I’ve wondered for quite some time now if there is even a point to The Lavone existing as a musical entity. I love my older brother, I always have and always will. That’s the only reason The Lavone still exists, because I don’t want to consider the possibility that we won’t write and record music together anymore. On the other hand, I have another brother, Reed, who is exactly the kind of collaborator I desire and who I have never worked with in that way. I have a sister who is also brilliant and I’ve never worked with her that way either. Rhett and I have been The Lavone for so long that it seems wrong to ever say that we aren’t anymore, except we truly aren’t anymore. We used to feed off of each others ideas, now we tolerate them. It used to be that the things I want to do onstage at MAF would be greeted with enthusiasm by Rhett and be part of our Lavone show. Now he would just say, “Hey man, that sounds crazy, go for it. Me and Brad want to play some Beach Boys and Bee Gees cover songs when you’re done.” Covers? Rhett revealed the following things to me on the phone today:
- He really likes playing other peoples music and is thinking about joining SRO (a local Witness wedding band that plays stuff like “The Wind Beneath My Wings” made up of a core that hasn’t changed in 23 years)
- No matter how hard he tries, he cannot fathom why anybody listens to Radiohead. He thinks they sound like “a guy whining over a bunch of noise” and that they have no artistic merit
- He actually wants to play Bee Gees and Beach Boys cover songs at MAF “after all the wierd bands are done”
I’m not offended, dismayed or upset… I’m simply puzzled because I don’t understand what this means. My brother used to be passionate about putting his soul on tape. Now he wants to tape soul music. He used to experiment and explore music/noise by Captain Beefheart, The Plastic Ono Band, Pink Floyd, The Moody Blues, Frank Zappa, The Grateful Dead and loads of others. Now he only cares to listen to Brian Wilson, The Beach Boys, Dusty Springfield, Marvin Gaye… and I’m not saying that is bad music, it’s not, but it’s so so so so so so far musically from anything that is even remotely interesting to me. I can name song after song of Rhett’s that has inspired and moved me as an artist, music that made me grow:
- Lying on Our Backs
- Psychedelic Kiss
- Hello, My Name Is Rhett Sutter
- Gypsy
- Gossip Gossip Gossip
- Feel
- Black
- Everybody’s Building Walls
- Oh No
- Spiritually
- Inside Sally’s Brain
- Love Could Be So High
I could go on and on and on… but none of those songs have been recorded in the last 10 years. I like his newer music, for the most part. Blues Around My Soul is awesome, as is Floatin’ but I can’t connect with songs like This Road We’re On or Sweetie and even that stuff is 3+ years old now. I guess what I am saying is that Rhett has been musical hero for so long, I’ve followed his lead for so long, that I’m afraid to admit to myself that he’s no longer going where I want to be. Is it really possible to be a two person band where one of you wants to experiment with new sounds and the other one wants to closely emulate the music of people who died 20 years ago? Will anybody want to listen to a CD that has slick “white soul” tracks followed by (and following) experimental acoustic electronic music? Worse yet, how are we supposed to work together enthusiastically when neither of us can understand the other ones music in the least?
It would impossible to call any band that doesn’t have me and Rhett in it “The Lavone”. If Rhett does his thing with his other friends and records solo stuff, that is fine but it won’t be The Lavone. If I form a new band or record solo material, that’s not The Lavone either and if The Lavone doesn’t play together or record together, is it really a band? What I’m getting at is… should MAF be the last appearance of The Lavone? Is it all over? I kind of think so… I think the time may have come and wow, that makes me sad….
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After writing the above I called Rhett and talked to him about it and we’ve decided something. While The Lavone can never technically go away as long as he and I are alive, we’re hanging it up after MAF. At MAF, we’re going to wrap the last 17 years up in a nice little bow, say thanks for the memories and ride off into the sunset. This doesn’t mean that we won’t continue to make music individually, but Rhett will work with Brad and Bruce on his music and I will work solo and with Amanda in “Steve”. If he needs my skills for a song, I’ll record with him and vice-versa, but we won’t plan Lavone gigs, won’t record Lavone albums and won’t actively try to function as The Lavone. So, it’s the end of an era. The Legendary Lavone, 1986-2003. I used to think that could never happen and yes, it makes me very sad. So, we’ll give ourselves one last hurrah at MAF and then call it a day. For those who care, we leave the following albums behind:
Psychotrauma (1986) – double-length
The Lavone Plays Live for Chad and Bobby (1987) – LP
One (1987) – double-length
We Don’t Exist (1988) – double-length
l a v o n e (1988) – LP
Nukenlodgetisenberry (1989) – double-length
Earth Mother (1989) – LP
Angel of Purpose (1989) – LP
Psychotic Requiem (1989) – EP
A Spectacle for Compassionate Minds (1990) – double length
Escapyst Flowers (1990) – LP
Purpose (1990) – LP, rarities and oddities collection
A Concert for No-one (1991) – double-length
Purpose II (1992) – LP, more of the same
Some Enchanted Evening (1993) – LP
The Hiatus (1999) – CD
Isotope (2000) – CD
The Lavone Live at The Depot (2001) – CD, unreleased because of audio problems
I know that the majority of the NG fans out there have never heard 99% of this music. I may try to change that later, put together a retrospective CD, but for now I’m just glad we did it. Bye bye Lavone…
More From Ryan Sutter
- Stop the Presses! Hold the Phones! The End of the World Has Arrived!!!
- The Pattern
- The Internet vs. The Watchtower
- watcher of the skies
- the big issues of the day
