Music Notes

Buffington’s live music last Thursday night included Hybrid L and Interview opening for Mr. Greenleaf.

Mr. Greenleaf is another new band in Milledgeville, but their sound is unique and unlike anything else around.

“It’s kind of like a Red Hot Chili Peppers meets Maroon 5 meets Weezer,” explained Corey Stephens, the bassist for the band.

Mr. Greenleaf, formerly called In Heat, is made up of Stephens, Jonathan Summers and Shawn Peterson, the band’s new drummer.

The name Mr. Greenleaf came from a Flannery O’Connor story. The guys said they wanted a name that would associate them with Milledgeville. They chose Mr. Greenleaf because they liked his character: the man with inner pace.

Summers plays lead guitar and performs lead vocals, and graduated from GCSU with a B.S. in History.

He said Mr. Greenleaf’s goal is “to reach the purple sky.”

Summer said that some people strive to be rich, but they are striving to find inner peace and happiness. Their music is chill and electrifying at the same time, and almost has a reggae feel to it.

Each of the guys comes from different musical backgrounds. Stephens came from gospel, hip-hop, jazz and blues. Peterson was trained on jazz, while Summers focused on rock. However, despite different styles, their sound blends together in a unique way.

The guys work together to create their songs and admit that the best sounds come from just hanging out and playing what they’re feeling. Summers said that he and Stephens write most of the music, and then Peterson brings the arrangement together.

Stephens said, “We try not to be one of those bands that just because something sounds good, you put it out. We actually want to have some meaning to our songs- whereas, it sounds good when you first hear it, then if you actually take the time to listen to it, it makes sense.”

“It’s like a blank canvas,” Summers said. “You can draw anything you want to. You can write about whatever you want to. You can write about whatever; we write about girls obviously, we write about not getting paid, we write about the government, we write about drugs, partying, whatever you experience.”

The guys can’t imagine their lives without music. It’s in their bones, and their passion for it releases when they perform. They say that when they’re not playing music, they’re thinking about it. They agree that music is the universal language: everyone understands it and everyone listens to it.

Mr. Greenleaf strives to create a unique sound, but lets it flow instead of trying to be too different. They said they have learned a lot and will continue to develop as they play together. Currently, they have a three-song demo, but the band plans to record a CD within the next year.

Mr. Greenleaf plays at Buffingtons again on May 6. Until then, check them out on www.myspace.com/mrgreenleaf.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 7 2006. Filed under Other. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry