Hallock Hill

Cam Deas, “Frozen Lakes and Icy Leaves” (excerpt), Split Tour LP with Spoono (Blackest Rainbow)

Cam Deas is among the modern caretakers of the Anglo-American acoustic guitar tradition. Descending from Graham, Jansch, Rose, Basho, Fahey and most interestingly perhaps, Derek Bailey, Deas must superficially be compared to James Blackshaw, especially given his use of the twelve string. But this really is a purely superficial categorization, as if Glenn Gould and Jerry Lee Lewis are akin because they are both flamboyant at the piano.

No. While Blackshaw has built a repetoire around cascading arpeggios and repetitive figures echoing classical minimalism, Deas turns a somewhat different way, by and large, with his guitar. His is a style more resonantly atmospheric and when he does move into arpeggiated passages (as in this piece), the attack and tone is different. He uses them to move from one introspective moment, usually encorporating generous acoustic overtones and harmonics that can only be heard when the music is given some space to breathe. When the pace quickens, Deas exhibits raw tension in a way that Blackshaw never does. Rather than cascades, we feel a white water rush of tension. It is not unlike the thunder apparent in punk at it best, but played with care and command of instrument.

The modes Deas tends to work in are those of rich harmonic power, many with Middle Eastern turns and rarely a blue note (distinguishing him from many of the American school). They are there at times of least expectation, and often as harmony rather than a focused pivot.

Deas was born in the late 80s, at a time when widespread interest in acoustic music was virtually non-existent with young listeners. He is fortunate to be at work now, when there is something of a revival-come-Renaissance within his generation and a healthy supply of good record labels wanting to release this type of music. It will be a pleasure to hear this composer and instrumentalist develop. Rather than remove all the mystery from his recordings, I will leave it at this and encourage you to seek him out for yourself, order his records directly, and take it all in. There is more than guitar at work, with sonic scales crafted out of a variety of “instruments,” but in the end it is Deas’ guitar that has the clearest and loudest voice. It at once reflects its past, and paves some new roads worth following.

Cam Deas on MySpace (where you can e-mail him and order his LPs and new 7” directly)

Blackest Rainbow Records