So you say you want to be a rock ’n’ roll star?
David Samuel Project and Debra Arlyn teach class at the Venetian Theater
By Jake TenPas
The Entertainer
How hard do you have to rock to make a member of the audience’s hair burst into flames?
David Samuel knows.
At a recent gig at Lake Oswego’s Gemini club, that very fate befell a patron’s mullet as The David Samuel Project’s cover of “Sweet Child o’ Mine” reached its fiery climax.
Standing near the stage, a man who looked conspicuously like Axel Rose began smoking, and it had nothing to do with Marlboros.
As it turns out, the unlucky fellow had backed too close to a candle burning on a nearby table, and his hair caught fire like Michael Jackson filming a Pepsi commercial.
And really, who’s to say that it wasn’t Alxel Rose, looking for the latest guitarist in the rotating procession of shredders that have spackled his music with guitar solos for the past decade. Samuel certainly sets his sights that high.
“I want to be around for 20 years,” says the band leader, vocalist and guitarist as he talks about his desire to replicate the success and longevity of such bands as U2 and Aerosmith. “I don’t want to be done in 3-to-5 years when the flavor of the moment’s gone.”
Lead vocalist Tiffany Tyler, Samuel’s costar in the group and the only member to make the transition from the Project’s earlier incarnation, shares Samuel’s vision of taking their catchy, funky rock to the national stage.
“The stuff we’re doing now is more modern, more sellable,” she says, comparing their latest direction to the group’s bluesier, more psychedelic roots. “This is our own crossroads.”
While the group’s sound has changed a great deal in the last year, the anchors of it remain firmly in place. Samuel is still a guitarist that takes his cues from Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Van Halen and Stevie Ray Vaughan, and the group continues to pump out songs that get lodged in your head as they defy easy categorization.
On “Ashur,” they combine Tower of Power horns with funky blues guitar riffs. On “Ingram House,” they paint a picture of artistic tenacity with soaring vocals and a dark, epic musical framework. On “Take Time,” they create a song so insanely catchy that you’ll be singing it to yourself even as you curse Samuel for pushing repeat on your internal iPod.
And on Saturday, May 6, they're bringing those songs and more to Albany’s Venetian Theater for the first concert of secular music the venue has hosted in recent memory. Joining them will be country artist Alexis, who after walking away from Warner Bros. is continuing to define herself as a vocalist with a range far beyond her 16 years.
“We both like good music, music with heart,” Alexis says of the qualities that drew her to perform with Samuel and Tyler, who she grew up singing karaoke with at Albany’s Pizza King.
Sharing the bill with Samuel and his minions will be another local phenom, Debra Arlyn, who’s grown from an aspiring pop starlet into a singer-songwriter of impressive vocal and emotional dynamics.
“I break out of that box because I actually play an instrument and write 100 percent of my own songs,” says the charming, surprisingly humble chanteuse. “That sets me apart from the girls who just stand there.”
Not to mention the girls who concentrate so hard on their dance moves that they have to lipsync to avoid screwing up the vocals.
At a recent show at Bombs Away Cafe, Arlyn and her incredibly tight band ripped through a set of originals, including the searing “Complicated Mess,” and covers of such disparate artists as James Taylor and Jamiroquai. Not only did her vocals live up to her recorded output, but any comparisons to Christina Aguilera were shattered and replaced with visions of Sheryl Crowe, Tori Amos or Alicia Keys.
Together with Samuel, Tyler and Alexis, Arlyn promises to bring a big, bold sound to the Venetian that will challenge the notion of smalltown bands with smalltown ambitions.
“Musicians, usually all they care about is the music. They don’t know how to make the music go anywhere,” Samuel says. Still, it isn’t all about the promotion.
“People don’t see guitar playing like this anymore. It’s an extinct breed.”
Humble? No. Riveting? You better believe it.
If you rock
What: Slice of Destiny, a concert featuring The David Samuel Project, Alexis and Debra Arlyn
Where: Albany’s Venetian Theater, 241 First Ave. W.
When: Doors open at 7 p.m., music starts at 7:30 Saturday, May 6.
Cost: $12
Tickets: Tickets are available through TicketsWest outlets and at the door.
Information: For more information, go to www.davidsamuelonline.com, www.debraarlyn.com or www.alexismusic.net
