SHANE GAMBLE

SHANE GAMBLE Effortlessly balancing the tightrope between Pop, Country, Americana, and Indie Rock, Shane Gamble’s music comes across like a freight train heading full steam on the road less travelled. Propelled by a steady and assured rhythm section, layered guitars, and beautiful vocal harmonies, Shane rhapsodizes about love, loss, and emotional redemption. The Maryland native sits at his computer in his home-studio tinkering with the mix for “Blue Sky”, a track off his forthcoming eponymous album. It sounds warm and immediate; it’s a song that could potentially explode on the radio - dominated by a distorted acoustic guitar that he put some reverb on. Yet Gamble isn’t quite happy with the current mixes, or any of the seventy mixes he’s previously done of the track. “I’ll listen to a section over and over again,” he notes. “I want the chorus to explode, but not hurt the ears. I want it to be warm and loud.” He fiddles with a few more settings on his Mac, closes his eyes and listens. After a moment he suggests that he might be getting closer, but he’s not there yet. On a Thursday night I see Gamble playing a solo show in Annapolis, MD. You take one look at him - short hair combed to one side (just long enough to give off a sense of attitude), tight black leather jacket and leather boots, acoustic guitar slung across his shoulders – and you’ll know that this guy believes in what music can do to the mind and the soul. Gamble attacks his acoustic guitar with an energy rarely seen at such events. He tends to lean forward on one foot and face towards the microphone – guitar at a downward angle, singing from the depths of soul with earnest conviction. Sonically it sounds like there should be two other musicians on stage with Gamble at any given moment. On “Angel” and “The Story of Mary”, Gamble plays a progressive chord structure that sounds as if there is percussion behind him. The sound is so deep, that one wonders if a bass player is lurking around somewhere. Gamble’s songs take on a new life in this acoustic guise. Stripped of the band arrangement, the songs reveal a seasoned songwriter. His voice is tender and heartfelt -commanding and convincing. Many musicians seem uncomfortable playing like this but Gamble makes it seem effortless to switch between acoustic balladeer and all-out rocker whose music resonates with Nashville cats and New York City hipsters. Even just watching Gamble perform solo, it’s clear that he knows how to captivate an audience. After the show as he is packing away his gear, a woman comes up to Gamble and tells him how much she enjoyed the show. Gamble smiles and chats with her for a minute. For him, this is what it is all about – the connection between people and the power of music. This passion runs throughout the new album Shane Gamble. It’s an album that finds him combining radio- friendly songs with mixes of acoustic ballads- pop, rock and country – sometimes even in the same song. Unlike his previous albums, it’s polished but not without taking away the intimacy and warmth that make his music so appealing. “Turn My Way” starts off Shane Gamble with a bang. “We could be lovers in another life-time, but you don’t even turn my way,” Gamble sings in the chorus, which seems destined to be on the radio (Gamble thinks it’s a hit.) A “Deep-Cut” “Rosalee” finds him channeling alt-country that seems reminiscent of Ryan Adam’s work with The Cardinals. “Rosalee” is a whiskey-soaked ode to a troubled girl – “You fight your war day to day. Fist to fist. Tears to blood. Alcohol to kill the pain, but it never goes away.” The ballad “One Balloon” would be a perfect fit in the background of Grey’s Anatomy or a major motion picture. Gamble takes a break and sips on some red wine. “You know it’s not about perfection, at least not sonic perfection. I’m trying to capture something unique. I want somebody to hear “Blue Sky” and have it be something they’ve never heard before. I want it to be right, but not perfect.” “I want everything to tell a story,” Gamble explains about his approach to songwriting and mixing. “When the snare hits, I want it to tell a story. Everything has to have its own unique voice.” “The chorus and the melody come pretty easy,” he tells me about his approach to songwriting. He starts off almost every song with an acoustic guitar. “For the bridge I have to dig a bit deeper.” To prove his point, he picks up the guitar and plays me “Give it Back” a song that he wrote two days before – the guitar line is gorgeous, and Gamble’s heartfelt vocals shine on his unfinished song. Yet there’s no bridge – just two