Mike Vasas
Encyclopedia
Michael Robert Vasas (born February 17, 1982 in Dearborn, Michigan
Dearborn, Michigan
-Economy:Ford Motor Company has its world headquarters in Dearborn. In addition its Dearborn campus contains many research, testing, finance and some production facilities. Ford Land controls the numerous properties owned by Ford including sales and leasing to unrelated businesses such as the...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
singer, multi-instrumentalist
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...
, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, and music educator. He is the founder of the musical collective
Musical collective
Musical collective is a phrase used to describe a group of musicians in which membership is flexible and creative control is shared. Such entities have transitioned from the traditional hierarchical configuration that features either a frontman , or a plurality of band members in tension for...
Grammy Hall Records, and a member of the free improvisation
Free improvisation
Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician involved. The term can refer to both a technique and as a recognizable genre in its own right....
group; The Early Minor Quintet.
Early career
A singer, piano player and guitaristGuitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
, Vasas attended Edsel Ford High School
Edsel Ford High School
Edsel Ford High School is a secondary school located in Dearborn, Michigan, USA. Edsel Ford, located on Rotunda, near Oakwood, is one of three high schools in the Dearborn Public Schools. Edsel Ford High School was completed in 1955, and the first graduating class was in 1956...
in Dearborn, MI. His first songwriting and recording was with high school friend and guitarist Matt Mepham. They released an EP and a full length under the band name Pendulum. The duo also scored a theatrical production of Lewis Carroll
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson , better known by the pseudonym Lewis Carroll , was an English author, mathematician, logician, Anglican deacon and photographer. His most famous writings are Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass, as well as the poems "The Hunting of the...
’s Alice in Wonderland in 1999.
After high school, Vasas attended Kalamazoo College
Kalamazoo College
Kalamazoo College, also known as K College or simply K, is a private liberal arts college in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1833, the college is among the 100 oldest in the country. Today, it produces more Peace Corps volunteers per capita than any other U.S...
in Kalamazoo, Michigan
Kalamazoo, Michigan
The area on which the modern city stands was once home to Native Americans of the Hopewell culture, who migrated into the area sometime before the first millennium. Evidence of their early residency remains in the form of a small mound in downtown's Bronson Park. The Hopewell civilization began to...
studying music. His first solo record, The Lessons We Have Learned, was released in 2001 and featured mostly folk-oriented pop songs. That year, Vasas also composed music for a college production of Tom Stoppard
Tom Stoppard
Sir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright, knighted in 1997. He has written prolifically for TV, radio, film and stage, finding prominence with plays such as Arcadia, The Coast of Utopia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, Professional Foul, The Real Thing, and Rosencrantz and...
’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and reunited with Mepham, releasing 451—a progressive rock record based on Ray Bradbury
Ray Bradbury
Ray Douglas Bradbury is an American fantasy, horror, science fiction, and mystery writer. Best known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 and for the science fiction stories gathered together as The Martian Chronicles and The Illustrated Man , Bradbury is one of the most celebrated among 20th...
’s book Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 is a 1953 dystopian novel by Ray Bradbury. The novel presents a future American society where reading is outlawed and firemen start fires to burn books...
. Additionally, Vasas released July Songs, a collection of electropop instrumentals recorded during a week of mixing of the 451 album.
In 2002, he formed the musical-comedy duo with David Poytinger, releasing a live 2-disc set in May of that year. Mike and Dave attracted fans because of its original music, short films, and strange advertisements, which included then-president James F. Jones
James F. Jones
James F. Jones, Jr., is the 21st president of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. Jones is a native of Atlanta, Georgia. He and his wife, Jan, have three children.- Education :...
being rescued by the duo in the president’s office during a staged heart attack.
Vasas remained busy—independently releasing a live rock record and four more solo records up until 2004. Typically diverse in style, the genres of these records included folk-rock (Bad Luck), folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
(Collection on Desktops), rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
(The City) and baroque pop
Baroque pop
Baroque pop, Baroque rock, or English baroque, often used interchangeably with chamber pop/rock, is a pop and rock music subgenre which originated in the mid-1960s in the United Kingdom and United States...
