Ryan LaPerle

Ryan LaPerle is a story junkie. He got hooked four years ago when he moved to Massachusetts from New Hampshire and a colleague turned him on toNational Public Radio’s “This American Life.”

“I had never listened to NPR,” the 30-year-old music teacher said. “NPR was kind of old-people stuff.” But “This American Life,” with its funny, moving stories of everyday people, was different. LaPerle fell hard: He started catching up on old episodes in marathon sessions.

“I spent some Saturdays listening to ‘This American Life’ for six to seven hours on end,” he said. “It wasn’t healthy.”

And it didn’t stop there. “This American Life” proved a gateway habit. Through it he discovered the narrative-heavy science podcast “Radiolab,” public radio’s “Morning Edition” feature “Story Corps,” and the storytelling series called “The Moth Radio Hour.”

LaPerle eventually discovered there were live storytelling events going on all around him. Throughout the year, local and national groups put on dozens of shows in and around Boston. Massmouth, Story Space, Story Collider, Speak Up, Mortified, and The Moth itself routinely host events pairing those with something to say and those clamoring to hear them say it.

Storytelling is, of course, among the oldest forms of entertainment. According to longtime observers and participants in the storytelling scene, one contemporary iteration, the competitive slam, with its emphasis on vulnerability and confession, has arisen and spread in the past 15 years or so — a period that also saw the ascension of reality TV, tell-all memoirs, and share-all social media. Storytelling events are growing in popularity all across the country thanks in part to the New York-based nonprofit The Moth and its radio reach.

The Moth started in New York in 1997 as a live storytelling event and quickly gained a following. It drew performers from those outside the storytelling world: writers, actors, and comedians all took the stage for its events. In 1998, “This American Life” aired a segment on a yarn about a road trip performed at a Moth event and introduced the series to a national audience. Since then, The Moth has toured the world and in 2009 debuted a public radio show of its own called “The Moth Radio Hour,” now airing on 200 stations nationwide. In September, it started a series of monthly story slams at Cambridge’s Oberon, the second stage of the American Repertory Theater. Counting its Massachusetts events, The Moth hosts slams in 11 cities at 14 venues. In 2007, it put on 62 shows; this year the total hit 221.

LaPerle’s favorite Moth story, delivered in Aspen, Colo., by comedian Anthony Griffith, is also among The Moth’s most popular. In it, Griffith talks about struggling to launch a successful comedy career, his back to the wall financially, while his 2-year-old daughter’s cancer has returned with a fury. A YouTube video of the performance has been viewed nearly a million times. LaPerle returns to it regularly and gets choked up every time.

He decided to make the leap from listening to talking when cancer touched his own life: His mother was diagnosed in March. Suddenly, he was seized with the desire to speak publicly about his family’s experiences with cancer — but he figured he’d start small.

A few months ago, he and his girlfriend made a pilgrimage to New York to attend a Moth slam. Instead, he got lost in the Bronx. He planned to tell a story about that at a Moth event at Oberon in early December.

Performers at Moth slams are chosen at random, and LaPerle put his name in to be called up to the stage. It was a bold move: More than 200 people packed the sold-out club. A luminous Moth logo — “The Moth” spelled out in white letters over an abstract background — was projected onto a giant screen at the back of the stage. Between stories, local writer Steve Almond gently heckled contestants and judges. Storytellers were competing for a slot at The Moth GrandSlam. “The winner of that gets to date [‘This American Life’ host] Ira Glass,” Almond quipped. What’s more, they were getting a chance at a national audience: The Moth airs stories from its slams on its podcast and radio show.

The theme of the night was “happy accidents.” As LaPerle waited for his name to be called, he listened to tales of car accidents, cancer diagnoses, and vacations gone awry.

The night’s winner, Rebecca Nesson, told a story about a high school study-abroad trip to Ecuador during which she felt excluded by her preppy peers but made friends with the locals, ending with a dance party and a decision to switch to public school.
LaPerle never got the chance to tell his story. In retrospect, “I lucked out,” he said. “The Moth is like the big leagues, and I wasn’t ready.”

. . .

“The Moth brought storytelling into mainstream culture. We’re just one of many little boats following it,” said Norah Dooley, professional storyteller, executive director, and cofounder of Massmouth.

Massmouth is by - The Boston Globe

The image of the dude with an acoustic guitar sleepwalking one more time through “Margaritaville” isn’t just a nightmare for the après ski devotee, but also disturbing to guys like Sean Fullerton and Ryan LaPerle _ dudes with acoustic guitars stuck combating that negative stereotype.

Fullerton_ a Coppertop regular for several years now_ and LaPerle_ who makes his Wachusett debut Sunday_ are solo artists who pride themselves on engaging crowds with blends of original music and inspired covers.

In Fullerton’s case, his musical journey started with a fascination with the Beatles and has wended its way over the past 16 years into the blues. His shows now embrace both of those influences as well as a bunch of stuff in between.

