The Commentary

Sunday, 27 June 2004

Brian goes to see Doctor Robert at Richard's on Richards

PERSPECTIVES - thecommentary.ca

By Brian Nguyen, for thecommentary.ca

I dallied around the intersection of Richards and Robson, acutely aware of how late I would be for the concert. The press release had stated the band would begin playing at 9:00pm, and my watch indicated 9:10pm. Joseph would undoubtedly lecture me on my unprofessionalism. I shrugged and continued my dawdling- if Joseph had wanted writers who didn't procrastinate, he should have started paying us.

At last, I arrived at Richard's on Richards, where I was vigorously frisked for weapons, cameras, and drugs by the three bouncers at the door. They grunted their approval and shoved me through the doorway. I handed my trendy haversack to the coat check woman and generously gave her a twenty for her service. In return, she gave me nineteen dollars for my kindness. Upon sashaying up to the ticket attendant and showing him my slip, I was granted entrance into the concert room. Navigating through the dimly lit room, I found a lonely, empty seat in the midst of all the music and turned my attention to the band.

I had initially been reluctant when Joseph asked me to attend a concert by a group called Doctor Robert: I had never heard of them, and given that May Chan was the resident doyenne of all things musical, I was afraid she would be insulted if I accepted. Nevertheless, Joseph persisted, in his usual grave but stodgy manner, and at last, I accepted. I was told to expect an interview session with the band, but sadly, this never came to fruition. Whether it was due to the procrastination of an incompetent intermediary, or simply the constraints placed upon a band with a busy schedule, I cannot say. My attempts to locate information about the band on the Internet were all in vain, as I found one website with a miniscule picture of the three band members, and one website about an unrelated singer of the same name. Thus, I was ill prepared to make an informed assessment of their performance. Would I inevitably resort to meaningless diatribes about the importance of their music to society, and - worse yet - would I resort to using inane clichés?

The press release was only moderately informative. The band was a little over three years old, and was comprised of three core members: Kenton Fuller on vocals and guitar, Dave Dick on guitar, and Brad Graham on bass. They had released their debut album "Awake" in 2003, under the production of Larry Anschell. It featured seven tracks and included drummer Ed Johnson and Hammond player Darryl Havers. Beyond this, little provided me with relevant insight into the band. The included quotes by reviewers of the album were ambiguous, and failed to leave a clear impression of the band. Perhaps- and this is merely a suggestion- a concise blurb discussing the philosophy and/or the goals of the band would have been more helpful.

My first impression upon hearing the band was that the amplifiers were too loud. Perhaps within a larger venue, everything would have been fine, but within the constrained space of Richard's on Richards, there was a slight echo effect that my ears found unpleasant. Those with less sensitive ears likely would not have noticed, though. Whether this was a case of someone deciding to play music loud simply for the sake of being loud, or whether it was a simple error on someone's part, I do not know. Occasionally there did appear to be problems with the volume, resulting in a whining sound that made those in the crowd wince.

After hearing the rest of the band's songs, it also became obvious that there were too many moments in which the three guitars drowned out Kenton Fuller's vocals and the rest of the instruments. For example, I could see a band member- one whom I failed to identify, I'm ashamed to say- playing a trumpet during the last song, but I couldn't hear any of the notes because the guitars were so overbearing. Also, Kenton Fully, despite singing very enthusiastically during the band's catchy rock songs, displayed a limited vocal range during the softer songs.

The band's attempts to generate a response from the crowd saw limited success- partly because the room wasn't even half-filled. The majority of the cheers throughout the concert seemed to be coming from one part of the audience, while those sitting near me simply applauded politely. The band seemed nervous- at times, Kenton Fuller's humorous quips sounded forced, rather than relaxed, drawing a few chuckles from some, and befuddled silence from others. In the future, all of the band members should work on looking more relaxed while performing, as well as working on new ways of provoking the entire audience.

Alternatively, some colourful costumes and some fast-paced dance steps would be equally amusing, if the band is so inclined.

Despite being touted for their "diversity of influences and tastes" in the press release, I thought there wasn't enough variety in the music. All of the songs focused heavily on the play of the three guitarists, to the detriment of the other instruments, and none of the riffs or lyrics struck me as being unique enough for the hard rock aficionados, nor catchy enough to receive significant airplay. The impression I received from the music is that of a band still searching for its identity and its core audience. The press release proudly stated that the group had performed "in over 30 shows," but this clearly is not enough. If the band aspires to be even moderately successful in Canada, it will need to play in more- many more- shows to fine-tune its music and find its identity.

Allow me to conclude this piece by describing my conversation with Joseph afterwards. The concert ended at approximately 10:20pm, giving me enough time to rush home and contact Joseph before he left to settle a few matters of business. He was amused, naturally, at my excuses for being late, but typed a smiley face to show his support and said, "Just finish the damn review by next week and I won't have to kill you."

Still feeling somewhat philosophical about the music I had just heard, I asked him, "Joseph, with the music industry being so homogenized, is there room for another local rock band?"

And Joseph, sitting hunched over his keyboard, replied, "So long as people enjoy dancing, drinking, and partying, there will always be room for another rock band. Although some have argued that mainstream music, with its glitz its ridiculous budgets, has become bland, derivative, and predictable, you have to remember that music itself has no moral or aesthetic value. Think about the guitar. What is it, really, but a group of strings which we vibrate to produce different notes? The guitar does not contain some inherent quality which magically makes certain notes better than others do. We subjectively choose notes that we assume best reflect those notions of beauty and harmony which we have been brought up on. Music is merely a medium through which we channel our beliefs, our feelings, and yes, even our political aspirations. Thus, those criticisms against mainstream music which I've mentioned strike me as being ultimately meaningless. What of mainstream music, if it is derivative? Is a song not produced to satisfy those notions of beauty held by its creators and its listeners? And are not those notions of beauty ultimately influenced by previous songs? And if mainstream music is bland or predictable, are not the tools available through which critics can work to create new sounds, new harmonies?"

I was flabbergasted. Was this really Joseph? "I guess you're right," I mumbled in response. He had helped me develop a newfound respect for Doctor Robert, which obviously was working so hard to help us- I'm referring to naive listeners like myself- discover the wonderful effects which music can produce in human beings. They haven't perfected their work just yet, but thanks to Joseph, I now applaud them for their efforts.