(Grace Monica).
In 2004, Vasas began work on his Masters degree in music education
Music education
Music education is a field of study associated with the teaching and learning of music. It touches on all domains of learning, including the psychomotor domain , the cognitive domain , and, in particular and significant ways,the affective domain, including music appreciation and sensitivity...
at Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
. In 2005, he released an ambient
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
instrumental record and two of his songs were featured in a Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
performance piece Epiphany. It was then he began work with The Beasts of Burden.
Mike Vasas and The Beasts of Burden
The original 2005 group consisted of Vasas and current MSU students. The band’s name was meant to reference songwriter-led acts http://www.lansinglowdown.com/index.php/article/458 like Elvis Costello and The Attractions, Johnny Cash and The Tennessee Three, and Tom Petty and The HeartbreakersTom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers are an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. They were formed in 1976 by Tom Petty , Mike Campbell , Benmont Tench , , Ron Blair and Stan Lynch...
. With members graduating, the original group folded quickly after the end of the school year.
In May 2005, Vasas reformed the group with Ryan Malinich (drums), Brian Richard (bass), and Brian Slagle (guitar, keyboards) playing its first gig at the Ann Arbor Art Fair. Keyboardist, harmonica and mandolin player Eric Bredin joined the group soon afterwards. Vasas released the Rescue Team/Makeshift EP in October 2005, and also co-organized a Neil Young
Neil Young
Neil Percival Young, OC, OM is a Canadian singer-songwriter who is widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of his generation...
Tribute show that benefitted both The Bridge School and a local domestic abuse shelter in Lansing, Michigan
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
. In February 2006, Vasas celebrated his 24th birthday, performing with The Beasts of Burden, and sharing the bill with Chicago’s new-wave act, the Detholz!
Detholz!
Detholz! are a Chicago-based band consisting of Jim Cooper, Karl Doerfer, Jon Steinmeier, Andrew Sole and Benjamin Miranda. While the eclectic nature of their songs prevent a definitive categorization, they are frequently listed as an alternative rock or a New Wave outfit, and Devo is often cited...
and Detroit’s powerpop trio, The Singles
The Singles
The Singles may refer to:*The Singles: The First Ten Years by ABBA*Basement Jaxx: The Singles by Basement Jaxx*Bikini Kill:The Singles by Bikini Kill*Singles 93-03 by The Chemical BrothersThe Singles...
.
In July 2006, Mike Vasas and The Beasts of Burden was released to positive national acclaim and the band lightly performed in support of the record. Line up changes led to Mepham taking over guitar duties and the current band remains a four-piece.
In March 2008, Vasas and The Beasts performed at The Palace of Auburn Hills
The Palace of Auburn Hills
The Palace of Auburn Hills, often referred to simply as The Palace, is a sports and entertainment venue in Auburn Hills, Michigan, a suburb on the northern outskirts of Detroit, Michigan, United States. Opened in 1988, it is the home of the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association...
with Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Creedence Clearwater Revisited
Creedence Clearwater Revisited is a band formed in 1995 by former Creedence Clearwater Revival members Stu Cook and Doug Clifford .-The band:...
and have since been focusing on recording a follow up to their 2006 release. On his website, Vasas described the new record as sounding like “rock-oriented pop songs, built with our own brand of goofy misperceptions and sonic shenanigans."
The Early Minor Quintet
Vasas is also a member of the free improvisationFree improvisation
Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the logic or inclination of the musician involved. The term can refer to both a technique and as a recognizable genre in its own right....
multi-instrumentalist
Multi-instrumentalist
A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays a number of different instruments.The Bachelor of Music degree usually requires a second instrument to be learned , but people who double on another instrument are not usually seen as multi-instrumentalists.-Classical music:Music written for Symphony...
ensemble, The Early Minor Quintet. Named after sessions from Miles Davis
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III was an American jazz musician, trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. Widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Miles Davis was, with his musical groups, at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music, including bebop, cool jazz,...
