Favorite Track - Left Side of the River

A happy Saturday to you all. Today, my Favorite Track series moves from solo CDs to band CDs with Left Side of the River by my first band the Eric Ketzer experiment, EKe. This recording actually occurred during EKe v1.2.5. We had lost our original bass player, added a percussionist, and the keyboardist that played on this CD quit before the production was done. It was a very trying time for me. On this CD you will hear me on guitar and vocals, Tim Brosch on drums, Mike McDade on bass, Joe Sherrell on keys, and Brian Sigmund on bass.


This is not my best CD. I am just going to come out and say it. EKe was my first band and we had barely been together for 6 months when we started to record this. I was just so excited to be in a band that I rushed the process.

Allow me to backtrack and paint a picture: 1987, dark winter months, glass fogged from the marriage of poor insulation and brutal Chicago cold. In his room stands a sandy haired kid, skater shoes, french cuffed jeans, and a dingy Vision Street Wear t-shirt. Strapped around his neck by an old frayed shoestring was a hockey stick that he strummed as if he was Randy Rhoads. And with the full throat of a 12 year old he sang, "Wine is fine but whiskey is quicker, suicide is slow with liquor."

This is all I have ever wanted. Sure there were dreams of playing professional football, but lack of height and insane slowness thwarted those efforts. Music has always been my core, my escape, the one thing I knew I wanted to do for the rest of my life. When I finally formed a band, I thought all those years spent in dreams were finally going to come to fruition. Five bands later, I know how silly I was, but in that moment, I felt we needed a CD that reflected the band's sound. Once we had that the skies would open and a chariot with flying Pegasus would take us to MTV where girls would grovel at our feet and media moguls would pronounce us the best thing since Pearl Jam.

Left Side of the River is definitely rough around the edges, but it is also very pure. Almost the entire CD was one tracked. Accept for some bass fixes and adding in some lead parts, this was all captured on one Saturday in a basement studio of a friend of a friend. Again, Rob Woerther was at the helm. Together we can be dangerous because we are both so fringed and willing to try anything. When I was like "lets crank the bass and make it feel like a live show." Rob one-upped me with, "lets add some sub-freqs to it." Of course all I could do was throw up the Rock fingers. The whole things was a learning experience for me. Still we did capture some good stuff.

We added this note when we realized we had mixed the CD so bass heavy that it sounded rough if you were pushing the bass on your system too.

"Impressions of Dance" is one example of the great stuff that got captured at these recordings. Lyrically one of my most academic yet sincere songs. The first song I wrote for my ex who I met in college. She was a Dance major, and I was obsessed with all the arts. Having spent time in G.A.T.E. where they taught the singers to dance, dancers to act, actors to sing, etc. I had so much appreciation for her art form, and I used it as my muse. At the same time, I was familiar with the love story of Degas and Cassatt. Degas the famed Ballerina sculptor, and Cassatt his mistress who would never bare children, so she painted them as lovingly as a mother holds her own child. Musically, I was really beginning to understand effects, understand how placement in the change can create different sounds. On this track I was running a Vertigo Vibe with a back-end distortion and used a Wah to add accents on various parts. All these spinning influences stopped, and this song was born.

Impressions of Dance - EKe by SoMuchCloser

Impressions of Dance

On point I see you reaching the heavens
Arms extended you touch seraphim
The embrace of cherubs purified your heart
In dreams your wings are revealed to me

And waking you pirouette through my mind
Like so many Degas I’ve seen
And resting you bow your innocent head
Like Mary Cassatt’s child

You create abstract worlds with perfect lines
Movement of grace dissect dimensions
Bridge together by omnipresent spirit
And I try to deconstruct your mystery

And waking you pirouette through my mind
Like so many Degas I’ve seen
And resting you bow your innocent head
Like Mary Cassatt’s child

Impressionist visions
Formed by my thoughts
And I clutch you like
Pyle’s Mermaid

Modern motion usurps reality
Hypnotized by your fluid performance
As the curtain falls I remain entrances
Your essence gives me wind

And waking you pirouette through my mind
Like so many Degas I’ve seen
And resting you bow your innocent head
Like Mary Cassatt’s child

Back Tray:

Inside Cover:

There was one additional thing that happened on this CD that I just have to share. I always include poetry on my CDs. Poetry/Spokenword are my roots, so I feel like I need to pay homage to the bridge that got me here. This time Rob and I concocted something truly special. Using acid loops Rob made the tune, and I did the poem. One of my favorite things I have ever recorded.

"Jazz Sounds"

Jazz Sounds by Rob Woerther & Eric Ketzer by SoMuchCloser

Favorite Track - Lost Angel

Lost Angel, my second and last solo CD, to this day, is still probably my favorite CD that I have recorded, not my best, but my favorite. Let me explain the difference.



