|
Mixing it Up
An
interview with Vic Samalot of
Rare Blend
By
Mike Salamone |
Cleveland's Rare Blend (Vic Samalot - guitar, Bobbi
Holt - keyboards, Jeff Scott - bass, and Paul Stranahan - drums) plays a style of music called
fusion. Fusion is a mix of the incredible musicianship of jazz with
the high energy and hard-hitting sound of rock. For some, the results
are the best of both worlds. Since like most fusion bands Rare
Blend plays primarily instrumental music, preferring to let their music do
the talking, we here at Utter Trash were only too happy to give guitarist
Vic Samalot a chance to say a few words about his band.
Mike Salamone: Explain the history of Rare Blend.
Vic Samalot: In 1993, we, (Vic Samalot and Bobbi
Holt), started Rare Blend as a studio project involved in writing music for
a video production company for video and film projects. This vehicle was a
great opportunity for us to expand musically and incorporate many styles in
our writing, and in 1995 we released our debut CD ‘Cinefusion’. In 1998 we
included the talent of Jeff Scott and Paul Stranahan and released our CD
‘Infinity’ in 2000 and ‘Evolution Theory’ in 2002.
MS: What are the influences of the band? Are there
other influences other than fusion itself?
VS: The band has a wide range of influences cause we
all like different styles. Some of them are: Santana, Jeff Beck, Genesis,
Gentle Giant, Yes, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Jan Hammer, Spyro Gyra, Tony
Williams, Tribal Tech, Miles Davis, etc.
MS: What influence would you say Frank Zappa had on
fusion music?
VS: Frank had a big impact on fusion music in the
early days. He was a highly creative individual who brought a unique
progressive styling to the table. I hear many bands that have his influence
in their music today.
MS: Does anyone in the band have music degrees?
VS: Yes, as a matter of fact our drummer, Paul
Stranahan, has a degree in music from Capitol University.
MS: Is Paul still a drum teacher?
VS: Yes. He teaches at a couple of music stores in
the Cleveland area.
MS: What bands have you played with and have you been
on any tours?
VS: In the beginning, I started playing in various
Top 40 / rock & roll bands in the Cleveland area for many years. Some of
the bands were Hobbit, Stained Class, Harlot, etc. As our fan base and
popularity increases, I hope to assemble a Rare Blend tour.
MS: The musicianship in jazz fusion is utterly
phenomenal. How long does it take to write a song?
VS: We all have our different methods in writing a
song whether it's a fusion or just a straight up song. Sometimes one of us
simply has a good idea to work from and develop. Sometimes one of us brings
in the entire song on a chart ready to go. We always have a portable Mini
Disc recorder or DAT running to capture "the gems" for later use, shaping
our ideas with different stylings either with entire sections or
instrumentation. We feel it's critically important to be able to
communicate with each other on what you "hear and feel" in certain sections,
issues of dynamics, intros, endings, the whole enchilada.
MS: Talk a little on the local Cleveland fusion
scene.
VS: The local fusion scene I feel could be a little
better although, there are a lot of fusion fans in Cleveland and great
support from college radio. I hope that fusion and/or instrumental music
will be more embraced in the near future with more venue opportunities and
exposure.
MS: A lot of fusion musicians have been entering the
heavy metal arena, mixing the 2 styles together. Do you think this is a
sub-genre between genres or something more?
VS: I am a big supporter in blending genres,
obviously. Metal offers a heavier sound to odd time signatures and complex
musical statements. I think you could classify its' presentation either way
depending on your perspective. New genres/sub-genres are coming out all the
time. That's cool.
MS: Thanks for the interview, victor! Give us your
website and/ or an address so people can get in touch with you.
VS: Thank you! I'm always happy to spread the word
on Rare Blend. Folks can always reach us through our website which is
www.rareblend.net .
Visit the Rare Blend website.
 |
