Bill Gottfried
| Bill Gottfried | |
|---|---|
| Born | Canada |
| Genres | Rock, experimental rock |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, record producer |
| Instruments | Keyboards, drums, vocals, etc. |
| Years active | 1990s–present |
| Labels | Cyberaudio Studios |
| Associated acts | b d Gottfried, Siegfried Meier, Howie Weinberg |
| Website | bdGottfried.com |
Bill Gottfried is a Canadian rock musician, songwriter, and producer best known for his work as frontman of b d Gottfried, a solo project he founded in the early 2000s. Based in Kitchener, Ontario,[1] the band has released a number of studio albums since 2004, including Element of Left in 2009 and Damien's Lantern in 2012. Gottfried's most recent album Motion Fever came out in 2015,[2] with production by Siegfried Meier and mastering by Howie Weinberg.[3] Other contributors to the album included vocalist Aaron Gottfried, bassists Mike Chhangur and Jack Smith, vocalists Bill Koluk and Andrea Wingelaar, and guitarists Mike Whaling and Chris Monteiro.[2] The album received a largely positive response, with Cashbox Canada writing "[b d Gottfried] continues to work in an unrestricted style with lyrical depth that will always take you on a journey."[3] As of 2015, Gottfried was working on his eighth solo album.[4]
Music career
Early releases (1960s–1970s)
Canadian multi-instrumentalist Bill Gottfried performed his first paid gig at age fourteen[5] in 1968,[4] and afterwards decided that he wanted to pursue music as a career.[5] He went on to work in the industry as a songwriter, musician, and producer,[5] and played in a diverse number of bands as a touring or session musician.[4] Despite actively touring, however, he recounts that even in the 1960s his personal focus was on songwriting.[4]
He performed with a number of notable musicians in the 1970s, for example gigging with a young James "Fat James" Grosvenor. According to Gottfried, "we were underaged kids playing clubs and university pubs." With Grosvenor then branching off to pursue blues, Gottfried went on the road with Kenny Hollis from Copperpenny, once signed to RCA and Columbia. Explains Gottfried, "we played 6 nighters back to back promoting Kenny's single 'Goin Hollywood' and 'Ruby Baby'. Two years of this taught me what I did not want to do."[4] Also in the 1970s Gottfried backed up Freddy Cannon, playing with Cannon at several venues in Ontario, including Chum FM's Greaser's Ball at Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto to an estimated crowd of 50,000.[4] He gigged with Breen Leboeuf (Celine Dion, April Wine). Gottfried also did studio work with Jim Evans of McGuiness Flint[5] at Waxworks in the 1970s.[4]
Early songwriting (1980s–1990s)
In the 1980s, he recounts playing a gig with bassist Pino Palladino at the Leisure Lodge, and before Palladino returned to England to work with Paul Young. Palladino and Gottfried didn't have the opportunity to move forward on songwriting together as planned. Around that time Gottfried also performed a gig with Steve Cooley "Rainbows, Pots of Gold and Moonbeams" and did session work at Elora Sound. In the 1990s, he took his band Autonomy into Cedartree Studios to record their self-titled EP. He performed session work at Signal to Noise. The latter sessions involved Rob Sanzo, producer of Scratching Post.[4] Also in the 1990s, Gottfried gigged[5] and recorded with Gregg Dechert,[4] jammed with Mike Gingrich,[5] and worked with Breen LeBoeuf.[6]
Bill Gottfried began songwriting with bassist Bill Koluk in the 1990s, after collaborating with Koluk in a number of bands. According to Gottfried, he and Koluk wrote "jazz fusion speed rock." Gottfried's writing with Koluk attracted the attention of Rick Hutt (Tom Cochrane), who came to rehearsals to work with the duo as a producer. According to Gottfried, he and Koluk wrote a total of three full-length demos together. One of their bands, Autonomy, released the self-titled EP Autonomy with guitarist George Chaggares.[4] With Gottfried promoting the band,[7] the Autonomy EP received airplay in twelve countries,[4][5] and by the mid-1990s Gottfried's track "Radical Man" was noticed by Lord Litter and further broadcast "Radical Man" in France, Finland, and other countries.[6]
Solo material (2000–2008)
After Autonomy disbanded, Gottfried began recording music as a solo artist. Using the project name b d Gottfried, he recruited several musicians to round out the band.[7] In the 2000s Gottfried started work turning industrial space into CyberAudio Studios in Canada. He produced several acts, one including keyboardist Gregg Dechert (Uriah Heep, Bad Company), as well as providing drum tracks. Through the studio, he spent around a decade recording bands, orchestras, voice overs, movie soundtracks, and his own material.[4] Various guest artists would contribute to his solo recordings at the studio, including Siegfried Meier, Andrea Wingalaar (Chicago), Doug Johnson (Gordon Lightfoot), Jack Smith (AX), George Chaggares, Mike Whaling, Chris Monteiro, Mike Chhangur, and his sons Aaron and Dan Gottfried.[4] Gottfried's debut solo release, Disrythmia, was released on January 1, 2004.[8] His second release, titled Terra Not So Firma, was released on January 1, 2005.[8]
