Left to right: Jeff Kloetzel, David Bolen and Donnie Yance are the core members of

Jeff K & Overtones. Mail Tribune / Jamie Lusch  

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From Local Band to Headline Opener

 

By Laurie Heuston 
Mail Tribune

Posted Aug 14, 2017 at 8:00 AM

  

Playing opening acts for headliners at Britt concerts becomes the next claim to fame for some hometown bands.

Program director Mike Sturgill identifies bands that may fit as openers for particular Britt acts, then requests approval from the artist’s management, says marketing director Mike Gantenbein. Other acts tour with their own opening acts.

Next up will be Jeff K and Overtones opening for rock musician Rick Springfield on Thursday, Aug. 17, at the Britt Pavilion in Jacksonville.

“I think it’s great that we get local acts on stage,” Gantenbein says. “It’s a good way to integrate them and give them a chance to play on a bigger stage.” Gantenbein was with local blues band Soul Food for seven years. “I always appreciated being able to play on The Rogue Theatre stage, and having a real sound guy was a nice treat. It’s a whole different experience.”

Local country band Fogline opened for Dustin Lynch in June, and DJ Gemineye opened for The Revolution in July. Rock band L.E.F.T. will open for Joan Jett and the Blackhearts on Sunday, Aug. 27.

“We’re real happy about the opportunity, and happy that Springfield’s people approved us,” says Jeff Kloetzel, frontman for Overtones. “It’s a chance for us to showcase our material to a broader audience, one that might not see us regularly.”

Singer, songwriter and acoustic guitarist Kloetzel is a favorite on the regional winery scene, playing a dozen or so shows a month during the summer, fewer during winter months. He’s a regular at South Stage Cellars in Jacksonville.

The band — Jeff Stanley on electric guitar, Donnie Yance on electric bass and Dave Bolen on drums — formed in summer 2015 and sometimes features a revolving cast of talented Rogue Valley musicians: sax player Tony Hayes, before he relocated to North Carolina, and guitarist Jack Hopfinger and singer Jennifer DePuglia from Yance’s and Bolen’s big band Souliverse.

“The material doesn’t change too much based on the players,” Kloetzel says. “We draw from my original tunes and from ’70s and ’90s covers. We like to play fun, upbeat stuff we can change up and make more our own, but certainly songs that people will recognize.

“For the Britt show, Overtones will play a set of almost all original music,” he says. “I don’t write specifically for the band. I write what comes to me. Some music is best suited for acoustic tunes, and others are more fun to flesh out with the band.”

New tunes “Reality” and “Home To You” have not been recorded yet. “Be Your Own Kind of Beautiful” is a new one the band is working on. Others are originals from Kloetzel’s 2014 album “Long Time Coming.”

“It’s neat for me,” Kloetzel says. “There’s a lot of stuff I do with the band that I wouldn’t do on my own. I play often enough by myself. It’s cool to change it up.”

Overtones has gained traction since 2015, Kloetzel says. It played a summer concert at Del Rio Vineyards in June, performed in the Butler Band Shell during Ashland’s July Fourth celebration, and an Aug. 9 show at Lively Park in Springfield, part of Willamalane Park and Recreation District’s summer concert series.

The group opens the Springfield show at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 17 at Britt, 350 First St., Jacksonville. Tickets are $236 for premium lawn seating for four, $118 for premium lawn seating for two, $56 for reserved, $39 for lawn, $29 for age 12 and younger, and can be purchased at brittfest.org, by calling 800-882-7488 or at the box office, 216 W. Main St., Medford.

On Thursday, Aug. 24, Overtones will perform at Red Lily Vineyard, 11777 Highway 238, Jacksonville.

“We don’t play often enough for everyone to get to hear us,” Kloetzel says. “It feels like more of a special thing when we get to play. I think that translates into a good show.”

Kloetzel moved to the Rogue Valley from Hawaii in 2009, Yance hails from the East Coast, Bolen is originally from Colorado, and Stanley, well, he’s lived all over the world.

