Jeff Beam

Jeff Beam has done a difficult but crucial thing in integrating a bit of cheek throughout his catalog early on. The young Maine-based songwriter and Of Montreal admirer swings his own versatile sound, from a spritely early Elvis Costello all the way to a more musing Elliot Smith, but his songs enjoy the burst of energy and life that a half-hidden smile can bring to a melody.

Beam, whose quirky writing will gain indie cred as he continues to grow as an artist, is all set to drop "Venus Flying Trapeze," his fourth solo effort, on Dec. 10 at Empire Dine & Dance with Chris Moulton and Dave Gutter supporting. GO sat down with Beam to learn about the hard work that goes into such a prolific early career.

On your MySpace, it says you are "What happens when Jeff Beck drinks Jim Beam." Clever wordplay, or can you actually back this up?

Buy me a shot, and let's find out! But I bet "Jim Beck" has the same website bio.

Among others, you've caught the ear of local star Eric Bettencourt. What do you attribute this to?

I don't think there are too many people around doing stuff like me. There's not a huge psychedelic scene in town, and I don't know of many other folks that produce and record every aspect of their albums by themselves. I just think I have a different approach than most people, and I think that gets people's attention. Eric Bettencourt is one of those cats who does a lot of home recording and has an incredible amount of output. He's a great guy to have around the music scene.

What is your favorite kind of song to write?

Short and catchy, with interesting and cohesive chord changes. The best songs come at you fast, pack a bunch of well-connected infectious melodies and are over in a flash. Short ditties keep the listener coming back for repeated listens.

You just came from two years in Boston. How was that? How do the scenes compare?

Boston was interesting. My Boston band was called The Stereo Flys, and we played gigs around town with two types of bands: uber-indie Allston punks or mind-numbing metal bands. There was hardly anything in between. Nobody was playing much psychedelic music, and there was hardly any good ol' rock 'n' roll. I hope we brought a little bit of that to Beantown. As far as music scenes go, Portland (beats) Boston, by a longshot.

Who are you for Beatles night? Are you up to the challenge?

I'm playing George's 12-string Rickenbacker, but I'm singing most of Paul's parts. "A Hard Day's Night" is a pretty wacky record, but with Kurt Baker, Ryan Dolan and Scott Girouard by my side, I think we're up for anything. But seriously, those tunes are just as fresh today as they were in 1964. The chord changes and song arrangements still haven't been topped.

Talk about the planting and harvesting of this latest record.

The planting and harvesting of this album date back to this summer. I spent the summer out on the island of Vinalhaven with my girlfriend, Julie, and I wrote and recorded most of the album out there without any cell phone or Internet. There's an eclectic selection of instruments on the album (I used a lot of household items for percussion), and I was able to spend an incredible amount of time nurturing the songs and polishing the recordings. I'm rather proud of the crop of songs I was able to harvest; it may be the strongest batch yet. It all came together as "Venus Flying Trapeze," my fourth solo album, due out at Thanksgiving. And Dave Gutter and Chris Moulton were kind enough to jump on the bill for the Dec. 10 album-release show at the Empire. Giant party.

What will be the best part of 2011 (with minute details, please)?

I'm going to try my hand at Brooklyn for the first part of 2011. Then it's back to good ol' Portland to enjoy my time before the impending uncertainty of 2012. Since I've released one new solo album every year since 2007, I would also expect a fifth album about one year from now.




WHAT'S ON JEFF BEAM'S iPOD
"The Beatles (White Album)," Beatles
"Figure 8," Elliott Smith
"Coquelicot," Of Montreal
"The Soft Bulletin," The Flaming Lips
"OK Computer," Radiohead
"The Kinks Are Village Green Preservation Society," The Kinks
"The Point!" Harry Nilsson
"All The Pain Money Can Buy," Fastball
"Smile" (bootleg), The Beach Boys
"Kill the Moonlight," Spoon - Portland Press Herald

I’ve been doing some work for a brand new, 4G radio station called Maine.fm, and that’s precisely how I stumbled upon this week’s featured artist. Jeff Beam is a small town dude from Maine conjuring up a really interesting blend of psychedelic indie rock. His latest album, “Venus Flying Trapeze,” takes you on a journey for sure.

Along side catchy vocal melodies and thoughtful lyrics, the album is riddled with interesting electronic sounds, quotes, crowd noises, and other miscellaneous murmuring. It’s very tastefully done, really complimenting the songs instead of distracting from them. I hear distinct influences from bands like The Flaming Lips, Elliot Smith, and Of Montreal all over this album.

The entire thing is written, recorded, mixed, and produced by Jeff. He is also responsible for nearly all the sounds on the album, minus a few random instrument cameos here and there. That’s some serious hustle, dude!

The last song on the album, “Can’t You Feel The Curve of the Earth?” is currently getting airplay over on Maine.fm, and rightfully so. You can stream, download, and purchase all of Jeff’s music over on his Bandcamp page. - Tight Mix Blog

Honest musicians with personal commitments and a precious soul to bare, Jeff Beam falls straight into this elaborate category. A seemingly self styled musician, a large percentage of this album release is self produced, mixed and spun out for us to indulge by the artist alone - Personal pleasure or private hell, Jeff say`s "It's a psychedelic affair".
Recorded on a remote island off the coast of Maine called Vinalhaven, Tanner Smith of the band Laminated Cat makes a brief appearance on a couple of tracks. Venus Flying Trapeze is nice studio fuelled affair, there`s plenty of late night musings and mixing desk frowns apparent with Jeff`s latest release - A great guitar rush can be achieved in only a few quick listens. - Mojophenia (UK)

Jeff Beam sounds a lot like the late Elliot Smith, if Smith had harbored a secret desire to be in a psychedelic jam band. He certainly shares Smith's multi-instrumentalist gifts: Beam has played almost all the instruments on his three releases. His 2010 album Venus Flying Trapeze shows Beam effortlessly playing the field. “Can’t You Feel the Curve of the Earth” is a rollicking, optimistic crusade, complete with horns and smooth guitar riffs. “Loudspeaker Wallpaper” is a raw garage rock anthem supported by pounding drums and throaty vocals. Beam takes his listeners on a Tilt-a-Whirl of emotions, and you’ll wanna come along for the ride.

— Lizzie Plaugic - Beacon Press