Blaming Tim Dot Com We don't care, so you don't have to!

[Press] – Blaming Tim reviewed by GopherTunes.com

May 20th, 2007 – GopherTunes.com

http://www.gophertunes.com/news/news.php?id=73

Piano-slingers tend to stick out a bit, particularly in a scene that’s choked with guitars. Piano-slingers who write music that not only shows talent, but actually rocks…well, they’re a rare sight indeed, and pianist Tim Johnson and his band Blaming Tim is definitely a band to watch.

Their sound has been repeatedly described as “piano-dominant,” but the fact is that Blaming Tim is simply dominant. A packed Red Light Café bore witness to this when the band hit the stage on May 19.

Tim Johnson once referred to his playing style as “rhythm piano,” but his musicianship is far more complex than he lets on. Borrowing from a wide range of classical, jazz and rock styles, Tim writes songs that can go from feather-light to key-pounding with gospel fervor, all the while remaining insanely catchy. He also does the bulk of the singing with a voice that is almost identical to Ty Tabor of King’s X.

Much like the Ben Folds Five, Blaming Tim’s secret missing ingredient has always been the guitar. Not that the band has any trouble bringing guitarists on board; they simply find one and hand him a pair of drumsticks. Latest to occupy the throne is veteran guitarist Travis Navarra, also of Sunday Drive Bye. Strangely, this works. Navarra’s rhythms are rock-solid; his tempos are like clockwork. His playing provides a perfect complement to Larry Copeland’s bass lines while giving Tim’s piano some nice extra accents.

Larry Copeland is a bassist more players should emulate. Although his playing is far from simplistic, he stays away from “cool” bass, opting instead to simply play the right notes. His texturing is dead-on as well; many players will either only play with their fingers, or will only use a pick. Larry is the type to use whatever method the song requires. He has found that magic space between rhythm and melody, and fills it perfectly.

The evening’s set was a good mix of older tunes (”Baby,” the funky “Cast Your Next Another”) as well as newer songs written since Travis came aboard. These newer songs reveal a band that has really solidified its sound. The show is as high-energy as ever, and Blaming Tim have always managed to groove and swing while at the same time sounding completely pissed off and punked-up. But the sonic palette has broadened a bit, and part of this stems from Tim’s growing lyrical maturity.

Much of his early work ranted at ex-girlfriends, but Tim has expanded his horizons quite a bit. He explores the strange telepathy between lovers in “Crazy Go Nuts,” and also lays bare personal tragedy (”Dead Baby,” a song about the death of a girlfriend who also happened to be pregnant). Tim’s wit has also sharpened to the point that his tongue nearly drills a hole in his cheek, as on “I Wanna Be a Spice Girl.”

Tim is also venturing more beyond straight piano voicings, adding some nice choral and synthy touches along the way. Larry is stepping up more as a vocalist, even taking the lead on “Novella,” a song he also wrote. He has also started utilizing an E-baritone guitar, which occupies the range between a standard guitar and a bass. This, coupled with his extremely tasteful (and tasty) use of effects, puts Blaming Tim’s sound on a whole new level.

To cap the evening off, Blaming Tim treated the crowd to a brand-new tune, the largely improvisational but still drum-tight “Technology Requires Less Talent.” Then they closed the set with the fiery “Perfect Person,” a song that Tim says the band will only play as a closer because “after that, we’re just incapable of playing anything. The hands refuse.”

God help any band that has to follow them.