I was waiting for Shane downstairs in Worner when I felt my phone vibrate. It was a text from Shane, saying that he was waiting upstairs for me in the ballpit. I walked upstairs and found him neck deep in an inflatable kiddie pool full of colorful plastic balls, reclined and relaxed. I took off my shoes and climbed in next to him.
Shane’s musical career started at an early age, experimenting with the recorder, the clarinet, and choir by the time he was in fifth grade. He decided he did not like any of these that much, but when his granddad gave him a guitar in sixth grade he found something he wanted to stick with. While teaching himself how to play the guitar, Shane also began writing his own songs and lyrics. Shane described his creative process to me, and although I had trouble following his initial explanation, after some further clarification I realized how unique an approach it was.
“A way that I’ve been going is instead of writing a song that necessarily has a meaning, is starting with the instrumentals, figuring out what the song sort of feels like and then singing nonsense babel until it sounds good, then figuring out what the nonsense babel sounds like in real word terms and ascribing real words to the babel.”
It may sound confusing, but this approach lends itself to songs that stray away from specific intentions that may restrict potential and creates songs with a more vague meaning.
“I read something somewhere that said, ‘you really mature as an artist when you can write songs that aren’t about yourself,’ so I try to do that more often that not. However, I don’t really think I’ve gotten to that maturity yet because they always end up a little autobiographical.”
Shane’s skill as a performer reached a new level when he took a year off between high school and college. He originally intended to spend the year working on farms, but after getting kicked off a farm in Canada full of “hardcore, post apocalyptic, punk, redneck, Canadians,” he found himself in a country he was not familiar with and without any means of making money. All he had with him was his guitar, so he decided to utilize his talent and became a street performer. He paid $20 to get a street performing license and began to play in the Canadian city streets on Victoria Island, learning how to attract an audience and make a good bit of money doing it.
“When you’re on the street it’s important to be louder than everyone else. That only lends itself to success if you can also be really animated and energetic. I got into the style of playing really loud, jumping up and down, dancing, and I was usually barefoot, too, which got a lot of people’s attention.”
He also made his way down to Boulder where he performed on Pearl Street, focusing on improvisational playing on his acoustic. His guitar became the focus of his year abroad, allowing him to make some money while exploring a different style to his musical composition.
Shane has found a confidence in his singing, utilizing it as a way to express his opinions. For Shane, writing and performing are a way to convey his thoughts and ideas to people in a thoughtful and calculated way, whether it be standing on a corner or playing for friends.
“It’s an opportunity to yell my opinion at people and not have that seem like I’m forcing anything on anybody, but also being to premeditate how I’m going to articulate those emotions, which is pretty cool. It’s great to be able to stand on a street corner and express myself to strangers in a way I can’t even express myself to my friends.”
Despite his talent, Shane has been largely absent from the music scene this year. Between running Colorado Springs Food Rescue and the woes of being a junior, Shane has little free time to devote to his music nowadays. He’s hoping to change this and get more involved (heads up to any low commitment bands or musicians searching for a partner). Look out for him at open mic, Food Rescue events, and occasionally downtown playing on a corner. Shane is a really talented musician and songwriter, and if you haven’t heard his stuff I encourage you to check it out. His music is easy to listen to, thought provoking, and has a specific style that is reminiscent of how Shane carries himself day to day.
Link to his music page: https://www.facebook.com/Guitarmonies/info
