Ken Stringfellow brings the house down at Park Street Mews

Park Street Mews came alive with music on 29 January as it presented another unique, once in lifetime experience by hosting two international greats – Ken Stringfellow (of R.E.M fame) and Dr. Eugene Draw – a Canadian electric violinist; along with brilliant local artists Out of Time and the Beat Drummers.

Ken Stringfellow – a musician, songwriter, producer, and arranger – has been part of the indie landscape since the debut of his acclaimed band The Posies in 1988. Hailing from the musical hotbed of Seattle at the time when that music scene exploded into national prominence, The Posies went on to sign with Geffen Records and released brilliant, successful albums such as 1993’s legendary Frosting on the Beater. The band is still active today, having released their seventh album, Blood/Candy in 2010 – an album heaped with critical praise in the UK press – the Word magazine devoted an entire page to a review which called it “a finely calibrated....dazzling tapestry.” In addition to his groundbreaking work with the Posies, Ken was part of rock legends Big Star, one of the most acclaimed and legendary groups of all time, from 1993 until the death of Alex Chilton in 2010. Ken played bass, sang and helped create the band’s 2005 album In Space, their first since 1978’s timeless Third/Sister Lovers. He’s still frequently called upon to perform, speak about, and celebrate the music of one of the cornerstones of indie rock. Ken also spent ten years on the road and in studio with R.E.M., appearing on two albums (2001’s Reveal and 2004’s Around the Sun), and propelling the band on keyboards, bass, guitar and accordion during headlining slots at Glastonbury, Rock In Rio, Rock Am Ring, etc as well as on TV shows such as Top of the Pops, Saturday Night Live, Later With Jools Holland and countless others. The ‘Beethoven of Beats’, Dr. Eugene Draw, hasn’t quite slowed down since first landing on the Canadian music scene a decade ago. His high-energy performances, complete with his trademark, mile-high jumps, have won critical acclaim among his musical peers. Citing such diverse influences as Chopin, Charles Minges, David Bowie and Pink Floyd, with elements of African percussion, Indian ragas, North American folk music and reggae finding their place throughout Dr. Draw’s compositions; Draw comes by his unique musical masala with honesty. Setting the example that music has no limits, Draw continues to explore all kinds of musical avenues, and quite like a mad scientist, blends seemingly ill-fitting combinations – Classical, Rock & Roll, Russian Folk, Electronica, Jazz, Hip Hop , Blues and others – into undeniably brilliant compositions. ‘Out of Time” provided half of the Sri Lankan entertainment. The band has played at a number of events in Sri Lanka over the past four years and their sets are a mixture of original music and covers which include U2, Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan. Wade Campbell singer and song writer is a Canadian Native who has lived in Sri Lanka for the past eight years. Kumar Mirchandani is a legend in his own right, entrepreneur by day; inspiring musician at night, Kumar is the lead guitar player and is one of the founding members of Out of Time. Pabalu Wijegoonawardane delighted with his naturally talented and gifted percussion playing while Vindu played bass and filled in the rhythm section. The infamous Beat Drummers were also featured in the evening of music which was sponsored by Lite FM and TNL Rocks as media sponsors of the event.