Keller Williams has been called guitar's mad-scientist, a one-man-band for the new millennium and dozens of other clever sobriquets dreamed up by fans and music journalists trying to get a handle on his uplifting and ever-shifting style of music. Williams is considered by some but not by himself, to be a master of the acoustic guitar, known for his ability to solo over layers of spontaneously created loops. He is a generous performer who plays down to earth acoustic music that defies any effort to find a convenient pigeonhole. Keller Williams' new album DREAM, which features a DREAM team of guest musicians, has inspired the usually one-man-band to hit the road with, you guessed it, a DREAM live band.
Keller Williams and The WMD'S features Keith Moseley on bass (The String Cheese Incident), Gibb Droll on guitar (Marc Broussard), and Jeff Sipe on drums (Aquarium Rescue Unit, Trey Anastasio, Susan Tedeschi, Phil Lesh). The WMD'S debuted at select festival performances this past summer, including an epic and electrifying Bonnaroo show. The WMD'S will headline indoor venues this fall.
The complete list of WMD'S confirmed tour dates is as follows:
November 02 Ram's Head Live Baltimore MD Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 03 Norva Norfolk VA Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 04 9:30 Club Washington DC Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 06 Neighborhood Theatre Charlotte, NC Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 07 New Daisy Theater Memphis TN Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 08 Bijou Knoxville TN Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 09 Music Farm Charleston SC Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 10 Talleyrand Jacksonville FL Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 13 House of Blues Orlando FL Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 14 Revolution Ft. Lauderdale FL Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 15 Soul Kitchen Mobile AL Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 16 Georgia Theatre Athens GA Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 17 Alabama Theater Birmingham AL Keller Williams and The WMD'S
November 18 Lincoln Theatre Raleigh NC Keller Williams and The WMD'S
Before The WMD'S hit the road, Keller will bring his solo show to Japan this October for the first time since his Fuji Rock Festival debut in 2004. He'll stop in Nagoya, Osaka and Kanazawa for the first time, before wrapping up the tour in Tokyo.
When singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Keller Williams scratched out a long and ambitious wish list of artists he'd like to collaborate with in the studio, he told himself "It can't hurt to dream." With the recent release of his ninth studio album, aptly titled DREAM, Keller's dream comes true. For the album the usually one-man-band is backed by Béla Fleck, Bobby Read, Bob Weir, Charlie Hunter, Derrek Phillips, Fareed Haque, Fleming McWilliams, Jeff Sipe, John Molo, John Scofield, Martin Sexton, Michael Franti, Modereko, Samir Chatterjee, Sanjay Mishra, Steve Kimock, The String Cheese Incident, and Victor Wooten. DREAM features 16 tracks of unblemished material: a cataract of electrifying musical alliances, and endless entertainment thanks to Keller's rapturous innovations and his earthy, barefoot-in-the-park presentation.
Keller Williams
Keller Williams has been refining his unique kind of performance art for almost 15 years, logging over 100 gigs annually, and he's a productive recording artist as well. His calling card? -a creative combination of talent and technology. Known, of course, for his astonishing one-man show, Keller Williams surrounds himself with instruments and pedals and slides from one to the next. While his songs are rooted in Williams' warm voice and spirited acoustic guitar, Keller gives them depth and breadth via looping and delay. Keller essentially accompanies himself, looping several instruments, and filling up an entire room with lush layers of sound … just one man and a humongous imagination.
www.kellerwilliams.net
Keith Moseley (bass)
As a member of the hugely successful independent band The String Cheese Incident for over 14 years, Keith Moseley has a seemingly endless list of musical experience. He has played many of the world's most renowned venues and music festivals, such as Fuji Rock, Newport, Bonnaroo, and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, to name just a few. He has shared the stage with a diverse roster of fellow musicians, including Bruce Hornsby, The Flaming Lips, Perry Ferrell, Steve Winwood, Jack Johnson, Angelique Kidjo and many, many others. He has recorded with famed producers, Malcolm Burns (Bob Dylan, Chris Whitely, Emmylou Harris, Daniel Lanois) and Steve Berlin (Los Lobos, Tragically Hip). Moseley plays Lakland bass, Modulus bass, Elixir strings, and Ampeg amplifiers.
www.thestringcheeseincident.com
Gibb Droll (guitar)
Quiet and softspoken, the introverted Gibb Droll is transformed into someone quite different once you put a guitar into his hands. The pure unscripted performances that have shaped his career have given him mainstream success without compromising his trademark sound and independent status. Attend one of his concerts, and it is clear to see why those who have had an opportunity to be touched by him are never again the same. Just as Droll was impressed upon as a young boy by Stevie Ray Vaughn and Jimi Hendrix, so too do audiences bask in his talent.
www.myspace.com/gibbdroll
Jeff Sipe (drums)
Jeff Sipe has performed with numerous ensembles that have encompassed all musical genres. He seems to have a naturally organic control over his drum kit. His career blossomed when he founded the band Aquarium Rescue Unit with Col. Bruce Hampton and Jimmy Herring in the early nineties. The music was an extremely dynamic fusion which made good use of the players' skills. Jeff has also played and toured with Leftover Salmon, Phil Lesh, Trey Anastasio, Susan Tedeschi and many other incredible bands and musicians.
www.myspace.com/jeffsipeakaaptq258
