Q:What kind of music do you play?
A: You can read our comments in ABOUT US, or check out our samples on the DOWNLOADS page, or at our MySpace page. Some would call it progressive rock, while others say it's modern alternative with heavy doses of experimental music. Gravity Tree has been compared to Jethro Tull, King Crimson, Primus, Frank Zappa, Rush, Oingo Boingo, Huffamoose, Furslide, Gentle Giant - even AC/DC (?). Some of these are bands that Gravity Tree likes, others are, shall we say, surprizing comparisons. (See more on that below). Other than that, we'll leave it to you to decide.
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Q: When are you going to have another full-length MP3 song available?
A: We've pretty much gone to the iTunes way of thinking, which is to offer short clips or samples of a song so you can get the flavor of the music, then decide if you'd like to buy it. You'll find lots of clips and downloads at our MySpace page, NumberOneMusic.com and 2 minute clips at our CDBaby page, and if you like downloading entire songs, iTunes and sites like that are the places to go. You can also check our DOWNLOADS page. We support ourselves with music in one form or another, by the way. It takes a lot of time, energy and actually some money to generate it; charging 99 cents for a song seems very fair for everyone concerned. After all, you probably wouldn't go to work if they didn't pay you, right? That's what handing out free songs is like for us.
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Q: Where can I get your latest CD?
A: The new CD is "ULTIMATE BACKWARD", which was released on December 12 and is showing up slowly but surely at most of the places that currently carry "Life or Dessert?". Both CDs can be found at CDBaby.com, IndieRhythm.com or Amazon.com, or by going to the Links section and clicking on one of the stores links and banners there. Additionally, you can go to our list of stores that carry "LIFE or DESSERT?" as well soon to carry our new CD. If you prefer not to use an online service and actually want to pick the thing up and stare at it before you buy it, there will be a few stores in the San Francisco Bay Area that will carry it in stock, and more than 2000 stores worldwide that will order it for you. Check our LINKS page for direct connections to online stores and details about walk-in music shops to find Gravity Tree music...
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Q: What are your musical influences?
A: Alan and Linc have very disparate influences but come together on a few points, namely an obscure group called Daniel Amos. Other artists at least one of them was influenced by includes the Beatles, Joe Walsh, Bill Nelson, Peter Gabriel, Lizst, Brian Eno, Al Di Meola, King Crimson, King's X, Brand X, Jerry Goldsmith, Henry Kaiser, Laurie Anderson, Todd Rundgren (and Utopia), Fred Frith, Bjork, Bernard Herrmann, Ravel, Yes, John McLaughlin and Genesis to name just a few. Sometimes it's the music, sometimes it's a particular player in the group that influenced us.
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Q: I've ordered your CD but it's taking forever to ship. I've been told it's backordered. What's up?
A: To our knowledge, all issues with our distributor and/or stores concerning low stock have been resolved, and everyone has "Life or Dessert?" and "Ultimate Backward" in stock or quickly available. (Anything you've read about "Ultimate Backward" being out of stock at Big Balloon Music, is due to the store closing its doors, so obviously we won't be restocking there.) If, however, you have been waiting for your CD order for more than two weeks, please email us right away! We'll get on top of it. (We don't control shipping for these stores, but we can bug them a little more directly than you can!) Sorry for any inconvenience.
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Q: What happened to your links to Tower Records, Big Balloon Music, etc.? I don't see them listed on the store page...
A: Unfortunately some stores have gone away for various reasons. If they're bought up or open their doors in a new format, we might be back. We removed our links to these sites to avoid confusion (but if you find one still active, let us know). You can still find our CDs at many online and as many as 2000 brick-and-mortar stores. Try CDBaby or Amazon - they'll probably always carry our music.
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Q: What is Gig-O-Rama?
A: Gig-O-Rama originally was a page to sort of time capsule our concerts, done especially for those whose geographical location makes it difficult to see the band in person. We've had a short video clip there just to help illustrate our live setup, and how 2 people play 4 instruments. We also have a very old clip that we're trying to resurrect for Gig-O-Rama. But lately the Gig-O-Rama page has become more of an archive, as due to other commitments, we've become a studio band and haven't performed in a while. That will hopefully change at some point, and we'll get out on the road again sometime in the future.*
Q: Do you guys actually play live as a two piece?
A: Yes, when we DO play live, it's ALWAYS as a 2 piece; no sequencers, drum machines, or extra musicians. The way we are able to this is with custom guitars Linc plays, which have bass and guitar strings and pickups on them. As for keyboard parts, some of them are actually highly effected guitars which many people - including some music critics - often confuse with synthesizers. But the actual keyboard parts are played by Alan with a keyboard mounted next to his drumkit which he uses while also covering the drum parts on certain songs. (There's a couple of pictures of this drum setup on the Gig-O-Rama page, and a shot of Alan playing keys and drums simultaneously on the Home page.) Alan also has electronic triggers which are used to access synths and samplers - but not loops! Again, every note you hear is played by Linc or Alan, period.
There are a few things we just can't do live, but 85-90% of what you'll hear on a recorded version of the song is covered live, without sequencers, drum machines, or extra musicians. Sometimes, we actually think up something to add to an arrangement, which of course makes it even harder to play, but hopefully also improves the music. We've actually been told that some of our live arrangements sound bigger than the studio version - most likely because it's tough to capture the energy of a live show in a recording.
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Q: I work for a radio station / magazine / ezine. How do I get a promo copy of your CD?
A: Our last CD, LIFE OR DESSERT?, was released a few years ago, and we've run out of promo copies. Of course you can still buy a retail copy at CDBaby.com (although at this writing those quantites are limited as well - so if you want it don't wait!). Our new CD, ULTIMATE BACKWARD, is widely available for review, but we're especially interested in progressive music organizations (who actually understand and appreciate this underdog of music genres). Please email us (with your station ID or magazine/ezine information and URL of course) to request a promo copy.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *More answers may be found at our new MySpace blog * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Q: Got a question you don't see here?
A: Hear more about us in the interview we did with Internet Radio Free Kansas.
(This may not always be online as it does not live at our server; our apologies in advance.)
Another way to find out more is to email us
