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"A Tale Of Two Singers"
Von Em & Scott Sylvester
Split the Bill at the
Towne Crier Cafe
Sunday, August 6, 2000
Story by Kevin Robinson
Photos by Ellie Apuzzo
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Great musicians are tapped into a Source that the rest of us might
recognize in various ways, even covet, but which always seems just out
of reach. And that muse-laden Source of talent and inspiration
Phil Cignar
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A sampling of the delicacies
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(whatever and wherever it is) provides the world with a staggering
range of diversity. When I saw that two wonderful area
singer/songwriters, Scott Sylvester and Marc Von Em, were splitting
the bill at the
Towne Crier Cafe,
I began pondering the nearly polar
extremes that separate these two very unique and enjoyable performers.
Of course, I was also pondering what entree and dessert I was going to
order! Area musicians, quite naturally, think that Phil Cignar's
place on Route 22 just northwest of Pawling, NY is all about music,
but the audience regulars-most of whom gladly drive an hour or more
each way-know that it's about great food and great music.
Von Em: (left to right)
Marc Von Em, Pete Pelligri, Bill Gordon
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Anyway, Von Em, a tight three piece band with Marc Von Em on acoustic
guitar and lead vocals, Bill Gordon (Outstanding and ever
appropriate.) on bass and back-up vocals, and Pete Pelligri (Always
smooth and perfectly understated.) on percussion, started out the
evening by winning each and every audience member over...instantly.
Marc Von Em is, in my personal left-brain/right-brain terminology, an
"elf." To qualify for elfhood, one must be pretty far out into being
right-brained. Elves are free-spirited, "in-the-moment," and might
even appear scattered or easily distracted to the untrained eye. But
as musicians, they are often pure, unobstructed conduits of whatever
inspiration comes to them from that Source I mentioned above. There
are no filters, no doors, no locks, no dams, and few curves. It's all
primal. It's mostly all straight ahead. It's all elf. Von Em wins
audiences over because every tune communicates clearly on both a
lyrical and a musical level. They make it easy.
Marc Von Em
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If, like "Crop Circles," the song is a fanciful contemplation of
whether or not there might be aliens, we smile as we are drawn
irresistibly into the unlikely conversation. When Marc performs "I'm
an Average Nobody," it's pure melancholy with a decidedly positive and
hopeful groove that every listener identifies with at once. "I'll
Brush it Off," an alternative blues tune replete with humorous hand
jive, funny faces, and laughing licks, had the whole audience laughing
along. "Falling Down" paints a heart-rendingly clear portrait of a
relationship from which all substance has faded away, and only the
frailest of form remains. No one fails to relate. Marc Von Em's
music runs the gamut. Subject and style change from moment to moment.
None of it pushes. All of it tugs. And every note and every word is
delivered straight from the heart.
Check out: Von Em
Scott Sylvester's music takes a much more circuitous journey, and each
song represents a high degree of intelligence and sophistication. My
guess is that few of Sylvester's originals just happen. They spring
from real life, from disappointment, or from anguish, or from joy, but
I suspect that we never hear them until they've been honed and
hammered more that a few times. Sylvester is definitely not an elf.
His connection to the Source is every bit as pure, but he's a more
linear/logical songwriter. He turns subjects and observations back on
themselves. He analyzes and he critiques. His emotions are
intellectually intense and his humor is razor sharp and fleetingly
fast. In a word, Scott Sylvester's music is potent.
(left to right) Thad DeBrock, Scott Sylvester,
Annie Baker
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A talented friend and vocalist, Annie Baker, was featured on Cindy
Lauper's "Time After Time," and accompanying Scott on electric guitar
throughout the evening was a young virtuoso named Thad DeBrock.
Thad's licks, though completely controlled and amazingly appropriate,
often raised the intensity level of Sylvester's music to almost
unbearable emotional levels. If Marc Von Em is a clear, clean glass
window through which we can see something of the Source, Scott
Sylvester is a magnifying glass. He cranks each image up and compels
us to see Life, the Universe, and Everything on a decidedly more
amplified level of reality. From the first song, Sylvester sweats and
strains, demanding that we step up.
Even covers like Peter Gabriel's "Secret World" (the rousing encore
number) are sung with a passion that verges on obsession. Sylvester's
emotionally powerful tenor voice sometimes reminds me of Don Henley;
and like Henley, there's nothing flippant when it comes to strong
feelings. Lyrics like "You're a welcome curse...you're a dream I
never had...." from "Dream I Never Had," Sylvester's original about
the paradoxes of a mercurial relationship, or "It was a nice idea, a
good intention, a concept, a figment of our imagination...." from
another original, "Too Much Anger," about a relationship in the throes
of collapse, exemplify an intensity that seldom lets up.
To be brutally honest, Scott Sylvester failed to captivate several
nearby audience members. They didn't actually leave, but I watched
their attention drift off after a couple of songs. They were young
ladies, likely fans of Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, and Ricky Martin.
They were, at first, drawn to the power and passion of Sylvester's
performance; but in the end, whispered chatter about boyfriends,
make-up, and belly buttons appeared to be more compelling than the
decidedly mature emotional passions reflected in Sylvester's music.
Such is the nature of Life, the Universe, and Everything, and Scott
Sylvester pulls no punches when he invites us to consider it through his
looking glass.
Sylvester's debut CD, "Sign On," is available at:
www.cdbaby.com.
Kevin Robinson
is a freelance writer/photographer, and
the author of three "Stick Foster" hardback mystery novels.
A former syndicated columnist for
the Detroit Free Press, his byline has appeared over 100 times in
national and regional periodicals. Kevin is a partner at
No Bull Productions,
and his PR credits include promotion and
booking work for several of Kansas City's top blues bands. Kevin can
be reached at nobull@NoBullProductions.com.
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Ellie Apuzzo owns and operates
Ellie's Consider It Done.
She provides
"on-site oversight for absentee owners" here in the Florida
Keys; and so far, this lifelong New Yorker just can't seem to
get into "Keys time!" Ellie can be reached at
ellie@elliesconsideritdone.com.
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