Partly Dave

Acoustic pop songwriter Loren Depping will perform from 8 to 10 p.m. Saturday, May 24, at the Astoria Coffeehouse. There is no cover charge.

Though born in Canada, Depping grew up in far western Washington in the town of Aberdeen. Beginning in the 1990s, he played in a variety of acoustic duos and trios up and down the Willamette Valley and on the Oregon Coast, most notably with the acoustic duo Two Man Bob, with which he played the Bite of Oregon festival in Portland. In the early 2000s, Depping moved to Albuquerque, N.M., where he began presenting new material as an acoustic solo act. Not long after, he moved to Salem, where he occasionally performs with local rock quartets 49 Fingers and Partly Dave.

According to Depping, his songs are intended to be three- to four-minute melodic stories in the style of pop songwriters of the 1960s and early '70s. Presented as acoustic pop, country and folk, their content runs the gamut - from trysts to trains, tattoos to tarmacs, love lost, love found and variations in between.

Depping's performance is in support of his current solo recording, "Go By Train." The disc sets stories about the ups and downs of relationships against a backdrop of travel. Depping has five recordings to his credit.

"The combination of his warm voice, simple and tasteful guitar technique, songwriting, and lyrical content is a welcome addition." -Crosswinds Weekly, Albuquerque, N.M.

Astoria Coffeehouse is located at 243 11th St. For more information, call (503) 325-1787 or visit www.astoriacoffeehouse.com. For examples of Depping's music, visit www.myspace.com/lorendeppingmusic - The Daily Astorian

I hope Loren Depping won't take this as an insult, but he sounds a lot like John Denver. Denver had a beautiful voice, and he was a damn good pop songwriter.

Loren took the time to send out his CD. The quality of the recording is excellent. Even the sweetie-girl background vocals are well done, as well as Loren's obvious musical talents on guitar, and knowing how to sing unobstructed by affect.

While his song style sounds like something from the 60's, he has a bit of twisted sense of humor as he sings, "I'm in love with a dental hygienist, rubber gloves can't come between us."

It's hard to keep up with all the music flowing through the coast these days, even all the gigs lined up just for May at ACH (Astoria Coffeehouse). Do catch Loren Sat., May 24. He'll be more than ample Sat. night coffee house entertainment. - HipFish Monthly

With a glance at his watch, Loren Depping talks about the road trip that he'll head out on in a few hours. While he appears unsure what kind of turnout he'll encounter on his trip through Washington and into Canada, the singer-songwriter seems to relish the thought of taking his music to new markets.

It's not exactly a unique experience for Depping, who has spent years performing as part of various projects. Most recently, he was a member of the power pop outfit Partly Dave. Thanks to the quartet's hiatus, however, he's returned to his solo artist roots and the out-of-state trek serves as a chance to see how other audiences respond.
There's little question that the singer is fond of the Partly Dave lineup and that comes through when he talks about the foursome, but it's also clear that he's enjoying his current situation. Unlike in a band, where compromise becomes essential, the solo route brings with it the ability to explore musical fancies that previously may not have been given a chance.

"Being the bandleader or whatever, there's a certain amount of liberty to that," Depping says. "You have the freedom to run the show the way you want to with less democratic input."

Backing him up as he goes solo is a musician he's worked with for quite some time, Partly Dave bassist Dave Stump. Together, the pair have recorded "Go By Train," Depping's fourth solo release.

Produced by Jeff Stuart Saltzman (Death Cab For Cutie, Sleater-Kinney, Stephen Malkmus), the set is 13 simply presented songs that add minimal instrumentation for accents. After spending the past four years in a group, the stripped-down approach appealed to the singer.

"I wanted them to be able to stand alone so that the character of the song would have its own little integrity," he says.

Unlike many artists who write the music first and add lyrics later, Depping tends to start with the lyrics. He's usually inspired to write when he hears an interesting phrase; he then uses that to build a song. Much of the time he says he starts writing the song without even knowing what direction it will take stylistically.

