The world today operates around barriers and borders, classifications and discrimination. Populations are designated by nationality, race, gender, religion, sexual preferences, education and socioeconomic status. With so much focus placed on distinction, people find reasons to despise others for being labeled as different. The Eugene jam-folk band Just People’s purpose has always been to overcome these dividing barriers.
“We want to break them down by providing a medium of interaction that everyone can bond with regardless of who they are,” guitarist and lead singer Scott Gilmore said. They will be doing so at Luckey’s bar this Saturday night as they celebrate the release of their first full album.
Just People began as a solo acoustic project of singer and songwriter Gilmore, a University of Oregon graduate with a degree in journalism. With the idea in mind of instilling unity and harmony through music, he allowed for the project to freely grow and develop as he began to meet and perform with various local musicians, writers and poets. With Gilmore and his songwriting at the helm, the Just People project has embodied a communal aspect by featuring more than a dozen artists accredited with contributing to the sound of the band. Of the many that have come and gone, five decidedly talented musicians have stuck around to build the core of the Just People sound.
Peter Marcott, the band’s current lead guitarist, is a music major at the University of Oregon and has played in the band Bypolar Bear. Todd Gee has played bass for several bands, including Move Something and Big Burtha. Gilmore simply refers to himself and drummer Alex Greene as jammers. Then there is Rachel Hom; not since the days of Jethro Tull has a flute ever kicked out such jams. While most jam and funk bands around Eugene are typically driven by a tenor sax, Hom’s virtuosic wailing has helped to place Just People in a class of their own. The decision to include a flautist was not premeditated, but rather the result of one of many impromptu jam sessions.
“Rachel chose us. People come along looking to play and we let them. We met at a function, we jammed, it worked out and she came on board,” Gilmore said.
All of the songs were written by Gilmore prior to the formation of Just People, but the collisions of the musicianship and personalities of the band members have breathed new life into his compositions. The band has grown more comfortable playing together over the last four months and has been able to incorporate and bounce around more ideas, variations and personal interpretations, fueling a more dynamic and layered sound that is wholly a product of Just People.
“These are the best musicians I’ve ever played with, hands down. They make it what it needs to be. They take the songs and turn them into art,” Gilmore said.
Saturday’s show will celebrate the release of the band’s album, aptly named “Yet to be Named.” It is the first album released under the Just People moniker and has proved to be a strong musical step forward for Gilmore. “Having the band really made a difference. Before, I was playing with just a guitar, but now working with a backing band has really made (the songs) explode,” he said.
The album was recorded and mastered at the Art Institute of Seattle in 15 hours over two days. After only one full practice as a complete band, the fivesome pounded out 15 completed tracks in two eight-hour sessions. The band had to dig deep into their pockets to press 1,000 copies of the album but insist that music should remain an art form and not a commodity.
“So many people operate solely on a monetary basis, but we spent the money simply to make people happy by sharing our music. It isn’t a good feeling to try to ask someone to buy it when I just want them to hear it.” Just People will also make “Yet to be Named” available for download on their Web site, JustPeopleMusic.com, along with all of their other previously recorded material.
The album title “Yet to be Named” is more than a mere ironic quip or lack of decisiveness; it is a name that indicates where they presently stand and feel as a band. “It’s about this point in our lives where we are still anonymous and have yet to make a name for ourselves,” Gilmore said. “We are still coming up and enjoying this whole phase because we know bigger things are sure to come.”
Just People will be spreading the word of “Yet to be Named” up and down I-5 this summer on their first West Coast tour and have plans to move to Portland within the next two years to begin establishing themselves in a larger market.
Like any jam band worth their weight, Just People’s down-home soul comes alive during their lives sets of romping and extended song renditions laced with grooved-out licks and high-energy improvisation. “The great thing about live shows is there is no pressure to play like on an album, we just let it go. There is lots of energy and spontaneity.” Luckey’s will be alive on Saturday night with the sounds of resonant guitars reverberating off of wild flute wailings over pounding drum fills. Free copies of “Yet to be Named” will be on hand as well as T-shirts for those who are lucky enough to get their hands on one. The infamous Luckey’s Bar located at 933 Olive downtown will provide the full bar, comfy couches, and rich acoustics that make for a great show, and Just People will bring the harmony-laden jams and positive and all-inclusive vibrations “We want to be apart of something bigger. We want to transfer the scene into a positive social outlet where we can band people together so that the whole community is more enjoyable for everyone,” Gilmore said.
The show is $5 and features opening acts The 4Trees and Soft Tags.
[email protected]