Schick’s 5th solo studio Cd – ‘SHUFFLE’ is Americana with colors of rock, punk and jazz, influences from a multi-genre past. Songs of longing, loss, hope – about love and politics and always thought provoking in his intense and deliberate lyric writing. Schick has a loyal following, and for good reason – his has very entertaining live shows, there is passion, laughter, tears, craftsmanship, and thought provoking lyricism. The shows take listeners on a journey with much interplay between him and the audience. Kenny is a generous performer and uses his quick comedic sense to balance the intensity of the songs, which often explore the darker realms of human experience.
The CD gently takes flight with psychedelic “Closer Intro” and jumps quickly into Track 2 “Thank You” a soothing acoustic lullaby that gradually builds into a passionate rock ballad complete with hooky acoustic guitar chops and playing meshed against catchy vocal melody and a grand slam chorus. This intro track sets the tone rather well for this CD, with its feel good groove and clever lyrical content. Track 3 “10 Feet Thick” dishes out yet another impressive track with its steady flowing rock rhythm, and heartfelt vocal melody from Schick and infectious persona. Track 4 “Cereal” serves up yet another interesting track with hypnotic lyrical content, strong melodies and impressive vocal flair again from Schick. As the CD slowly unfolds I can hear many musical influences reminiscent of classic Beck, Blind Mellon, and even a dash of material by Les Claypool and even Frank Zappa. I can even hear rock influences from Faith No More, Mr. Bungle, Red Hot Chili Peppers. On the other side of the sonic spectrum I can even hear Peter Gabriel, Yes and Genesis. That’s a pretty wide range of styles and I get the impression Schick dabble sin many styles of music. I would classify this music as acoustic alt rock, with a slight aftertaste of alternative folk, jazz, fusion and an ounce of singer/songwriter. The songs themselves are addictive, and interesting, complete with passionate and interesting subject matter. The musicianship of this band is pretty solid across the board. Schick is a very capable singer, guitarist and songwriter. The players themselves write and play there parts extremely well. Besides the 4 piece standard you will also notice things like impressive solo guitar, horns, organ, well placed drums and sporadic percussive accents, and lush harmonies layered along the way. Equally as impressive is the vocal presence of Schick as he takes many vocal risks throughout the CD indicating to me a strong, confident and infectious vocal ability. His voice sounds in the vein of Les Claypool. All engineering aspects check out. CD Possesses crystal clear high end clarity and thick low end frequency. All songs are short and sweet musical experiences, never too winded, never to short. From melodic “Blackbird” and Black and Blue” to trippy “Games” and thought provoking “Half Life” to dynamic “I Am” to rocking “ Julia” and “Push” to jumpy “None More Black” this CD has something for just about everyone. The CD ends with Track 18 “Half A World Away” the perfect finale statement for a CD of this caliber.
In close Shuffle by Kenny Schick is a highly original, diversified and compelling musical production from start to finish. It’s strong suit – its amazing artistic presence, brilliance, vision from Schick. This guy is a musical mastermind with more than enough zaniness, creativity and eccentricity to go around. For the record: Schick wrote, recorded, preformed, produced played electric, acoustic guitars, saxophone, basses, violin, Washing Machine, percussion, banjo on this CD. The songs are extremely melodic, grooving, and somewhat eccentric – but above all infectious. The songs are short and sweet musical experiences, each one possessing a unique personality, flair, and signature groove. Last but not least Kenny Schick Is an extremely capable artist.
UNDERGROUND IN THE MOST literal sense of the word, Basement 3, the subterranean recording project of local multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Kenny Schick (Dub FX, the Brownies, Neosoreskin, Dot 3), recently released Fuzzyland, the follow-up to Eating the Cannibal and Rising. The most collaborative of his three “solo” efforts, Schick features vocalist Heather Courtney and drummer Mike Freitas prominently on Fuzzyland and incorporates rich strings and punchy horns. Schick describes the sound as “agro-jazzy urban folk-core from Bottomland,” and on this intelligent and challenging record, he creates more quiet time inside the songs to allow the music and vocals to breathe.
The album opens with the haunting “Pieces,” a song full of lush symphonic melancholy touched by a mournful flute. Here Schick regards life’s disappointments as part of the experience, explaining, “All these struggles and broken dreams are not disasters/ It’s not as it seems/ Pick up the pieces and rearrange/ They fit together, perfect and strange.”
KSCU-FM (103.3) has been playing “Flower,” a pretty song about learning to move forward, open up and take emotional risks. “I want to jump in the best and worst life has to give,” Schick declares. Similarly pretty, the title track takes a dreamy approach, while still harnessing internal strength. “Can’t go back to that place/ Tangled up in your embrace/ Gotta change the way I view myself/ Gotta put those black thoughts on the shelf,” he determines.
Following the slow, sexy funk fusion of “Broken,” the dramatic horn-driven “Games” and the thick, fuzzy funk of “Mercy,” Schick asserts himself on “Outside the Lines,” which scorns empty wealth and vain trophies and calls for independent thinking and an appreciation of different perspectives. The sax-heavy low-rock “Ten Feet Thick,” written by Mike McGinn and Kris Ziakas and adapted by Schick, recollects Basement 3’s early Morphine influence. Like plucking the petals off a dying flower, Schick sings of passion, pride, fashion, pleasure, pain, reason, rhyme and ultimately of leaving: “Well, this is the part that breaks my heart, but I won’t do this one more time.”
The journey through Fuzzyland is an emotional one and, for all its healthy reclaiming of independence, there are moments of weakness, too. Full of ache and despair, on “Fall,” Schick compares himself to crumbling Roman ruins as he describes how it feels to hit the end of a failing relationship. Holding onto scraps, he reveals, “A tiny taste of something sweet/ But just as I begin to eat/ It’s time to take another bitter pill/ That steals away the happiness just found/ And now an emptiness swallows me before I’ve had my fill.” Hopelessly, he asks, “Why do I get up just to fall back down?”
The album closes with the spare and fragile “Closer,” a prayer on which Schick’s voice seems to cry out from the other side of the veil. “Dear God, if you are there at all/ Give me a sign/ Don’t let me fall into the darkest dream.”
Gordon Gurley, Tym Ellis, Jerry Ososkie, Tony Lanzino, Swampy Dave, Jean Ling-Zwissler, Steve Crain, Madeleine Rowan and others contributed to the creation of Fuzzyland. While a full-scale recreation is very nearly impossible, Schick remains determined to finally make Basement 3 a live reality. He’s begun rehearsing the project as a duo and intends to find a way to play the songs both solo and with other musicians.
