.
The remaining instruments- lap steel, tenor banjo, soprano ukulele, guitars, bass, marching bass drum and snare, tambourines, a wok, were all played and engineered by Lauris. All of the tracks were cut in 1 take- the best take recorded all the way through in one performance was used. On most songs, the very first track- the scratch track of vocal and acoustic guitar- was used in the final product. This method, along with the bare-bones, raw microphone techniques used, creates a very live organic feel throughout the EP.
The final tracks were then all hand-delivered to Josh Rohe. Josh spent two full days on his home computer tweaking the tones and hits to just the right place for your ears to enjoy. Josh has gone on since this experience to do the same things for some of the people you hear on the radio, well, alot of those people.
Lauris descended south to FL from DC in august of 2005. Before that, he lived for 5 years in DC. During that time, he played all over DC, NYC, Charlottesville, VA and a handful of other venues on the east coast.
Since moving to FL, Lauris has played all over FL, including a 14 date East Coast tour stretching from Central Florida, up to NYC with a nice stint in the deep southern states.
These songs were all born out of Lauris' experiences in the streets of Washington, DC. "Body Bags" was written after encountering a fresh sidewalk homocide scene in a residential section of downtown Baltimore. "Good Years, Dark Clouds" tells stories of time spent living at and below the poverty line with other springtide young professionals and and how they made the most of every minute of it.
All of these compositions are founded on hope. Dark titles, some dark scenes, yet all convey a sense of freedom and release... Of making it through and becoming stronger.
Listen and decide- in a few days, I can guarantee at least one of the tunes will creep up in your head...you'll feel what he's singing about..."you know these are good years, living under these dark clouds."
LAURIS VIDAL HAS SHARED THE STAGE WITH MANY ARTISTS INCLUDING:
LEON RUSSELL
THE AVETT BROTHERS
PALEFACE
T-MODEL FORD
DELTA SPIRIT
SCOTT H BIRAM
BOMBADIL
PIERCE PETTIS
KELLEY McRAE
JOHN FRANCIS
AUSTIN LUCAS
SARAH BORGES
BEN PRESTAGE
THE NEW TRUST
AMBULETTE (DENALI)
THE HONORARY TITLE
CARY ANN HEARST
THE 2 MAN GENTLEMAN BAND
THE RIOT BEFORE
AMERICAN AQUARIUM
THE PACKWAY HANDLE BAND
MIC HARRISON of the V-ROYS and SUPERDRAG ...and many other regional and national acts
LAURIS HAS TOURED THE EAST COAST and MIDWEST both SOLO and of recent, with his 3 PIECE BAND. HE HAS PLAYED VENUES as diverse as JAM-PACKED LIVING ROOMS to 6-FOOT TALL FESTIVAL STAGES with BANDS and ARTISTS AS DIVERSE as HIS OWN MUSIC- FROM PUNK to HIP HOP to BLUEGRASS to INDIE to COUNTRY ...and will only be ADDING MORE TOWNS, VENUES and ARTISTS to this list at a venue near you real soon, we hope to see you there!!
Back in the sunshine state where making music is always great! I can't wait to see ya here in in good old Deland I hope your tour pays you in ways unexpected. Proud of you brother!
Last night was some of the best live music I've ever encountered. Your eclectic style is captivating and impossible not to enjoy. Thank you so much for coming through and for being such gracious house guests. Come back anytime!
Hey Lauris, thanks for a great show on Friday. As always is so much fun to have you all at OM. Love it when folks hear you for the first time and are blown away, just like I am everytime! See you this Sunday.
Saturday at NWB was one of my favorite music nights in a looooooong time, it was so good! Please come play at the Globe soon. I love the cd, I loved the show, gadnabbit, I think I'm falling in love with you!
Seriously???!!!!! I cannot believe you just told me that smashing news!!!! I'm totally there. Please keep me posted! If you travel 71 HWY, you've got a place to stay here, and whoever is with you-no joke.
