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The Appalachian Interview with Robert Walter |
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Monday, 24 April 2006 |
by MIKE COOPER
Lifestyles Reporter
Robert Walter is one of the most talented keyboardists in the country. He recently came to North Carolina with his group the Greyboy-Allstars. The Appalachian’s Mike Cooper and WASU’s Jeremy Wright were able to talk to Walter about his musical upbringing, festivals, and how the New Orleans scene is going post Katrina.
Cooper: Whatup man
Robert Walter: How you doing?
Cooper: Pretty good. Pretty good how you doing?
Robert Walter: Good
Cooper: You ready for the concert tonight?
Robert Walter: Oh yeah
Cooper: You down in Asheville right now?
Robert Walter: Yeah, I’m down here. Walking the streets and seeing the sights as we speak.
Cooper: Awesome man, how you liking it down there right now?
Robert Walter: Liking it. I love Asheville. We come here a couple of times a year.
Cooper: How is the weather down there tonight?
Robert Walter: It’s very sunny and warm.
Cooper: Have you ever played the Orange Peel before?
Robert Walter: I have not played the Orange Peel. I have played a bunch of other clubs here but I have never played the Orange Peel before.
Cooper: I bet you have heard some good things about it though.
Robert Walter: Yeah
Cooper: Ok well hopefully we can do this ok. I know the streets of “Ashe Vegas” can be crazy at times. Let’s go ahead and get into it. First let’s talk about some of your influences and how you got into music. I hear your stepfather was a musician wasn’t he?
Robert Walter: Yeah, my stepfather was a drummer and played in a bunch of local bands in San Diego where I am from. So my whole life was sort of around bands and music and I would help them load gear into clubs when I was a little kid. And all that, and he kind of got me started. He had this great record collection. So he got me started liking the kinds of music that I like.
Cooper: You were a drummer at first weren’t you?
Robert Walter: I was a drummer. Well, I played the piano first when I was a little kid. And I played classical piano. Then I played drums and a bunch of violin and harp and a bunch of other instruments. Even guitar a little bit. Then I settled into keyboards because I like to write music and it was a good instrument to write music on.
Cooper: You started writing music at an extremely early age didn’t you?
Robert Walter: Yeah when I was a little kid I used to compose pieces and my step dad had some recording gear so I would make little recordings of my music.
Cooper: Really, how old were you when you first started writing?
Robert Walter: I remember when I was in third grade I recorded a couple tunes and played them for my class. So whatever age that was, I don’t know (laughing).
Cooper: I am impressed by you starting out that early on.
Robert Walter: That was the beginning of my compositions.
Cooper: So, I am dying to know just how the Greyboy Allstars got together back in the early 90’s.
Robert Walter: Well, our drummer Zak Najor and I played together in bunch of bands back in San Diego for a long time. And he told me about this guy, DJ Greyboy, who was releasing this record. It was the freestyle. And it was sort of like sample beats and breaks with jazz soloist on top of it.
Cooper: I see
Robert Walter: And he wanted to have a band to play these tunes live for his record release party. So Zak called me up and said “do you want to play in this band for this gig”. And I was interested in that kind of music and it seemed like something that might be fun. So we just got together and rehearsed to do this one time gig. And we got in the rehearsal room and the chemistry between the players was so great that we decided to continue doing it.
Cooper: What is it like working with them again? I know it has been since like 1995 that you guys were really hot and heavy.
Robert Walter: The thing, well, is that it is a real band. It is not an assemblage of a bunch of guys who are maybe the hottest players in the world or something like that. The band is good because of the interactions between the people and the way that we compliment each other. The sum is greater than the parts, you know. And that is something really rare and a rewarding thing when you do that.
Cooper: How has the tour been going so far?
Robert Walter: It has been great. People have been coming out. It’s been old fans and new fans and it’s been a lot of fun.
Cooper: I see where you’re stopping in Carrborro, a.k.a. Chapel-Hill. That is where my boy J-Flex over to my right is from. I got to stop and give some props to him, without his technical expertise I would be up the creek (laughing). Then I see where you’re going to Charlottesville and New York and a bunch of places. Even to the Mecca of San Francisco and the Fillmore. And then you’re finishing up with some festivals. How big or important is this particular tour to you? You pretty excited about this one?
Robert Walter: This is just a 10-day tour and then we have some festivals on the weekends and stuff. It’s good. I think the key with this band is not to over tour and make it into work. This thing is great because we are all happy to be there. It’s not for the wrong reasons. You know what I mean? It’s not like it is just our job. We want to be there because we enjoy playing the music.
