Tag: Bobby Streng

The Psych Doctor — George Mashour’s Vintage-Sounding Psychedelic Rock Album Was Inspired by His Consciousness Studies at U-M

George Mashour explores the evolution of the self on Eulogy for My Ego Death. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on the Ann Arbor District Library’s Pulp blog.

In 2019, George Mashour aspired to make a psychedelic rock album.

The anesthesiologist and neuroscientist had just turned 50 and wanted to step outside the medical world to pursue a musical project.

“I was reflecting on what I wanted to do in the next phase of my life … and [I’d] been writing all these songs—sometimes just in my head—some of them [were] decades old,” said Mashour, a University of Michigan researcher who studies consciousness and has been dabbling in music over the years.

“For my 50th birthday, my wife got me a gift certificate for studio time at Big Sky [Recording], which was cool, and in retrospect I’m really glad she did that.”

Later that year, he became chair of U-M’s Department of Anesthesiology, and then COVID hit in early 2020.

“I was super busy, and of course, everything was shut down,” Mashour said. “And yet I still had that physical gift certificate for eight hours of studio time … so it was just always on my mind. And then it was 2023 when I said, ‘You know what, I’m going to do this,’ so I got in touch with Geoff [Michael], who’s the owner of Big Sky.” 

Michael connected Mashour with Marty Gray, an Ann Arbor producer, engineer, singer-songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, to help record his debut album.

“I had never been to a studio before, never recorded music before, and had no idea of what was going to happen,” said Mashour, who worked with Gray over several studio sessions. “And I walked out of that first four-hour session with a sense of joy that I can’t even remember the last time I had experienced.”

What resulted is Eulogy for My Ego Death, a ‘60s-inspired psych-rock album filled with existential lyrics, dreamy vocals, fuzzy electric guitars, and groovy instrumentation.

“Generally speaking, in that psychedelic genre, it’s about experience, it’s about great melody, and it’s about the self,” Mashour said. “It’s not what I would call a concept album per se in terms of a narrative thread going from start to finish, but there certainly are conceptual relationships to a lot of the different songs.”

To learn more, I spoke with Mashour about the inspiration behind his album as well as his psychedelic hip-hop project VaporDaze.

Continue reading “The Psych Doctor — George Mashour’s Vintage-Sounding Psychedelic Rock Album Was Inspired by His Consciousness Studies at U-M” →

Along the Way – Ypsilanti Singer-Songwriter Adam Plomaritas Returns With His First New Release in a Decade

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Adam Plomaritas gets introspective on his new EP, “Old Time Love.” Photo courtesy of Adam Plomaritas

Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on the Ann Arbor District Library’s Pulp blog.

Adam Plomaritas’ new EP reflects on his personal journey of love and growth.

It provides the Ypsilanti, Michigan pop-soul singer-songwriter with an emotional outlet for exploring the opportunities and challenges that come with being loved and loving others.

“These tunes are about finding a balance between wondering if you’re loved enough and if you’re loving enough in the best ways,” said Plomaritas about Old Time Love, his first collection of new songs since his 2013 album, The Hard Way. “As a husband, father, son, brother, and artist, it’s natural to seek approval, if not always healthy.”

Plomaritas beautifully captures that sentiment on Old Time Love, which features five infectious tracks filled with heartfelt vocals, vibrant horns, and upbeat pop-rock instrumentation.

“The EP is a little bit of introspection, even though the songs are generally light and fun in nature,” he said. “You seemed to have pierced the hard candy shell and gotten to the ooey, gooey chocolate inside—it’s about feeling like you’re enough.”

I recently spoke with Plomaritas about growing up in a musical family, solidifying his writing and recording skills through earlier releases, anticipating his first new release in 10 years, sharing select songs from Old Time Love, and preparing for a Dec. 1 show at The Ark.

Continue reading “Along the Way – Ypsilanti Singer-Songwriter Adam Plomaritas Returns With His First New Release in a Decade” →

High Note – Marc Dorian Shares Uplifting Life Anthems on ‘Another Lucky Day’

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Marc Dorian celebrates positive tales of everyday life on “Another Lucky day.” Photo – 6of6photography

For Marc Dorian, life includes several strokes of luck.

The Commerce Township singer-songwriter and keyboardist eloquently hits the high notes of growth, chance and connection on his latest inspirational album, Another Lucky Day.

“I wanted to have some kind of optimistic message or some kind of offer of hope. The first song, ‘End of the Tunnel,’ sparked things off, and I was working in the basement when I came up with a lot of those little comical lines. It’s not making light of people going through hard times, but it’s saying that we’re all waiting for the light at the end of the tunnel,” Dorian said.

Dorian brings an honest, thoughtful sheen to his 10 uplifting anthems about everyday life on Another Lucky Day. Filled with an enticing mix of rock, country and blues, the album melds warm, nostalgic reflections of the past with eager, optimistic expectations for the future.

“Hopefully, some people will say, ‘Hey man, that song made me feel good,’ because it makes me feel good to do it. That’s what makes me feel the most alive,” Dorian said.

Continue reading “High Note – Marc Dorian Shares Uplifting Life Anthems on ‘Another Lucky Day’” →