jazz blues rock

Interview Mike Dawes

‘’I'm still discovering more nuances and techniques to integrate into compositions and arrangements.’’

‘’Acoustic, happy, fun time!’’

 

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So is the Guitar a Full Orchestra by itselfΆΆ 
Ha, not quite a full orchestra, but it has so much tonal and timbrel potential. The acoustic guitar has a beautifully diverse dynamic range and a percussive quality you just don't get with a solid bodied instrument!

The listener can hear Jazz, blues n Rock (hah)..n whatever on your music, tell us some of your biggest influencesΆ 
My influences are pretty broad, but I was really into rock and metal at school, as well as traditional fingerstyle guitar. These were my core passions and I suppose over time they have combined to produce the foundations for the mix of styles I'm playing now. 

How could you describe your playing by three or four wordsΆΆ 
Acoustic, happy, fun time!

Do you consider this specific style as a ‘pioneer’ kind in music historyΆ 
Well this style of playing, if it were to be put in a box, has been around for a while. Michael Hedges really took the guitar, and guitar composition somewhere totally different in the 80's. It's so exciting, I see so many players getting into it now, and i've discovered so many of my musical heroes really dig it. I feel really humbled that people have included me in this new wave, and I feel that it is here to stay. I'm very excited to see where it goes.

‘’I grew up influenced by rock music and Pierre Bensusan pieces.  Tommy is the man!‘’

Which are the Main points where it differs from Tommy Emmanuel’s workΆ 
Tommy's music is fantastic, I'm a big fan of him, I hope to play with him in the future, I also really admire his stage presence and I've learned a lot from him about holding an audience and integrating humour into the set. I'm a bit of a weirdo and that comes out a lot at shows with my awful jokes and bumbling Englishness. I suppose we're sort of similar in that regard, and the fact we both play solo acoustic, but that for me is where the similarities end. Tommy plays in a style similar to players like Merle Travis and Chet Atkins, at least some of the time (I know his output is very diverse!) but I grew up influenced by rock music and Pierre Bensusan pieces. Tommy is the man!

It’s obvious that you are excited experimenting with traditional music, …….have u made any search in Greek Traditional MusicΆ I think you can get many ideas as the genre-tree in this case is unlimited! (Ypeiro’s Music, Kriti’s Music, ….a kind for every Greek state) 
I was very inspired by my visit to Athens, and hearing some of the live music in the street. Maybe i'll look into it more in the future, I hope to come back next year!

‘’At the moment I'm listening to a lot of progressive and ambient music’’

Really, what kind of music do you prefer listening nowadaysΆΆ Maybe Heavy MetalΆ
Not as much as I did, but I have some good friends in popular metal bands so I try to keep up with the current trends. At the moment I'm listening to a lot of progressive and ambient music, but certainly not acoustic guitar music, which may be strange to read, but I play solo guitar everyday, I guess that's my fix :)

How is life ‘on tour’ for youΆΆ 
Humbling, exciting, exhausting and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Greetings from a German train by the way!

‘’What just happenedΆΆ ‘’ 
Nigel the poet!

‘’so i'm glad it brings out the smiles and positivity.’’

That’s a brilliant album with awesome songs, how do you feel about itΆ 
Thank you, I'm really proud of it, I wouldn't change a thing about it and i'm so glad my first record has been so well received. It was born out of a lot of rough stuff, so i'm glad it brings out the smiles and positivity.

And how can somebody buy itΆ Does it exist in realΆΆ or is it only in DigiΆ 
Of course, it's real and also available in all the usual places, iTunes, Amazon etc. But the best place to get it is from my website (www.mikedawes.com) or at a show. 

..’’ I already have some exciting stuff in mind for album number 2, and the writing process has begun.’’

Your next music stepsΆ Some collaborations maybeΆ 
I have all sorts planned, lots more videos to film and release and a bunch more countries to hit. I'm off to China next week after this German leg, then back to the States for 5 weeks with Justin Hayward, then Latvia, Italy and much more. Regarding collaborations, I already have some exciting stuff in mind for album number 2, and the writing process has begun.

Or a new outstanding projectΆ
We'll see…..!

Have you tried any flamenco, I think u could be greatΆ 
Maybe in the future, although i'm not from that’ street’ in that ‘town’ in that ‘city’ so it would never be real flamenco…

When exactly and in which age did you begin practicing in guitar by this specific way of artΆ 
Around 2008 I switched from electric to acoustic. So I guess i'm in the 6th year of this journey. I'm still exploring new sounds and ideas. It's always fun :)

In your guitar we can hear bass, guitar, drums, your voice (hah) can we expect something more in the futureΆ 
Yep, one thing i'll be doing is working with other musicians and combining our resources/sound palettes. With solo guitar, I'm still discovering more nuances and techniques to integrate into compositions and arrangements.

…’’but maybe i'll explore some solo electric stuff in the future.’’

Do you play electric guitar tooΆ Maybe in such a tapping slide slap wayΆ 
I session for Justin Hayward/The Moody Blues. I play some electric in that project, but maybe i'll explore some solo electric stuff in the future.

In Greece the only ''representator'' of Such ’’an Acoustic‘’ guitar playing is one of your students called Sotos Bakas, making a debut song with very good impressions. Tell as some things about him.
Sotos is a great guy and player, we had some lessons on Skype and met up when I was on tour in The Netherlands last year. I expect great things from him, he's very enthusiastic and just a nice guy, this is very important in the music world

We hope to see you Soon Back in Greece for an astonishing Live and Clinic like your last!!! 
Thanks, I hope to be back as soon as possible, you guys were awesome and it was an absolute pleasure to hang out. Cheers!