Cooper: I like to hear that and I am sure our readers do. How does the particular environment or setting you are in each night pertain to the style of music that you might play that night? Like if you’re in the south things might get bluesier and so on. Does it have any real affect?
Robert Walter: To some degree. Not really about the club or the people in the club. It’s more about how you spend your day before you get there. You know. You soak up a little of the atmosphere of the city. It definitely influences your play in subtle ways. In some ways they are obvious like if you’re in the south you might contract it to the roots side of things and blues and where that music came from. In New York maybe you use a little more frantic energy. But also in ways that you can’t predict depending on what you did during the day. Some days are really relaxed. Some days are uptight. Some days are angry and then some days are happy. You know. So since we are improvising a lot of music all the things come out. Some things just have to do with your life, or whatever. If you have a fight with your girlfriend or you had a great meal or anything. It could be anything, that all influences the music.
Cooper: Ha-ha. Well, I tell you one of the last times that I was down in Asheville I was down there seeing Les Claypool and his fancy band. And they had this group the Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey open up for them. And I was completely blow away by them. I really felt that they were influenced by some of your work. Have you gotten to check them out?
Robert Walter: Well they are very good friends of mine. All of those guys. And I’ve played quite a bit with their drummer Jason Smart and quite a bit with their bass player Reed Mathis. So that is one of my favorite young bands, very creative, and very uncompromised artistically. I don’t think they have ever thought about the marketplace or trying to hard sale their music. They just do what they do. A great band.
Cooper: Who are some other up and coming young groups on the horizon that you feel can follow in your footsteps?
Robert Walter: I love Joe & Marco, the duo, Joe Russo and Marco Benevento. I think they are really doing something special. I wouldn’t say necessarily that they are influenced by us but they have a quality thing. They are of similar minds. But they have their differences. I am mainly influenced by old jazz and soul music and those guys are kind of into a whole nother bag. But were kind of more interested in bands that don’t have a whole lot to do with what we are doing.
Cooper: I hear that you are a huge Skerik fan. Good to know. I am as well. Have you ever seen him live?
Robert Walter: I have played with him quite a bit.
Cooper: Seriously? Get out, you lucky $@#*^. He is one intimidating fellow.
Robert Walter: He’s not really. He is a sweetheart.
Cooper: Really? (laughing) When I saw him I was front row and he stared at me and made faces like he was trying to freak me out. And he did.
Robert Walter: That is just part of his performance.
Cooper: So really he is just a laid back guy (laughter)?
Robert Walter: It is something that he uses in his art, you know? There is just a certain amount of intensity, but he is a great player, and actually a brilliant saxophone player and a great composer. And every time you play with him he makes it into an event. He has just got a certain spirit in his performance. So, yeah, he is one of my favorites of course. I work with him in a lot of different projects.
Cooper: Lately you have been working quite a bit with the great Steve Kimock. What has that experience been like?
Robert Walter: It’s great; he is a very intense fellow and has a beautiful sound. I have learned a lot from him. He’s got me playing a lot of kinds of music that I was basically unfamiliar with or uncomfortable with. It has been good for my playing.
Cooper: How did you first get in with him and start collaborating?
Robert Walter: He called me actually and asked me to do a run of gigs with him. I don’t know how he had heard of me or why he called me. But I was only somewhat familiar with his music at the time. Then once we played together I really became convinced in his whole thing and what he was doing.
Cooper: So where are you living at right now? Last I had heard you had relocated to New Orleans but that was before Katrina. Then what happened?
Robert Walter: I am still in New Orleans. I was out for a couple of months with it being inhabitable and all. But I am back with my family and working down there.
Cooper: You didn’t get any damage to your house did you?
Robert Walter: No, I am very lucky.
Cooper: That is good to hear. How is the scene done there now? I really haven’t heard much about it since the hurricane. Are things still pretty intact?
Robert Walter: The music scene has still been great. It is smaller because a lot of people moved away, and there are fewer club open. But the clubs that are open are doing good business. It’s getting kind of a certain spirit now. It feels like everybody who is in that city right now is somebody who really wants to be there. They believe in the city and want to make it into something. So there is like a real spirit and community right now I think.
Cooper: I finally got to check out your “Super Heavy Organ” album. I love the cover on that by the way.
Robert Walter: Thanks (laughing).
Cooper: You wrote most of that in New Orleans didn’t you?
