Kurt Michaels
2
songs
1.2K
plays
Nightmare Crossing Over Nightmare Crossing Over
You Don't Say You Don't Say
The road that has led Kurt Michaels to the creation of "Inner Worlds, Pt. 1" has been a long and winding one; a circuitous route that has taken him through a thousand one-night stands.
Inspired by (as a child) a baby sitter who reminded him of Happy Days' Fonzie, Kurt would sit through makeshift concerts in lieu of bed time. Later, fueled with a stack of 45's and a transistor radio, Kurt became immersed in the Top 40 hit makers of the 1950s, 1960s & 1970s: Chuck Berry, Spencer Davis and Otis Day (yes, the fictional r&b singer from the movie Animal House), to name a few. When the Beatles came to America, Michaels' destiny became irrevocably cast to a future involving music.
Michaels' thirty-five year musical career has allowed him to share the stage with many of his jukebox heroes, including Berry, Davis, and Day, not to mention Wolfman Jack, Badfinger, Bobby Vinton, Fabian, Scottie Moore (Elvis' guitar player) the Marvelletes, and the Chiffons. "[It] was a surreal, cartoonish experience, like scenes out of some Fellini movie. But in the end, what I got out of the experience was just that; out." "Out" meaning the development of a harmonic palette that unabashedly defies conventional parameters.
Though Michaels would at one point turn his back on his first love to pursue what some would consider a "more practical lifestyle," he would eventually return.
The gift this prodigal son offers is "Inner Worlds, Pt. 1." And what a gift it is!
Described as "Olias of Sunhillow meets The Prisoner," Michaels provides a roller coaster of sensory delight, ranging from audio adrenaline to the strangely sublime. Michaels refers to his creation as "music by accident".
In creating this CD, Michaels tapped into a muse that in turn tore into his brain with a vengeance. He built a laboratory of sound within his Chicago-based headquarters and set himself loose upon it. Michaels describes his venture into "Inner Worlds Pt. 1" as a "schizophrenic mess that turned into a happy accident".
One track, "The Village," is a quantum visit to the Orwellian realm of the sixties controversial hit television series, "The Prisoner," where a British Secret Service Agent is incarcerated in a nightmarish psychedelic detention center. Michaels captures the flavor of the show and brings it into the now with flourish.
"The closest thing I can compare ["Inner Worlds, Pt 1"] to is something like Revolution 9 or Tomorrow Never Knows - you know, the phase when the Beatles were experimenting with the technology of the time, creating a collage of sounds and looping them together. "
When asked about his philosophy of "music by accident," he simply responds with the flippant aphorism: "[Music is a force of nature - and if you are a musician, you are compelled to serve it."
And indeed, he does. If "Inner Worlds Pt 1" is Kurt Michaels in his "learning phase", Part Two is going to be out of this world.
"Happy accident," indeed.Band/artist history
see bioHave you performed in front of an audience?All the time. All over the place. That's how I make my living. I feel very fortunate to be able to spend my life making music.
Your musical influences
A unique form of ambient electronic & analog music, an organic soundscape of subtle and not so subtle influences, evoking a contemplative otherworldliness, massively visual and layered, ambiguously blended, offering much to consider......What equipment do you use?
That would be telling......
Country Club Hills, IL
USA
ID
97885
Contact
Sorry, this artist currently doesn't accept email messages.
Comments (13)
yo.. i looked at your music. I'm mostly a hiphop head but i listen to other kinds of beats as well and i liked yours :) I make hiphop beats and i wanted some feedback from non hiphop listeners. Show me some love and vote hot if you're feeling the beat. Listen to the ones with strings. ONE LOVE :)
hey hey liking ur music man. Pls check us out and lemme know what u think. esp. our old joint lift your hands and our new joint stand not alone. Thanks and God bless. www.soundclick.com/poe
Fellow Country Club Hills neighbor :) I like your stuff!! it belongs on Musical Starstreams with Forest(WNUA on sunday nights)Anyway, I like what you're doing and actually if you get a chance, check us out here on soundclick OR check out our official website at: www.eots.50megs.com
When you read my Bio, you might be surprised on what type of music I can play from scratch. I love this nightmare song. I want to maybe work with you on a project I'm working on. It's a Drum n Bass song I did and you can actually hear it on soundclick by putting in: Tha Raven in the artist search box. Hope to hear from you man :)
Hey, Kurt, this has been a fun visit with you and your music. I've enjoyed it, for sure. "Nightmare Crossing Over" is just packed with emotion from beginning to end. It sounds like an excerpt from "Tales Of Mystery and Imagination" by Alan Parsons - That's a huge compliment, by the way... It's great stuff.
Once again, it's been a pleasure. See ya around.
Yo Man your sh*** is very hot. You definetly got potential for something huge. Yo check out my site www.soundclick.com/jkrome and hit my message bord wit wat u think of my songs Pz J-Krome
