JOEL GEHRINGER / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Thursday, July 21, 2005 7:00 pm
The similarities are uncanny. She comes from Athens, Ga., he from Nashville, Tenn. Both developed an interest in music at an early age. Both left their Southern roots behind after meeting some famous friends from Omaha. Both found themselves trying to hit it big with Saddle Creek Records.
Recently, both found themselves without a band to play with. Their respective groups took indefinite hiatuses, but she couldn't stop writing songs and he couldn't stop playing music.
That's why he struck out on his own, dabbling in experimental music, and she went solo, singing and playing on her own accord.
He is Denver Dalley, guitarist from Conor Oberst's "other band," Desaparecidos. Nowadays, Dalley's better known as the man behind Statistics, an ambient, electronic project that has morphed into a full-time band.
"When I started recording, it was just kind of a studio project," Dalley said. "A live band kind of evolved from that."
She is Maria Taylor, often billed as one-half of Azure Ray, Saddle Creek's star female singing duo. After working with partner Orenda Fink for 13 years, Taylor felt the time was right to forge her own path.
"After we toured a whole lot from Hold on Love' (Azure Ray's last album), we decided to take a break for a while," she said. "But I was still writing songs and I wanted to record."
With the parallels between them, it's no surprise Taylor and Dalley decided to tour together this summer in support of their latest records, "11:11" and "Often Lie," respectively. Luckily for Lincoln, the duo decided last month to squeeze in a show at Duffy's Tavern, 1412 O St., before their finale in Omaha.
"I'm excited because these shows in Lincoln and Omaha, they're kind of my official CD releases," Dalley said.
Dalley's love for his adopted hometown is easy to understand. In Omaha, he became the hard punk band Desaparedidos driving guitar force.
But after only one full-length record, Desa as the band members called it went on hold so Oberst could focus on another minor project he called Bright Eyes.
The down time gave Dalley an opportunity to try his own music, but he struggled with becoming more than "that guitarist from Conor's band."
"I don't mind that people remember me as the Desa guitarist, but when it becomes the guitarist from Conor Oberst's Desaparecidos,' that would annoy me," he said. "Anytime there's this attitude of, He's only here because of that Conor guy,' that sucks. I'd rather stand on my own two feet."
Meanwhile, Taylor found Omaha after opening for Bright Eyes, The Good Life and the Faint in her home state. When she and Fink decided to record, naturally they called up their friends.
But the groundwork for Taylor's solo effort was being laid as Azure Ray recorded "Hold on Love."
"It got to the point that Orenda and I recorded separately," Taylor said. "When it came time for me to do my songs, she would go take a break or something."
So recording alone didn't feel much different than recording for the group, Taylor said.
"The process was the same," she said. "I just try to write from the heart."
Dalley and Taylor became the latest in a long line of Saddle Creek musicians, including Mayday's Ted Stevens, Criteria's Stephen Pedersen and Broken Spindle's Joel Peterson, to break from their flagship groups and find success on their own.
It's almost too easy for members of the "Saddle Creek gang," Dalley admitted. But inside the label, one band's success is everyone success, he said.
"It's such a close-knit musical community," he said. "I think people notice one band and become fans of all the other bands. But Saddle Creek itself, as a label, has fans."
Taylor credits a supportive atmosphere for helping young musicians find their way.
"Everyone wants to see everyone else do well," she said. "No one's trying to hinder anyone's success."
Because of that attitude, those striking similarities become more understandable. In Taylor's and Dalley's circle of friends, one musician's story is every musician's story.
Reach Joel Gehringer at 473-7254 or jgehringer@journalstar.com.
If you go
What: Maria Taylor, Statistics, The Golden Age
Where: Duffy's Tavern, 1412 O St.
When: 9 p.m. Thursday
Admission: $7; 21 and older