William Elliott Whitmore (Photo // David Black)
Purchase your tickets to Whitmore’s July 15th performance at The Strutt in Kalamazoo HERE.
Some prefer the soothing passion of soul music while others prefer raucous punk — yet others would point to one of a seemingly endless list of genres as their favorite.
Then, there’s people like William Elliott Whitmore.
His recent list of artists in heavy rotation on his stereo includes Lupe Fiasco, Tuneyards, the Dead Milkmen and Ray Charles. And if you were to look at a roster of bands he’s toured with, you’ll find everything from Converge to Chris Cornell and Michigan’s own Frontier Ruckus.
When it comes to the music he plays though, he sticks to raw, soulful bluesy folk music.
For those unfamiliar with Whitmore’s music, here’s what I mean by “raw, soulful bluesy folk music”: his voice sounds as though it has been aged in smoky bourbon barrels, then dipped in honey. It has a rasp like dry leaves rustling in the wind and a sweet smoothness which rivals the songbirds. His stripped-down, bare, three-chord guitar and banjo melodies are a simple and perfect accompaniment to his voice; it helps to create a soothing background twang which supports his voice and lets it shine.
Whether he’s howling about corrupt politicians or softly singing about nature, his song-writing maintains a quality that is timeless. It invokes the spirits of Woody Guthrie and R.L. Burnside, has the feel of old Negro spirituals and rollicking country ditties and touches on the most core human issues which makes its relevance cross cultures and time periods.
Yeah, it’s that good. And it’s the result of years of experience.
“I had a pretty musical household growing up,” Whitmore said. “The instruments were always just kind of around.”
His dad played guitar, his grandfather played guitar and banjo. It also didn’t hurt that the record player was always spinning sRay Charles or other family favorites.
In his late teens Whitmore moved up to Iowa City, an hour-and-a-half north of his country home. Here, Whitmore delved deep into the local punk and hardcore scene, attending basement shows and befriending bands and locals everywhere he went. He immediately fell in love with the DIY attitude of the scene.
“You didn’t have to have a fancy booking agent or a record deal or anything,” he said.
It wasn’t long before Whitmore himself started playing basement shows, showcasing his knack for writing blues and folk music while opening for punk and hardcore bands.
And it worked.
With the shared tradition of simplistic core stylings and an acceptance for society’s rejects and the lower class, punk and blues actually got along quite well.
Later on, when Whitmore started gaining popularity and playing bigger shows, he still preferred touring with friends and acquaintances, including hardcore act Converge.
“I just kind of came up in that world,” he said. “When I had a booking agent for real we just kind of kept up with that.”
This same down-to-earth, sensible approach to touring also manifests itself in his songwriting process.
“It starts with an idea that I want to flesh out,” he said. “It starts with the thought ‘I’m tired of getting arrested and think America is a police state’ and it turns into ‘Johnny Law’.”
He said that most of the time, the words come first as a way to illustrate this idea in his head.
“Usually for me, the melody comes later,” Whitmore said. “I come up with a way to say these words behind a melody that’s halfway pleasing.”
Whitmore will be performing his catalogue of songs on July 15 at the Strutt in Kalamazoo. Anyone interested in the show should be prepared and wear their dancing shoes, as Whitmore said: “They can expect to have a rip-roaring good time. They can also expect a great performance from a humble, real, down-to-earth guy strumming songs on an old guitar.”
