After playing sessions with everyone from Pink Floyd to John Lennon and Yoko Ono and spending extensive stints with King Crimson and Peter Gabriel, bass player Tony Levin is used to traveling across the globe. Along the way there have been plenty of highlights, and just as many snags — like the time the bassist was mistaken for a terrorist.
“One time when I was on the road with Peter Gabriel we got arrested on our way from Switzerland to France,” says Levin from his home in Woodstock, N.Y. “A few of us stopped for lunch somewhere in between and were arrested at machine-gun point because the police thought we were a band of terrorists. It took us hours to convince them that we were a group of touring musicians. They didn’t believe us until we all sang a barbershop quartet [song] in perfect harmony.”
Levin lived to tell, and admits it’s the looming presence of terrorism all over the world that tops his current list of concerns. “Recent acts have had a huge impact on touring, and not just in America,” he observes. “Dates continue to be canceled for a lot of artists, security has not only been increased at airports, but also venues we play at. I’m playing roughly the same clubs in the states I’ve played before, but it’s harder to do well in some cities because people simply aren’t going to as many shows as they’re used to.”
The fact that Levin isn’t a household name and performs music that is an acquired taste doesn’t exactly help. However, Levin feels like his latest batch of experimental material, found on the instrumental “Pieces of the Sun” project, will bridge that gap. “It’s my hope that I’ve made a connection to my roots in progressive rock,” he says. “But I hope the album doesn’t come off to some people as having too heavy of a feel. That’s why I change the mood up from start to finish, giving people a bit of a break from seriousness with a little bit of humor.
“I had written this music with this particular band in mind,” says Levin, referring to keyboardist Larry Fast, guitarist Jesse Gress and drummer Jerry Marotta. “Nowadays that’s not the norm, and the fact that this is not easy music to play in the first place made it an even greater challenge.”
Never afraid to rise above musical obstacles, Levin and company plan to feature their most challenging pieces from “Sun” on the current tour, along with music from his last solo project, “Waters of Eden.”Levin is confident that diehard fans will be interested in hearing that material, but the less loyal may be quick to call out a request for a Peter Gabriel or King Crimson tune. Levin promises he’ll play a couple on each stop along with a show that plays up to the good energy that he has come to expect from supportive Chicago audiences.
“We’ll be designing the set list with that in mind, with [fewer] ballads than we’d normally do. I won’t take my time saying things to the crowd either. That way we can get plenty of music in.”
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Tony Levin Band
When: 10 p.m. Friday
Where: Martyrs’, 3855 N. Lincoln Ave.
Price: $20; tickets 312-559-1212; venue 773-404-9494