For me, best is an indicator of quality. Favorite, is indicative of enjoyment. This is not to say that the CD is not quality. The recording is spot on. But, I was still so young, had only played guitar for 5 years at this point, my writing was still developing, and my voice just continues to get better. When I listen to this CD, the tone of my voice is still thin, sharp, and lacks the maturity that I hear when I listen to my more recent recordings. However, when I listen to Lost Angel I am really pretty amazed at what Rob and I were able to accomplish.

Again, it was Rob Woerther producing and recording the CD in his studio. But if Unfulfilled Desires was a nice thin crust pepperoni pizza, Lost Angel would be a hand tossed, pepperoni, pineapple, and jalapeno pie with Ranch and Tapatio dipping sauce. I had a clean disc, a very earthy, folksy, disc, but at that stage in my career, that was not my style. I have always been a fan of effects and layering, so when we mapped out this CD, we decided to tear down walls...push boundaries. Rob was a new pro-tools devotee, and we were going to use every little trick he had learned to make the recording unique. Plus, I had now been in St. Louis for a few years, entrenched myself it the scene, so I was able to bring in a few guest musicians. Donald Williams (Sinister Dane, Sugardaddy, Getaway Car) played bass on a few tracks and brought a groove to those songs that I never knew was possible. Tim Moody (Sunny Daze, Naked Groove, Schwag) lent his lead capabilities to a couple tracks, and Joe Bingham (Autumn's Child) also contributed some guitar to one song. On top of that, Rob and I played anything and everything we could. "Desolation Angel," the opening track, actually had some distorted beat-boxing that we used to give it more rhythm. Musically Lost Angel, was the perfect representation of what I hear in my head. I'd think it, and Rob would make it happen.

Inside Cover...das Ketzer Collage



As you can tell, the layout was much better quality as well. This CD would signify the first time Nathan Hutchison did the design and layout for me. He would do the next 3 for me, as well. He also did half the photos. My ex shot the other ones.

Inside Fold...Angie shot this of Emily Turay back stage at a Dance Concert, and I loved the expression on her face so much that I had to use it.


All that back story to get here, the point where I reveal my Favorite Track. Because I knew I had committed to this blog series, I spent a few days this week listening to the CD, and I really struggled with picking my FAVORITE track. There are just a bunch of great recordings on the disc, but what I kept asking myself when listening is, is it a great song or a great recording. What I ended up with was one of the least produced songs on the CD, very little flash, guitar and vocals upfront, Rob added some pads to fill in the bottom end, and we brought Joe Bingham in to drop a nice acoustic lead on it, but what stands out for me are the lyrics, the story. I wrote this song as a wedding present for my college roommate, Billy Casseau. It was quite an exercise for me, one of the first times I stepped outside of myself to write, to paint someone else's story. The gift was more for his bride-to-be, Patti, so I sat down with Billy, got some details of their courtship (yeah, I said courtship...I am old school) and "Starting Today" was the result.

Starting Today by S. Eric Ketzer (2001) by SoMuchCloser

Starting Today

And I remember the first time our eyes they said hello
You were in copper skin your bare feet on the Aztec sand
In the soft distance you know I can still here that Mexican wind blow
The smell of the salt see and the taste of my cerveza
There are no sandy beaches in old Missouri

Starting today well my forever lies with you
Starting today oh my forever is found in your eyes
Starting today my forever lies with you
Starting today oh my forever is found in your eyes

Even after all these years I still look at you with innocent eyes
Like your second graders you know I’ve got my hands in the finger-paint again
And I use your inspiration to create my destiny
It’s the softness of your kisses; it’s the gentleness of your touch
It’s the way I feel inside tonight; it’s the way I feel when you wake up next to me

Starting today well my forever lies with you
Starting today oh my forever is found in your eyes
Starting today my forever lies with you
Starting today oh my forever is found in your eyes

Many years, you stood by my heart
Many tears, you know they were cried for love
Many fears, well I’m gonna kiss them all away
Many years, ‘cause forever is in your eyes

And as the Eiffel Tower you know it stares down upon me awake and lonely
I image the beautiful Arch is staring down on you
It’s the kiss of the moon; its light brings me near you
Across the great ocean and beaches where heroes died
Somehow we’re together, somehow when I close my eyes

Starting today well my forever lies with you
Starting today oh my forever is found in your eyes
Starting today my forever lies with you
Starting today oh my forever is found in your eyes

Yes, I know it was a six minute song, but I was painting a story that went from first introductions to the wedding. I am not going to smash 6 years into 3 minutes because some radio exec wants to sell an ad for hemroid creme. I hope you enjoyed the read and the listen. Stay tuned for next week and my favorite track from Left Side of the River.


Under the Tray:



Back of Disc, me and Rob...I had a small obsession with Hawaiian prints...