May 1, 2006 marked the release of the b d Gottfried album The Third Disturbance.[8] All of The Third Disturbance was recorded, mixed and mastered at Cyberaudio studios in Kitchener, Ontario.[9] Bill Gottfried handled vocals, percussion and keyboards, with George Chaggares on guitar and Jack Smith on bass. Aaron Gottfried also supplied lyrics and vocals on several tracks.[9] Franceso Emmanuel for Muses Muse reviewed The Third Disturbance on February 2, 2007, giving the album a positive review and praising the vocals and production. Wrote Emmanuel about the genre, the album "is a mix of new wave, pop/rock with a hint of blues.... Overall the album does not belong in the modern world of rock or pop, or dance, or punk – which I think is great, it forges its own niche."[9]
Element of Left (2009)
Element of Left is a studio rock album by b d Gottfried released on January 1, 2009.[8] In the album, Aaron Gottfried handles vocals, with Jack Smith also contributing vocals. Bill Gottfried and George Chaggares finished out the band.[10] The album, released on CAR, Cyberaudio Records, stayed in the top 10 on the Canadian station CKRL for eight weeks, and went on to be aired on around fifty commercial Canadian radio stations.[6]
Element of Left received mixed to positive receptions from publications such as the Moose Jaw Times-Herald,[11] the Red Deer Express,[12] and The Beacon Herald.[13] The Beacon Herald opined that "somehow the unconventional arrangements of guitar, keyboard, percussion and vocals is perfectly fitting for the issues of disconnection, loss, futility and desperation [Bill Gottfried] seems to be exploring."[13]
The Warden's Picnic (2010)
Gottfried's album The Warden's Picnic was released on January 1, 2010, in collaboration with b d Gottfried.[8] Rock United gave The Warden's Picnic 8/10, writing that "it might best be described as alternative modern prog-rock with roots deeply buried in the eighties."[7] CBC Music aired Gottfried's tracks from the album with the Leatherback Amnesiacs on CBC Radio.[14] In 2011, Dan Gottfried was awarded the Design Edge Canada graphic design award for his album cover design for The Warden's Picnic.[1]
Dangerdog.com gave The Warden's Picnic a mostly positive review, writing "call it clever, intriguing, inventive, or simple and unmitigated musical navel gazing, the tunes are far from mainstream, nearly in another frontier. Mixing eclectic elements from prog to blues to electronica to simple rock, The Warden's Picnic meanders through Gottfried's vivid imagination like a butterfly in your backyard on a warm August afternoon."[15] Calvin Daniels for Yorkton This Week gave The Warden's Picnic a score of 8/10 and a positive review. Daniels wrote, "the strength of Gottfried's music is the lyrics. They're written with a straight ahead, in-your-face, sensibility. They are also written in a heavier vein... he's not afraid to tell that tale."[16]
Damien's Lantern (2012–2014)
B.D. Gottfried as of 2012 continued to be based in Kitchener, Ontario.[17] The b.d. Gottfried album Damien's Lantern was self-released through CyberAudio[18] on January 1, 2012.[8] In the four-piece ensemble, Aaron Gottfried contributed primary vocals, George Chaggaras played guitar, Jack Smith played bass, and Bill Gottfried played keys and drums.[19] The album received a positive to mixed response from critics such as The Province,[18] SPIN,[17] and The Morning Star,[19] the latter writing that "the four-piece group... have a sparse, left-of-centre sound path that has hints of '80s progressive pop rock and British new wave."[19] SPIN wrote on May 26, 2012 that the band "has received international airplay and has a building following overseas."[17]
Recent projects (2015–2016)
 "Sociopathic Traffic" Music Video – b d Gottfried (June 1, 2015) | |
|
"Between the Blades" Music Video – b d Gottfried (Jan 4, 2016) |
In February 2015, b d Gottfried released an animated music video for the single "Sociopathic Traffic,[20] with the single released to commercial radio as well.[3] Gottfried's most recent album Motion Fever came out in 2015,[2] with production and some instruments played by Siegfried Meier and mastering by Howie Weinberg.[3] Aaron Gottfried contributed composition and vocals, with Mike Chhangur and Jack Smith on bass, Bill Koluk and Andrea Wingelaar on background vocals, Mike Whaling and Chris Monteiro on guitar, and Dan Gottfried designing the album cover. Bill Gottfried composed and produced, as well as contributing drums, keyboards, and vocals.[2]
Cashbox Canada gave the album a positive review, writing "[B.D. Gottfried] continues to work in an unrestricted style with lyrical depth that will always take you on a journey."[3] Motion Fever was also positively reviewed for its "particular brand of guitar driven rock & roll" by the Canadian publication Gonzo Online,[3] and by the end of 2015, b d Gottfried's music had received airplay across Canada, the UK, Italy, Denmark, and the United States among other countries.[4] As of 2015, Gottfried was working on his eighth solo album with Meier, with Meier producing, engineering, and performing a number of instruments.[4]
