By Kelsey Rogers, Asst. Living & arts editor
Elements of jazz and soul were showcased by the music group Love Salad in Stretansky Concert Hall on Jan. 25.
Founded and directed by associate professor of music Joshua Davis, the group plays original compositions that contain elements of jazz, R&B, rock and multiple other types of genres.
Davis played both electric and string bass while other featured members performed: Natalie John with vocals, Todd Harrison on drums, Blake Cramer on vibraphone and Jonathan Epley on guitar.
“It was born of the fact that we wanted something that would raise questions,” said Davis, when asked the meaning behind the name of the group.
Originally formed five years ago with John and reformed in October 2017, Davis felt like he and John were creating a salad of their own.
“I think we just wanted something that was going to be reflective of the fact that many of the lyrics are about love, parenting, partnership,” Davis said. “It was a rich, diverse salad of people and musical content.”
Davis said that there is certainly jazz within their sound, but there is also quite a bit of funk, rock, soul and R&B.
Each piece has its own unique spin to it, with John shining through with her powerful, soulful vocals and riveting solos from the instrumentalists that excited the audience. Both Cramer and Epley had multiple solos that were met with applause from the crowd, all while maintaining a cool and collected demeanor.
Focusing on the theme of love for the compositions, Davis said he gained inspiration from his children, Sam and Bella, for two of the songs “Sam 5.8” and “A Girl.”
“It was very natural to write about them,” Davis said. “I find them particularly inspirational as a composer to be thinking about them for content.”
“I will sit down and think about [Sam and Bella] and what they mean to me,” Davis added.
Davis described his morning routine with his family, where he makes them breakfast and listens to NPR in the background. This particular staple in his daily life inspired his composition for the song “Baubler.”
“I find great happiness in my children and great anger around our current political climate,” Davis said. “‘Baubler’ is very much reacting to foolishness in politics, what I perceive as foolishness.”
“Baubler” features John delivering a sassy performance while also surprising the audience with a trumpet solo.
Davis also gained inspiration from members of “Love Salad” for his song-writing. The song “Do It” was written for John, according to Davis during the group’s performance.
A piece that is Davis’ favorite to perform with the group is “Krantzed,” which was inspired by Wayne Krantz, former guitarist for Steely Dan.
“That’s a favorite because I recently put lyrics to that that are also soaking wet with politics,” Davis said.
The full setlist that the group performed was “There Is A Tree,” “Say,” “Permission,” “Sam 5.8,” “Do It,” “Heaven from Bette,” “Seven Stages,” “Baubler,” “Hand in Hand,” “Krantzed,” “A Girl” and “Duck.”
“Love Salad” recently recorded their new album and will undergo editing throughout the course of the next month. Davis said he hopes to release the album to online music services within the next few months.
Davis said that the band is a pretty radical departure from his usual music-making.
“I’m usually very much a jazz composer and performer and I’ve wanted all my life to do something that was funky,” Davis said.
“This is a really special experience for me and I feel more inspired more than I have from many years of cool projects,” Davis continued. “This one is where my heart is at.”
Sophomore Stephanie Shirk said it was interesting to see a faculty member in their element.
“You always hear them practicing in their offices or only hear them during classroom demonstrations,” Shirk said. “To watch them doing something they love is amazing. Jazz is an interesting genre, but Love Salad has an element of surprise with each piece.”
The next events presented by the department of music will be a guest artist recital by the New Thread Saxophone Quartet on Feb. 1 and a senior recital for Heather Knox on Feb 10.