Favorite Track - Unfulfilled Desires

I was sitting around with some buddies after the So Much Closer New Year's Eve show at Luna Lounge, just talking music and motion, women and whiskey. Typical night. One of my friends was saying how impressed he was that we pulled off 3 hours of original tunes. Being that So Much Closer is barely a year old, and we only did 3 songs from my previous bands, it is pretty cool. However, after making some humble appreciative remark, my mind was thinking three hours is nothing. If we did every song every band of mine has done, we are talking an easy 5 to 6 hours. Then the question came, "Of all the songs you have written, which is your favorite." Wow!

That question is daunting. I have probably written close to 75 songs, maybe more. I know I have 4 notebooks filled with song breakdowns and lyrics. To pick a favorite seems impossible. So, I decided what I could do is pick a favorite by album and make a blog series out of it.

Before I dive in a few caveats. I am not starting with my first recording but the first CD I sunk money into. The first CD that I bar coded and someone else did the duplication and production. That CD was Unfulfilled Desires, recorded in 1999 and released in 2000.



Yes...yes, make fun of the uber cheesy photo shoot. I was barefoot and in a sports coat. I was confused, fragmented, a Cali kid that thought to be a singer/songwriter and appeal to a more mature demographic I needed to be upscale. Remember this was 1999. There were very few singer/songwriters getting attention around St. Louis. There was one production company that was bringing in solo performers for shows out at the Viking, and the crowds were older, so I thought that was the demographic I was trying to court. I did show more of myself on the inside, however.



Shorts and a button up. If you see me play tomorrow, that is pretty much what you are gonna get. Although I wear shoes now, after an incident at Cicero's with a broken bottle on stage. OUCH!

Unfulfilled Desires was recorded by my good friends Rob Woerther. I met Rob when he was hosting an open mic at Sally T's. There was instant chemistry between us and shared musical appreciation. At the time Rob was doing a lot of home recording. He had a nice ADAT set up and good mics, so I traded him a Gibson ES-120 for some recording time, and we went to town. There is a warmth on this CD that I have never been able to duplicate. This is also the only CD I have recorded where Pro-Tools or some form a digital program was not used. It is pretty sparse. I really just wanted something clean that I could use to book shows. For the most part it is me on guitar and vocals, Rob filling in the bottom with synth bass, and we brought in Ryan Spearman to play mandolin on a couple of tracks.

As I was going through the CD, listening to each track, reliving those moments it was a struggle to pick my favorite song. Part of me gravitated to "The One" primarily because the opening line, "You could have been the one, coffee eyes and careless curls." I can instantly see my subject, and I know the lyrics were soundly inspired by Tom Waits and his magical use of everyday images as descriptors...and the sky turned the color of Pepto-Bismol. But, as I listened to the song, I realized I had no idea what I was playing, there was no way I could play that song today. How could my favorite song from a CD be one I didn't even care enough about to remember. With that concept firmly ingrained, I decided to go with my go-to song, "Railroad Affair."

For years this was the song that I would play when I couldn't think of what to play. It holds a very special place for me because of its back story, the significance of influence, and the return to simplicity that it represents. As a young songwriter that had never really learned to play guitar, my first songs were very creative because I had no idea what I was doing, just moving fingers to make new sounds. Then as I learned more everything got extremely complex...lets finger pick, arpeggiate, and flat pick all in one song, AND let's throw meter completely out the window, each song must have a verse, a chorus, and a bridge, and lets go ahead and make all three completely unrelated. "Railroad Affair" is 4 chords. The entire song is 4 chords. There is no bridge, and the chorus and verse are the exact same progression, just a different attack. Yet, it works. Also, this is also the first song I wrote where St. Louis was represented as my home. Enjoy!

Railroad Affair by S. Eric Ketzer (1999) by SoMuchCloser


Railroad Affair

Three hundred nights I sleep alone in this broken down bed
These tracks are long and winding and they end in you

I hear the whistle blowing it’s not my stop
I peer through the cabin window, and I envision you

So many days I feel I am losing time
Seduced by the land and this railroad affair

Mile high in Denver and on to the San Diego coast
I see the lights rollin’ by, and I am calling out to you

Next stop the Frisco Bay, I wander these streets beside myself
I look in every storefront in search of you

So many days I feel I am losing time
Seduced by the land and this railroad affair

Across the empty plains I see the buffalo roaming
I watch the clouds form pictures of you

As the midnight moon descends upon Rivercity
I step from train and I hold on to you
Yes I hold on to you

Unfulfilled Desires was a short run and soldout quickly. It was the first CD that gave me hope that one day this would be my life. That has yet to happen, but the hope still burns, and I still love playing "Railroad Affair."

Inside cover shot at Sally T's at one of my early shows.



Back cover, more cheese.