’s In a Silent Way
In a Silent Way
In a Silent Way is a studio album by American jazz musician Miles Davis, released July 30, 1969 on Columbia Records. Produced by Teo Macero, the album was recorded in one session date on February 18, 1969 at CBS 30th Street Studio B in New York City. Incorporating elements of classical sonata form,...
, the group’s Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
page describes them as;
"musique concrète du jazz..." We freely improvise rock, jazz, funk, noise, and "classical" sounds and reconstitute the music through editing and splicing. Some of the record consists of segments of improvisation unedited. No need to tell you which is which.
The group includes Vasas, Nate Bliton, David Menzo, Max Monson, and Dustin Stoner. Although an album’s worth of material is supposedly recorded, and the Myspace band page states “Record Coming Soon on Grammy Hall Records, there is some question as to whether the group is active or not. The ensemble has done a few live performances, but little activity has occurred, and the Myspace page shows the last login as April 2007.
Grammy Hall Records
Vasas formed Grammy Hall Records to be a record music collective rather than a true business venture. It was involved with the original EP of indie-folk group Frontier Ruckus, whom later signed to Quite Scientific Records. According to the Grammy Hall Records website, the label:
“releases music that is best described as 'I don't know, just music' rather than specific genres. When you buy a record with the GRHL number, it has been supported through the artistic process to be what it wants rather than what it should be. For the listener, this translates to a “diversity” in releases unified only by the collective's commitment to quality. We are a listener's label.”
The Found Sound Series
In 2008, Vasas began releasing records under the Found Sound Series name. The music is unlike most of Vasas’s previous releases, having much in common with composers like Iannis XenakisIannis Xenakis
Iannis Xenakis was a Romanian-born Greek ethnic, naturalized French composer, music theorist, and architect-engineer. He is commonly recognized as one of the most important post-war avant-garde composers...
and Karlheinz Stockhausen
Karlheinz Stockhausen
Karlheinz Stockhausen was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. Another critic calls him "one of the great visionaries of 20th-century music"...
, focusing on electroacoustic music
Electroacoustic music
Electroacoustic music originated in Western art music during its modern era following the incorporation of electric sound production into compositional practice. The initial developments in electroacoustic music composition during the mid-20th century are associated with the activities of composers...
manipulation of samples. Additionally, the releases are composed/performed in a modular recording environment called Bidule
Bidule
Bidule is a commercial software application for the creation of interactive computer music and multimedia produced by the Canadian company Plogue Arts and Technology. It runs on both Windows and Mac computers....
. The first five records were released on Vasas’s website for free, each offering the chance to donate money if the listener so chooses.
Typical of the series, one recording focuses on the manipulation of four source recordings of street musicians in Germany, recorded by ex-Beasts’ guitarist Brian Slagle. The four tracks each only feature a single short corresponding source recording.
Discography
- "The 6-Track EP" Pendulum (1999)
- "Alice in Wonderland: The Official Theatrical Score" Matt Mepham and Mike Vasas(1999)
- "Thrah" Pendulum(1999)
- "The Lessons We Have Learned" Mike Vasas(2001)
- "451" Mike Vasas and Matt Mepham(2001)
- "July Songs" Mike Vasas(2001)
- "Mike and Dave Live and Acoustic" Mike and Dave(2002)
- "A College Saturday Night" Mr. Fusion feat. Mike Vasas(2002)
- "Bad Luck" Mike Vasas(2003)
- "Collection on Desktops" Mike Vasas(2003)
- "The City" Mike Vasas(2004)
- "Grace Monica" Mike Vasas(2004)
- "January Songs" Mike Vasas(2005)
- "Rescue Team/Makeshift EP" Mike Vasas(2005)
- "Mike Vasas and The Beasts of Burden" Mike Vasas and The Beasts of Burden(2006)
- "Found Sound Series I: Street Musicians" Mike Vasas(2008)
- "Found Sound Series II: 60 Seconds of Guitar" Mike Vasas(2008)
- "Found Sound Series III: Hoboken Island" Mike Vasas(2008)
- "Found Sound Series IV: Medicine" Mike Vasas(2008)
- "Found Sound Series V: Noodle" Mike Vasas(2008)