“We’re talking about recording some originals together,” Kloetzel says. “David’s been doing some studio work with L.A. people and that’s spurred him on to chat about what we can do together. He’s the heart and soul of the band, always looking for new things that we can do.

“I’m looking forward to where that might go. Usually songwriters have visions for what they hear in their heads, then work with a producer. Putting the feelings of everyone in the band into the music sends it in a different direction. I’m always interested to see where that might lead.”

Opening Britt’s Rick Springfield show is a first for Kloetzel.

“I remember hearing ‘Jessie’s Girl’ when I was in college. It’s a well-crafted song. He did a lot of other songs and received quite a bit of airplay. I’m looking forward to a behind-the-scenes look. Music’s been a big part of his life.”

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Left to right: Jeff Kloetzel, David Bolen and Donnie Yance are the core members of

Jeff K & Overtones. Mail Tribune / Jamie Lusch  

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By Laurie Heuston
Mail Tribune

Posted Aug. 14, 2015 at 12:01 AM 

 

Jeff Kloetzel compares the music of his new project, Jeff K & Overtones, to good wine.

"Our bass player came up with the name," says the singer, songwriter and acoustic guitarist. "Overtones are those sounds that resonate over the main notes. I like it. Wines also have overtones, or notes of woodiness, spiciness, pepper or fruit. I like the double-pronged approach."

Kloetzel knows many wines. His solo shows at regional wineries are his bread and butter. Only recently, he and drummer David Bolen, bassist Donnie Yance and electric guitarist Jeff Stanley began working together as Jeff K & Overtones.

 

Kloetzel met Yance while working with The Lincoln Project in 2011 and 2012, and he'd seen Bolen play with various Rogue Valley bands. "Dave would come out to my solo gigs to just relax," Kloetzel says. "He's a big part of The Rogue Suspects and Heart and Soul (now defunct). He and Donnie started playing together last winter in their studio just for fun. They approached me with the idea of doing something that would flesh out my songs a bit. We started getting together in February to see what we could get going."

 

The core group ran with it as a three-piece, then added another guitar.  "Our first gig together was in May with Jack Hopfinger — a fantastic guitar player — at Cooper Ridge Winery in Roseburg," Kloetzel says. "Since then we've added guitarist Jeff Stanley. He adds a lot of color to the rhythmic framework. It's been fun to have him in the mix."

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"Our first gig with Jeff was at the Britt Performance Garden," Kloetzel says. "It was outstanding. We had a big crowd turn out and received a nice response to our music. I think people resonate with the fact that we play feel-good music. It's positive, upbeat and snappy."

Overtones has been well received at other wineries as well, including Red Lily and Del Rio.

 

"We play 10 or 11 of my originals and match that with a broad range of covers," Kloetzel says.

"We like to reinterpret other artists' music and put our own spin on it. Maybe people enjoy that. It's nice to finally have a band to play with.

 

"When we play as a trio, there's less room for instrumental solos," he says. "There's more of a load on vocals to carry the whole thing. It's nice to change that up with instrumentals. Jeff's work is atmospheric, and he adds nice riffs that are harmonic and rhythmic at the same time, weaving around the rest of the band. David is a great drummer. He doesn't beat the living daylights out of the kit, which I find refreshing. Donnie adds nice effects. He's quite a funky player. I like the movement the two of them create as a rhythm section. I try to drive things along because I enjoy playing over a funky underbeat."

 

Kloetzel moved to the Rogue Valley from Hawaii in 2009. His solo album, "Long Time Coming," was released in 2014 and can be found on his Facebook page, at CD Baby, South Stage Cellars, Pebblestone Cellars and Ashland Wine Cellar.

 

"I wrote the songs on that album for solo guitar," he says. "I hear them with other parts in my head. It's fun to hear the band play those parts when we play live. It comes together nicely."