Robert Walter: Yeah, yeah, I wrote and developed and cured it down there and it’s all players from New Orleans. It is sort of my reflection on what that town was and my impression of the music down there.
Cooper: Hopefully you can tell me because people want to know. What is next for the 20th Congress now? I know they are on a bit of a break currently. Are there plans to get back with them in the future?
Robert Walter: Later in the year we will probably start up and make a record and go on tour. I just feel like we needed time to take a break and do some things. That allowed us to grow as artist. I get bored real easily so I continue to push myself musically rather than allow myself to get into a comfort zone. It was just time to do some other things.
Cooper: As far as the Greyboy Allstars are concerned there is a new album in the works isn’t there?
Robert Walter: Yeah we just made our album. It will probably come out at the beginning of next year.
Cooper: Any details about it that you can talk about right now?
Robert Walter: Um, no, we just made it. So we got to figure out where, when, how and what with the releasing (laughing). The recording went great though and we wrote a bunch of tunes together. The is really on a good thing right now.
Cooper: Looking forward to it. What equipment are you working with right now?
Robert Walter: I play a Hammond organ and a Fender Rhodes. It is all old gear. I am a big fan of all that old stuff.
Cooper: Cool. You know what’s interesting is that you are one of the few big names around the jazz and jamband scenes that has yet to grace the stages of Bonnaroo. Is there a particular reason why or have you just not been able to work it out?
Robert Walter: I don’t know ask them. I would do it in a heartbeat. I have never gotten an offer to play there.
Cooper: Gosh. What do you think of the lineup this year? I like it but there are those that chime in that they have strayed away from their roots.
Robert Walter: I don’t really keep track of it. Aren’t there more like rock bands and stuff? Like big time ones?
Cooper: Yeah, Radiohead, Beck, Tom Petty and all that.
Robert Walter: Yeah. It’s a business just like anything else. They are probably trying to sell tickets. You know what I mean?
Cooper: Some of the diehards are looking forward more to Wakarusa and the All-Good Festival this summer. Both of which you will be at.
Robert Walter: Wakarusa is a great festival. I love it. Yeah I will be there. I feel like some of that stuff has been sold to you on the radio and made it to the mainstream and corporate America anyway. So it is nice that those festivals can offer an alternative to that. But they can do it however they want it.
Cooper: I remember last year when South Park went after the whole “hippy jam fest” deal poking fun at what the culture has become. But there are some good components still and it does offer an escape and they do some positive things.
Robert Walter: The bad thing about the world is the sort of non-discerning audience. It is such a culture and sub-culture of drugs and lifestyle that isn’t about the music. I feel like, if that makes any sense. And the thing becomes about so much more than the music and it’s sort of the hand of it and the social aspect. But I am much more interested in music than any of that stuff. But the good thing about the festivals is that it has allowed a lot of bands to survive and improvise music and play music that maybe wouldn’t exist in the mainstream. It has created live careers for them so that is great.
Cooper: I am just worried that you’re lying to me with it being April Fool’s Day today. You wouldn’t do a thing like that though.
Robert Walter: Oh no, I forgot that was today.
Cooper: I have seen a few pranks pulled today. I don’t guess you are trying to pull any fast ones on me. Another group you’re involved with, Frequinox, is coming up with a new name that they will unveil April 28th. The special thing is that they are letting the fans vote for the new band name. You can vote on that this weekend. I am looking over some of the finalist right now. There is the “Ambassadors of Boom,” “Beat Bullies,” “The Beat Disciples,” and “Spider Hole” just to name a few. Personally I don’t like any of those (laughing). What is your pick?
Robert Walter: Oh, I don’t know. I am horrible with band names.
Cooper: My vote would have to be “Four Fried Chickens and a Coke”. A perfect five-person band name right there, but I don’t think it made the cut.
Robert Walter: Good stuff (laughing). That is actually pretty funny. I kind of like the “MG5.” It’s like a combination of MC5 and Booker T. & the Mgs.
Cooper: How often do you get to work with the “formerly known as Frequinox” crew?
Robert Walter: Not often. Not as much as I would like. We just do it when we can. Everyone has other projects and stuff.
Cooper: Do you like playing the smaller venue like your going to be in tonight? With the compact and intimate feel, do you like playing those better?
Robert Walter: The smaller the better. I would be happy playing in a little tiny bar with no stage for the rest of my life if I could afford to. I like to be connected with people. I don’t like the hype like it’s a major rock concert. I don’t like to think of it as there is the audience and then there is you. I like to feel like you are all there to make the thing happen.
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