John Shaffer’s long love affair w/ the mistress known as music begins as early as age five when he would grab the nearest acoustic guitar put on his mom’s glasses and claim to be John Denver. John couldn’t really play anything at this point, but it was very fitting seeing as how the youngest out of a ten sibling family grew up in Black Forest Colorado.
But the guitar was soon put aside when he started picking out chords to songs on the old neglected family organ.
It was when John was in his pre teens that he saw the concert that would forever changed how he felt and regarded music. Dépêche Mode in Red rocks Colorado. “I was an immediate fan and was hooked on anything synthesizer related†John states...
In 1986 John formed his first band “Blind Mans Holiday†admittedly a near replica of Depeche Mode. But it was in the late eighties and early nineties when at the young age of 21 and relocating to the Midwest did John break the mold, and catapult ahead of his time, when he found a female drummer and vocalist Brigette Sofio and got a heavy metal guitarist to riff over the sequenced synths. (About 5 years before NIN would find success w/ the same formula). Soon the Band was a cutting edge industrial outfit that played around the Indianapolis, Chicago area and after taking a number 10 spot on MTV’s beach house band search got a billing at the famed and now defunct CBGB’s in NYC.
However, after legal issues w/ their name, drug use and unsound management the trio was disbanded. John then armed w/ an arsenal of electronic tracks moved on as a solo live PA/DJ act to the rave scene. John was the first artist around the Indianapolis/Fort Wayne area to break live visuals into his performances long before it was even being considered as an option by other acts. John’s unique ability to use production mixers,TBC’s and projectors in unconventional ways soon led him back to Brigette Sofio who had the unique ability to “sample†just the right clips of video as well as mixing in her own art and recorded media. It was truly groundbreaking, and that project took on the name Panoramic/Trancevision. “We would show up at these warehouses or wherever to perform often times with 3 carts, a rack, a massive projector. All kinds of electronics because computers just were not reliable enough for video back then. People would just look confused until they saw and heard the final product, and then they were awestruck. I think we took people on some incredible journeys back then and it was a good time.â€
That lifestyle eventually caught up with John when after a show one early morning he collapsed from dehydration. He then wanted to get back to writing music w/ a more traditional feel again, and this time he felt it needed to be much more personal. The release of the CD “CHANGE†brought a lot of good reviews and John played a selected amount of shows to support it, being careful not to run himself into the ground as he had done before. He also realized his unique ability to write in many different styles, including RAP/R&B, Country, New Age/movie scores and modern Jazz. His newest release “PUSH†finds itself released on sale through Breeding Ground Records on Amazonmp3, ITunes, and Napster. Along w/ his other new age/jazz release “THE JOURNEY BEGINS†and his down-tempo electronic CD “WATER SIGN†John recently signed w/ a publisher where is arsenal of music in all styles are being placed in TV/FILM. The music he doesn’t feel comfortable “performing†such as Rap & Country will be shopped for other artists in these genres’s to record and release. Take a listen, support independent music and download John Shaffer’s music at any of the above mentioned sites.
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