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-T.S. Brackett
Photo credit: Andi Rice
Joy is an expressive word.
It encompasses euphoria and enthusiasm. It captures the essence of life,
and for Birmingham’s
Downright, the word perfectly captures what happens when the band sits
down to create music. Joy jumps off the new Lightheaded album and the
band cultivates joy from the stage when they perform. It’s an amalgam
of coolness and camaraderie and creativity between friends and exceptional
musicians - and creative collaboration is at the root of what makes Downright
tick.
“Steve and I both feel that the magic of collaboration
is responsible for some of the greatest music ever made. There's a magical,
exponential growth that takes place when people truly collaborate. Bands
like Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, and Pink Floyd were much greater than
just a sum of their parts because they were willing to engage in a collective
enterprise. That's what keeps bringing Downright together for album after
album,” says Matthew DeVine, one of Downright’s founding
members along with Steve Lewis. |
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long distance writing sessions
The tunes on Lightheaded were the result of a series
of long distance writing sessions between DeVine and guitarist Steve Lewis. “We’d been working
on the record while I was living in NYC and Matt was in Birmingham,” says
Lewis. “Finally we finished writing all sixteen tunes in a marathon session
at Matt’s place, and the production involved a dozen or so some of the
top musicians from Birmingham.” The core duo of Downright is now complemented
on the road by the great talents of bassist Bobby Wason and drummer Jay Frederick.
In addition to writing and releasing Lightheaded,
Downright embarked on its first European tour. “When I was in NYC, Marie -Helene Froidevaux and
I become friends. Her booking agency, 865art’ist brought Downright to
Europe,” says Lewis. “Downright was received with a lot of enthusiasm
in Switzerland and we’re looking forward to touring Europe again in 2014.”
Closer to home, Downright is playing shows
around the southeast to support Lightheaded and to reach the fan base that
has stayed true to the band for years. “It’s great to be out playing shows with a new album in
hand,” says Lewis. “Our fans have stayed with us for so long -
it’s great to see familiar faces and meet new friends at every show.”
www.downright.info
www.reverbnation.com/downright
www.facebook.com/downrightband
Music publicist, writer and artist, Tammy Brackett lives and
works in Richmond VA. Tammy owns Moonstruck Promotions and specializes in music
business consulting, writing and publicity for artists, festivals and record
labels. Tammy is the author of Fifty Ways to Tour Without Getting in the Van,
a guide to touring your music but not yourself. She’s the co-author of
Another Nightmare Gig from Hell: Musicians Tales of Woe and Wonder, with writer
Nick Zelinger. The book won a Colorado Independent Publishers Award for best
work of non fiction in 2012.
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