THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, August 20, 1996 TAG: 9608200057
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E8 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Music review
SOURCE: BY SUE VANHECKE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 58 lines
ONE DAY you're playing guitar in a middle-American college rock group, the next you find yourself in the hallowed pages of Rolling Stone. Just how does that feel?
``Well, it's kind of a trip,'' A.J. Dunning, guitarist with the Verve Pipe, confessed recently from a tour stop in Charleston, S.C. ``But for a lot of people in this band it's like listening to yourself on the radio or seeing yourself on TV. Initially it's cool, and then the more you see it - maybe it's just a personal thing - but you tend to look the other way.
``We don't want to get caught up in all the things that are said unkindly or even kindly. We've got so much more work yet ahead of us, no one really wants to start patting ourselves on the back yet.''
The Michigan-based band - whose familiar sound lies somewhere between Live and Pearl Jam - already has a lot of toil behind it. Since forming four years ago, the Verve Pipe - named for ``absolutely nothing, it's totally nonsensical'' - have put out a pair of indie label albums, including the bravely titled ``Pop Smear,'' as well as their major label debut, ``Villains,'' on RCA.
``We were playing a lot, we were doing showcase gigs here and there, we were doing lots of demo work and we were sending lots of stuff out to everybody,'' Dunning recalls of the RCA courtship. ``Lots of labels didn't get it, lots of labels sent A&R guys out to talk about everything but music. Then RCA sent their A&R guy out, who signed us.
``He was the first guy who actually sat with us after a show, had taken the time to garnish a set list from somebody and sat and made notes and talked about what he liked and what he didn't like. We thought, `Well, hey, this is cool, here's a guy who's finally about the music.' ''
That hurdle out of the way, the band chose former Talking Head Jerry Harrison, who has produced albums by Live and the Crash Test Dummies, to produce ``Villains.'' But it wasn't exactly smooth sailing in the studio, Dunning says.
``We like to get in as soon as possible and stay as late as possible,'' the guitarist explained. ``Jerry's whole vibe was very, very laid back. Jerry's a Harvard grad so he has a bit of a highbrow sense of humor, which at times kind of clashed with our extremely dry sense of wit. But Jerry's got a great sense of arrangement and worked with us well in that respect.''
Apparently so, as the album's first single, ``Photograph,'' has resided on alt-rock radio for the past few months. The Verve Pipe will continue to tour well into next year, Dunning says, including a two-week stint with Kiss starting in September.
So have any other changes come with the Verve Pipe's burgeoning success?
``The biggest thing is that more people are aware of our band and the music,'' Dunning said. ``But we've always worked very hard. And now that we have a bus to roam around in, the work schedule has definitely gotten a lot heavier.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
ALDO MAURO/RCA RECORDS
The Verve Pipe's major release debut, ``Villains,'' has already
spawned an alt-rock radio favorite, ``Photograph.'' by CNB