"I didn't sit down to write a funny song or a song in three-four time," Depping says of the songs on "Go By Train." "I usually start with some kind of a lyric idea and I sit down to flesh that out. Very often, what ends up happening is that I think the song is going to go one direction and it ends up going a completely different direction based on -- sometimes I'm not really sure what it's based on."

In many ways, it makes sense that the lyrics serve as the foundation for Depping's songs. By his own admission, he was a "lonely, nobody-understands-me kind of guy" in college and that compelled him to write poetry. Eventually, however, he realized he was a "lousy poet."

Between his freshman and sophomore years of college, 19-year-old Depping picked up a guitar and made a discovery that gave him a new outlet for his poetry.

"Like a lot of college kids, I found Jim Morrison. Here was the quintessential poet putting his stuff to music and I thought, `This is maybe a direction I can go.' As it turned out, my Jim Morrison phase lasted a very brief amount of time because it was self-limiting, but I got into writing."

That love of songwriting will be on display later this month at the Blue Pepper when Depping has his official release show for "Go By Train." Making the evening even more significant is that his bandmates from Partly Dave will be joining him to perform a few songs. It's an evening to which he's looking forward because, as much as he enjoys going out on his own, he still has a love for the companionship of a band. - Salem Monthly

New Mexico and art go hand in hand. While Santa Fe may be la maison de choix for many visual artists, musicians tend to flock to Burque. The Atomic Cantina, Burt’s Tiki Lounge, The Sunshine and El Rey theaters, and the Launchpad are just a sampling of great places to go, the only problem being that you usually have to be 21. Several great local bands have sprung up within city limits, and while a number of CDs have come across my desk during my tenure as an Alibi intern, I'd personally like to recommend Partly Dave, a Oregon-based rock band whose lead songwriter-guitarist Loren Depping is a former Burqueño. Their prophetic “No Guarantees” off the recent up-beat LP Own Up is my new favorite song. - Albuquerque, New Mexico's "Weekly Alibi"

If you're a fan of '60s-inflected acoustic guitar pop-charmers, don't miss Loren Depping's first visit to Mile Zero this weekend. If the tracks on "Go By Train" are any indication, Depping's a singer-songwriter with talent to spare. With a James Taylor-esque voice and simple guitar stylings (that is, more strumming than fingerpicking), "Go By Train" is an enjoyable collection of 13 songs that, honestly, would probably sound much better with a full band.

Not that I'm complaining; Depping has an eminently listenable voice and a way with lyrics ("I don't understand/why the glass ran out of sand").

Tracks like "Our Best Days" remind me of early XTC, while "Curbside Appeal" has something of the Barenaked Ladies about it. Good disc, good talent. - Monday Magazine: Victoria, B.C.

http://www.citypages.com/slideshow/view/95900

A new monthly music event, Song Town Saloon brings together artists to play roots, blues and Americana music on the first Saturday of each month at Acadia Cafe's new location on Cedar. The night of songs is hosted by "Sneaky" Pete Bauer and Jaspar Lepak. Besides Bauer and Lepak, musicians included locals the Roe Family Singers and Salem, Ore. based Loren Depping. - City Pages Minneapolis

by Jeff Shaw at April 15, 2008

This Minnesota Monitor item from a few days back rounds up local news about dental hygienists. Surprisingly, there's a lot of it.

What there aren't a lot of is songs about dental hygienists, so there's no chance of finding a list of five. But there is this gem, a pop confection so sweet your dentist might object to the listening. It's a track by Loren Depping called, fittingly, "Dental Hygienist."

loren.jpg

Depping is an Oregon-based singer songwriter with a love for guitar pop, but his roots lie in Americana. His solo discs are populated with story-songs reminiscent of Emmylou Harris, quirky ditties and dreamy, Pernice Brothers-style vocals. This song's light touch isn't an indication that Depping's simply a silly songster. He can do the serious stuff, too. But how endearing is a song about love and tooth care?

Depping is touring here this summer. "Dental Hygienist" is on his latest CD, Go By Train, and you can also download it here.
- City Pages (Minneapolis/St. Paul)