verses and a chorus repeated twice. After a couple of tries, Gamble decides that maybe the song doesn’t need a bridge after all, and that perhaps the key to the song requires an instrumental break and then another chorus. He does another run through and the song really seems to lift off. He seems satisfied for the moment, but then his thoughts go back to “Blue Sky” and he heads back to the computer, again tinkering with the settings. He pushes play and then stands back in the corner of the studio. “How does this sound to you?” he asks as the song bounces off the wall. He listens for another second and then suggests that we may be listening to the final mix. “This could be it,” he announces. He then walks over to the computer and burns a disc of the song. “I want to listen to this in my truck,” he says and tells me that he’s gone through many different CDs just on this song alone. We walk out to his truck and he pops the CD into the stereo. The music booms loudly, and it doesn’t sound that much different to the versions I’ve heard before. “Most of the changes can’t really be discerned,” he says. He closes his eyes, and we get to about a minute into the song before he presses Stop. It’s almost 1:30 in the morning, and I’m getting ready to leave, but Gamble heads back inside ready to possibly take another try at the mix. “I reach a point where enough is enough.” He pauses and then laughs, “I think I’ve got it right this time!” -QUOTES- "when I first took a listen I immediately noticed Shanes soulful tone...powerful yet melodic, Shanes going places"---Julian "Evening Personality WIHT-FM, DC" Julian Hot 99.5 FM ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Shane is a unique & talented songwriter...the Story of Mary is an explosive radio tune & his performance at our Emerging Artist was a knockout”. Mike Matthews (Program Director 89.7 WTMD) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ “That’s good s**t” Doug Stanhope of the Man Show ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "Behind the Blue," crisp and neatly packaged, is an amalgamation of things heard. Frederick News Post- 72 Hours Dickson Mercer ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Singer/Songwriter Shane Gamble's latest CD Behind The Blue, is a breathe of fresh air with it's organic sounding, heartfelt lyrics that are laid down with tasteful solid drum tracks provided by Matt Johnson and Michael Dawson. Billy Amendola Modern Drummer Magazine ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "After the first two tracks on Shane Gamble's CD "Behind the Blue", I warned my girlfriend that she would be hearing it with regularity. From the faraway pedal steel on opener "Wait" to the urgency of "Simple Life" and the vivid scenes illustrated on "Village Train", Gamble and his band evoke a world both distinctive and faintly familiar. "Behind the Blue" exhibits the eclecticism of Austin, Texas and elements of Nashville's venerable tradition ("Already" and "White Fence" respectively). Gamble has a voice that is refreshing and understated while simultaneously intense and emotional. "Behind the Blue" is perfect for the highway ahead, as a prelude to a night on the town, or as a perfect complement to closed blinds and an open bottle of wine." OnTap - Aaron Cunningham ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Shane Gamble like taking the road literally wherever it may lead. While in college at Salisbury State University in Salisbury MD., Route 50 led right to his house, and that’s exactly where he started his own record label. “I lived in a house on the exit ramp” said Gamble, founder of Rt.50 Music and creator of albums “Behind the Blue” (2005) and Talk About (2002). His path, however, he also prefers to walk alone. “my process is to work by myself,” said the independent solo artist, who often heads to his cabin studio in West Virginia to craft his earnest love songs and quirky ballads in solitude. “Sometimes, I’ll wake up in the middle of the night (there) because I’ll dream about a song. Gamble pens the lyrics to adult alternative tunes, and then works through the musical arrangements by blending in aspects of rock, jazz and pop. When it comes to recording and playing live gigs the singer/songwriter label exec calls on his stable of talented musician friends to help him out- as much as he can, given his affinity for live performance, especially in the clubs where he’s gained a strong fan base. “There are a ton of venues to play if you’re not afraid to put yourself out there” Gamble said. To listen, go to www.shanegamble.com Northern Virginia Magazine