Style and equipment
About their eclectic use of genres rock sounds, which SPIN noted as a defining characteristic of the band, Gottfried stated to the magazine that "right or wrong, good or bad, [we're] trying to evoke new emotions in the listener."[17] New Canadian Music wrote in 2015 that "there's an appealing retro feel to the quirky prog meets classic rock style of B.D. Gottfried. He has earned something of a cult following over his career, including a loyal audience in Italy."[3]
According to Bill Gottfried, his songwriting process typically involves piano, explaining "I sit behind the piano and smash out a few chords or broken chords. When some emotion is stimulated I repeat that chordal progression and expand upon it to see if it grows. If it reminds me of anything I've heard before I desert it. If it speaks to me, I will change its rhythm, its tempo or time signature to maximize the emotions I feel are coming to life."[4] After writing the song, he then explains he works somewhat on lyrics before recording the keyboard beds. After engineering to set the soundscape, Gottfried works on lyrics and further arrangement, before looking to record vocals, guitar, and bass.[4]
Personal life
Bill Gottfried as of 2013 continues to live and operate out of Kitchener, Ontario. His two sons are both involved in his music career; Dan Gottfried, an artist and graphic designer, has contributed album covers and music,[1] while Aaron Gottfried is a vocalist and bandmember of b d Gottfried, while also continuing to work on a film career.[2]
Discography
Studio albums
| Year | Album title | Release details |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Disrythmia |
|
| 2005 | Terra Not So Firma |
|
| 2006 | The Third Disturbance |
|
| 2008 | Element of Left |
|
| 2010 | The Warden's Picnic |
|
| 2012 | Damien's Lantern |
|
| 2015 | Motion Fever |
|
Singles
| Year | Title | Album | Release details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | "Miss Anthropy" | Disrythmia | Self-released |
| 2005 | "Radio Failure" | Terra Not So Firma | Self-released |
| 2006 | "Arms of Mercy" | The Third Disturbance | Self-released |
| 2008 | "State of Flux" | Element of Left | Last Tango Productions |
| 2010 | "Future for Sale" | The Warden's Picnic | b d Gottfried |
| 2012 | "Yo Mamma" | Damien's Lantern | Cyberaudio |
| 2015 | "Sociopathic Traffic" | Single only/ Motion Fever | Last Tango Productions (March 9, 2015)[20] |
See also
References
- 1 2 3 "Area artists turn bowling pins into... well, all kinds of wonderful things". The Record Article. August 10, 2013. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Motion Fever". Allmusic. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Valnea, Yvonne (September 7, 2015). "b.d. GOTTFRIED Biography – "Sociopathic Traffic" single". Last Tango Productions. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 "Biography". Copyright B.D. Gottfried. 2015. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "BD Gottfried Profile". CBC. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 "About Me". about.me/bdgottfried. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 Rock United, Urban "Wally" (November 30, 2010). "B.D. GOTTFRIED: "The Warden's Picnic"". Rock United. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Discography". www.bdgottfried.com. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 Emmanuel, Franceso (February 2, 2007). "CD Review: b. d. Gottfried – 'The Third Disturbance'". Muses Muse. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- ↑ Daniels, Calvin (April 16, 2009). "Review – The Element of Left". Calvin Daniels. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- ↑ Waser, Fraser (2012). "bd Gottfried's fourth album Element of Left". Moose Jaw Times-Herald. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- ↑ Weber, Mark (January 30, 2009). "What's new in CDs – The Element of Left". Red Deer Express.
- 1 2 Beitz, Mike (November 22, 2008). "CD Reviews". The Beacon Herald. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- ↑ "B D Gottfried and the Leatherback Amnesiacs". CBC Music. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- ↑ Hartranft, Craig (August 6, 2010). "Gottfried, B D: The Warden's Picnic – Alternative/Prog/Melodic Rock". Dangerdog.com. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- ↑ Daniels, Calvin (July 28, 2010). "Review – B.D. GOTTFRIED – The Warden's Picnic". Yorkton This Week. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 4 MacCuish, Rikki (May 26, 2012). "Genre deviants' album interesting, if a little un-focused". SPIN.
- 1 2 3 "B.D. GOTTFRIED: Damien's Lantern (Cyberaudio)". The Province. September 10, 2012. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 3 Gordon-Smith, Dean (June 15, 2012). "Street Sounds: Album is unsolved". The Morning Star. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- 1 2 Mayfield, Elizabeth (March 9, 2015). "B.D. Gottfried – Sociopathic Traffic". Mentioned Reviews. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
- ↑ "B.D. Gottfried Discography and credits". Allmusic. Retrieved 2015-07-06.
External links
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