Dave Asher of (is) Melody Nife (and) makes the schemes of the rest of the DIY contingent look pretty paltry. A mainstay at Chicago’s IO Theater (formerly known as Improv Olympic) where he, most nights of the week, provides a musical backdrop for the players (all improvised, of course), Dave is also the brains, looks and muscle behind the multi-media juggernaut that is Melody Nife.

His highly professional (and hottie-rific) video ‘Babydoll‘, which looks like a George Michael-Beck hybrid, has garnered quite a bit of attention, not to mention praise, across the Internet, and screenings for critics at venues like the IO, where no one gets off easy. That’s on top of his debut album Sci Fi Sol, the official vehicle for his ridiculously catchy and attention-grabbing cuts (as if he needed to emphasize this, a 9-minute disc of clips from 30 of his songs spliced together is also available). An interactive, futuristic jukebox - magically self-aware and sensitive to vinyl-worshiping anachronisms - interacts with a running narrative and theme related to something about meaning and authenticity in an age of digital overload.

But overload is his thing, and he works it well. If things get too cluttered it’s because they’re supposed to be, and it’s funny, by God! He doesn’t improvise for comedians for nothing! This is melody driven, psych-pop that floats on layers of distortion, video game blips and clever lyrics; and it sounds like it should be played on vinyl, if only that were possible.

Advice to heed: go to the IO to watch any number of the excellent teams do their acts as backed-up by Dave (or the other talented players, ahem…) and pick up a copy of Sci Fi Sol from the bartender while ordering your favorite craft beer. Or get it from iTunes if Chicago and/or comedy isn’t your thing. Meanwhile, Dave provided answers to the 5 Questions for us to feast on:

1. When historians listen to your CD 1000 years from now, what will they say?

“Why won’t this thing play on my iHead?”

2. If you could play a show w/ any band/musician living or dead, whom would you pick and why?

Michael Jackson. The crowd would be enormous and they’d be optimistic that music can bring about good things, even if from an unusual package. Melody Nife would open, of course, but maybe I could sit in on Thriller, haunt out from behind a ten foot grave stone…

3. What is the strangest band-related dream you have had?

I’m eating pancakes at 4 AM in a run down all-night diner. I’m alone and focused on the music which comes from a 30 year-old jukebox. The sound is vibrant and five dimensional. Songs that I’ve heard before sound different. I check the other patrons to see if they are likewise occupied. That’s when I realize, the diner is run by the mafia and the juke box is one of their prized secrets: the music is all being played live, piped in from the land where rock stars live forever, their songs expanding with the universe.

4. What do your fans look like?

Rich, hot, supermodel pilots and their slacker stoner dates.

5. What bullshit do you run into at most every show that makes you think, “Man, this Bullshit again?”

The hot tubs back stage are too hot.

Writer’s note: I implore you, the reader, to go see Melody Nife at Martyr’s in Chicago on Wednesday, July 18th.  I would attend if I weren’t committed elsewhere, but it was simply unavoidable.  Go on, see for yourselves!

1 Comment »

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URI

Leave a comment