Brisbane blues guitarist and songwriter, Dave Orr is set to release his debut full-length album 'As Soon As I Know' – a collection of songs written during the past three years.
After touring the USA as a session musician Dave draws much of his inspiration from Austin and the Deep South. 'As Soon As I Know' offers an autobiographical insight to Dave's life in recent years.
“We're always changing as people, and as artists your viewpoint is always changing. So the record covers a fair bit of ground, as in the songs like 'From The Devil' and [title track] 'As Soon As I Know' are from an older incarnation of the band,” Dave explains.
“We were a three-piece then... and we played twice a week at this little dive bar in [Fortitude] Valley [in Brisbane], so a lot of the stuff was written by jamming late nights [sic]. There's songs on the record that come from that time, and then through to [recent single] 'Diamonds On My Dummy'.”
Dave owes much of the variety and breadth of blues style on 'As Soon As I Know' to the collection of musicians he has worked with to record the album.
“I think Brisbane has this really amazing music culture and there's a great pool of players, so when you get someone else in the band it changes the dynamic and the sound,” he says.
“When you listen to something that was recorded a year before, it feels like a different time and that's why I'm quite proud of the record because it shows a lot of different sides of what's been happening over the past three years.”
Keen to fully explore what the blues has to offer a modern songwriter, Dave says the album offers a broad soundscape of the blues to listeners. “I think blues and soul are such a big umbrella of styles, so I think the album really covers a lot of ground,” he explains.
“'Diamonds On My Dummy' is a real [The] Meters-style groove tune and then we go into some classic shuffles and things like that. I like to do a lot of different things and to explore it all.”
With a guitar-playing style akin to and heavily influenced by players such as Stevie Ray Vaughn and Jimi Hendrix, Dave says he likes to create music that pushes the envelope of what the blues can be.
“For me it's about paying homage to that amazing music and that rich music, and also putting your own spin on it.
“I like having your roots and bringing out the history of that music, but also moving forward with it too. You don't want to just replicate what was done – you pay homage to it but also try to do your own thing as well, and that's what I try and do the best I can.”
Dave and his eponymous band will play a series of shows in Victoria (with a national tour slated for May/ June), where 'As Soon As I Know' will get a good live airing.
But Dave saying festivals are where his music fits best. “We'll be getting more out of these festival gigs because I think that's where this music belongs.
“The gigs where you're playing with a bunch of different bands and people are there in a festival spirit, the music goes so well with it.”
