Relix - Features - A Deeper Shade of Tea Leaf Green

Current Issue details

Buy Current Issue

March Issue details

January - February Issue details

December Issue details

Features

A Deeper Shade of Tea Leaf Green

“When we first met, I was all about instrumental exploration,” says Clark. “As I get older, I’m definitely much more about the song. We have our share of goofy songs from the early days of the band—which I love, too—but it got to the point of, what am I singing about? Why am I up here? Why am I dying? Why are my relationships failing for this if I’m gonna just goof off? I think we’ve all been seeking more meaningful music to put out, and we discovered that we’re good songwriters.”

Good songs will always be in demand. And it’s not like the band has abandoned the jams. Live, and on records for that matter, they still go way out there, but songs are no longer built around improvisations; it’s the other way around now. In the past few years, Tea Leaf Green became less of a jamband led by Clark’s guitar and more of a rock band led by Garrod’s California soul vocals and hook-heavy compositions. “We’ve been able to combine the two [songwriting and jamming],” says Clark, “and I think that’s why we’re still here.”

Change is rarely easy, but it’s the only way to grow. For a band, there’s no bigger change than a new member. When Reed Mathis, one of the live music scene’s most talented, in-demand bass players left Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey to join Tea Leaf Green in November 2007 after original bassist Ben Chambers quit, the band’s DNA was altered dramatically.

Mathis started playing with the band immediately, while still making time to honor previous commitments with JFJO. In August 2009, he left his Tulsa, Okla. home of 23 years and moved in to the Tea Leaf Green house near San Francisco’s Ocean Beach where Garrod and Clark have lived for years; drummer Scott Rager lives just over the bridge in Oakland. It’s been a long road, but as Clark happily announces, “We’re a full band again. But it takes time to get somebody up to speed on 300 songs and also to get to know each other musically and personally. [For] a band like ours, with the amount of improv that we do, it’s all communication and instincts.”

Mathis entered the group excited about its potential, but sensitive to the delicate dynamics of a band. Having co-founded and been a driving force behind the wildly experimental Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey for 16 years, Mathis was already a master of improvisation, but his confidence as a bandleader was shaken. He no longer wanted to lead, he wanted to learn.

“I really came into it wanting to receive their message more than impose mine,” he says. “I knew how to impose mine. And really, in Jacob Fred, I started imposing it more toward the end. So it was kind of like a cool flip of the script. And a chance for me to say, ‘OK, I tried that and I saw the result, let’s try the other approach.’”

Regarding the first year, Mathis says, “I pretty much sat on my hands and tried not to make the steering wheel do anything it wasn’t already doing.” But as everyone became more comfortable, he gradually stepped up his creative presence. “So far so good,” he says.

The learning curve for Mathis was expected, but the time it’s taken the rest of the band to get on solid ground was a bit of a surprise, at least to Garrod. “It’s been kind of a journey for me, just learning how the sound of the band has changed,” he says. “It didn’t really register for me that if one quarter of the band changes, then the sound of the band changes. It’s taken me like two years to learn how to play again in this new context.”

The band was already pushing toward new, more mature musical horizons. The addition of Mathis galvanized the transition, adding new colors to the equation, creating deeper musical shades of Tea Leaf Green. “The music is getting heavier,” remarks Clark. “It’s getting darker.”

Garrod adds: “We’ve become less funky than we were; which I’m cool with. We definitely aren’t in the same place we were two or three years ago. I feel much more like an adult now. I always felt kind of like a kid before, but in the last couple years I really feel like I’ve finally grown up.”

Comments

There are 11 comments associated with this post

ghd March 15, 2011, 02:16:47

Salon Skincare, ghd sale is a leading supplier of skin care products, announce the arrival of ghd hair straighteners fragrances from some of the most recognisable perfume and cologne brands on the market.
Belfast, United Kingdom (09 March, 2011) – Salon Skincare, a leading supplier of skin care products, announce the ghd purple of a new range of designer fragrances from some of the most recognisable perfume and cologne brands on the market.
GHD IV Styler have established themselves as one of the leading UK providers of fragrances, skin care and hair care products, such as GHD straighteners and Clarins skin care. They offer exceptional ghd pink at extremely competitive prices, and are committed to providing an extensive range of items to ensure their customers can make an informed decision.

ghd March 15, 2011, 02:18:30

ghd March 15, 2011, 02:19:31

ghd March 15, 2011, 02:20:01

Damian February 27, 2012, 02:40:59

Does aoynne know hair straighteners that are cheap but work on slightly wavy hair?Please also tell me where to get them and how much they are?

Serpil May 5, 2012, 21:49:49

Products can be fake or watered down. It’s best to buy from an oiafcifl retailer of the product. Check the Chi website to see if it has a list of oiafcifl retailers. I know companies like Paul Mitchell say that there are fake products out there and the only way to know that you’re buying a real Paul Mitchell product is to buy from a salon. In this case, this is sold by an unauthorized reseller, so it’s possible it’s fake. One way to tell is the consistency if you always use the product then you’ll know. Contact the reseller and see if you can send it back for a refund. If not then you can get a refund through amazon, but it might not be worth it because the product was so cheap. Amazon will only refund your money up to 4 times, so use those 4 times wisely. I used it once when I go scammed out of almost $200, but I wouldn’t go through amazon for a refund for something under $30. This is just my opinion, though.If you live by a Walgreens then Walgreens sells Chi products. I don’t know if they’re an oiafcifl reseller, but they also offer a money back guarantee if you’re unsatisfied with anything you buy from the store.I don’t buy hair products from Amazon for exactly this reason, though I have thought about it. Try Folica.com. They sell authentic products. I bought my Sedu iron from them, and Folica is an exclusive reseller of certain Sedu irons.

D.Silver September 9, 2010, 11:46:17

I agree that TLG has finally turned a corner and are “back”. It took a very long time but the last two times around the northeast they finally knocked my socks off again. If you’ve given up it’s time to give them another shot.

D.Nickel September 9, 2010, 20:04:03

they are playing better than ever right now. listening to each other and letting the jams get farther “out there”. i can’t wait till Tortugas!

Harry September 9, 2010, 21:08:25

Long live the Leaf!!!

T. Ralph September 9, 2010, 21:24:19

Here is the show that Reed refers to in the article:
http://www.archive.org/details/tlg2010-04-09.km184

Kevin September 10, 2010, 23:34:21

I love TLG and tell everyone I know about them. One of the best Jam bands I have ever seen. My only question is when are you coming East again? Please quit “Looking West” and get your asses back to DC/ NO VA. The State Theather needs you. You guys are the best