Low Rock (The BIG M Feb 2010)

Low Rock is a unique combination of equal parts jazz and equal parts blues, melding a keen melodic pop/rock sense with darkly comic and ironic lyrics. Spawned by the Boston band Morphine, a guitar less trio that reflected the sounds of the dark, winding, deserted streets after dark, smoke filled bars and the seedy underbelly of the city littered with cigarettes and scotch or whisky, whichever one prefers. With the daring to go into the world of grunge in the early 90’s with just an untamed saxophone, a drum set and a two string slide bass at their disposal and take on the likes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam for mainstream acceptance, Morphine were always fighting a losing battle in spite of which they managed to retain their bottom heavy sound through five full length albums. Even though they wrote pretty standard three-minute rock songs with verses, choruses, and hooks, the songs characteristically always revolved around a sensual groove akin to the rhythms of R&B.

Bassist and vocalist Mark Sandman’s voice, deep and ravaged as the night was the perfect instrument to deliver the menacing mix of dark noir lyrics and playful couplets featuring his classic laid back croon and wry, detached vocals. Evocative lyrics and affecting melodies that shined a light on the dark side of human nature made this band as addictive as its name.

A trio not built around the sound of an electric guitar, Morphine’s story begins in the country-blues rock quartet Treat Her Right which featured a young Sandman beginning to exhibit the innovation that would become soon become Morphine’s trademark. Creatively restless, he began experimenting with low sounds playing a conventional six-string guitar, but did so through an octave-shifting effects pedal that made the instrument sound more like a bass. He then switched to a conventional bass, but one with just a single string, reasoning that all the notes he'd need to play were on that one string. By the time Morphine took off, he'd added a second string. Later, he would add a third, albeit one from a guitar, and call the invention the Tritar building a cacophonous sound you could feel in your bones.

Low Rock is a style rich in free flowing jazz melodies with interwoven emotions full of intrigue deep within the structure. A defining trait of the genre is acquiring the positive aspects of jazz, the implied notes, and the emotional depth without involving the pretentious nature of the art. Inspired by Morphine’s wry pulp noir vignettes and ‘less is best’ aesthetic, the genre of Low Rock was joined by fellow bass-sax-drums combo’s. Bourbon Princess led by fretless bassist and vocalist Monique Ortiz brought a wider range of instrumentation introducing guitar, cello and mandolin in selected songs. Incorporating elements of acid rock and lounge into their sound, Twinemen a band formed by Morphine saxophonist Dana Colley added to growing collection of bands representing the genre.

Following Mark Sandman’s heart attack on stage leading to his eventual death in 1999, Dana Colley and Monique Ortiz formed AKACOD as a tribute to this late indie rock icon. Bringing the deep dark mesmerizing sound to the new millennium, this trio has continued the legacy of Morphine introducing and inspiring a whole new generation of bands to the music of Low Rock.