“For any performer, you have to connect with the audience and the best way to do that is to connect with the music you’re playing,” Fullerton said.

When Fullerton turned to the blues, the move was similar to that of the casual fan who starts finding out that Led Zeppelin’s “Traveling Riverside Blues” and the Rolling Stones’s “Love in Vain” are actually songs by Delta bluesman Robert Johnson and date back to the 1930s. The more he dug, the more Fullerton learned, and the process became a regeneration of sorts.

“When I felt stagnant I didn’t want a radical change, but I did want something that moved me maybe half-way from where I was,” Fullerton said.

His balancing act let him introduce the slide-guitar tones of Dobro and the gritty sound of amplified harmonica into his shows. He hasn’t abandoned staples from the Beatles or soulful singalongs such as “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay,” but now alongside them adds doses of Muddy Waters, Big Boy Crudup, and Johnson. The performance package earned Fullerton “Best Solo Artist” honors in last year’s Worcester Music Awards.

As he works on new original material, Fullerton said he is seeing how he can combine the emotional heft of the blues with the catchiness of melodies and harmonies he has gleaned from Beatles and Beach Boys records.

“I’m experimenting,” he said. “Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.”

But at the very least, you don’t hear Fullerton saying he feels stagnant. Catch his act at 8 p.m. Thursday.

Barring another blown car engine, which scotched his first scheduled Wachusett appearance in January, LaPerle will be at the Coppertop at 4 p.m. on Sunday.

LaPerle grew up in New Hampshire and now resides in Cambridge, MA, where a thriving folk-pop scene keeps him busy.

“I still have have very New Hampshire roots within me. I love the feel of being out in the open. It was a big transition going from the 603 to the 617. It’s a different feel, a different lifestyle,” LaPerle said.

With two CDs under his belt and a trip to the South By Southwest music conference in Austin last year LaPerle has carved out a place for his finely woven and detailed tunes. He is currently prepping for a third album, having stockpiled songs over the last year and a half. And, having done his fair share of solo gigs jammed amid bands, LaPerle is looking to hire a bass player and drummer whom share his acoustic-pop vision (interested parties are welcome to apply).

“Before I used to think I had to write a whole song in one sitting or it wouldn’t work,” LaPerle explained. “Now I am not afraid to work on a melody. Put it down. Work on some verses, and come back, come back, come back. I’ve learned I can bring the moment.”

LaPerle also said his new songs are drifting from stock themes (falling in and out of love) and focusing more on textures and word play that can evoke different moods and interpretations among different listeners.

“Love is easy,” he joked. At least for a songwriter.

In between Fullerton and LaPerle, the Coppertop has return visits by The Wandas at 8 p.m. Friday and Brian and Captain, same time on Saturday.

Scott McLennan wrote about music for The Worcester Telegram & Gazette for 15 years and is now a music correspondent for The Boston Globe. His column on Coppertop happenings updates here each Wednesday, and he can be reached at smclennan1010@gmail.com

- By Scott McLennan

The image of the dude with an acoustic guitar sleepwalking one more time through “Margaritaville” isn’t just a nightmare for the après ski devotee, but also disturbing to guys like Sean Fullerton and Ryan LaPerle _ dudes with acoustic guitars stuck combating that negative stereotype.

Fullerton_ a Coppertop regular for several years now_ and LaPerle_ who makes his Wachusett debut Sunday_ are solo artists who pride themselves on engaging crowds with blends of original music and inspired covers.

In Fullerton’s case, his musical journey started with a fascination with the Beatles and has wended its way over the past 16 years into the blues. His shows now embrace both of those influences as well as a bunch of stuff in between.

“For any performer, you have to connect with the audience and the best way to do that is to connect with the music you’re playing,” Fullerton said.

When Fullerton turned to the blues, the move was similar to that of the casual fan who starts finding out that Led Zeppelin’s “Traveling Riverside Blues” and the Rolling Stones’s “Love in Vain” are actually songs by Delta bluesman Robert Johnson and date back to the 1930s. The more he dug, the more Fullerton learned, and the process became a regeneration of sorts.

“When I felt stagnant I didn’t want a radical change, but I did want something that moved me maybe half-way from where I was,” Fullerton said.

His balancing act let him introduce the slide-guitar tones of Dobro and the gritty sound of amplified harmonica into his shows. He hasn’t abandoned staples from the Beatles or soulful singalongs such as “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay,” but now alongside them adds doses of Muddy Waters, Big Boy Crudup, and Johnson. The performance package earned Fullerton “Best Solo Artist” honors in last year’s Worcester Music Awards.

As he works on new original material, Fullerton said he is seeing how he can combine the emotional heft of the blues with the catchiness of melodies and harmonies he has gleaned from Beatles and Beach Boys records.

“I’m experimenting,” he said. “Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.”

But at the very least, you don’t hear Fullerton saying he feels stagnant. Catch his act at 8 p.m. Thursday.

Barring another blown car engine, which scotched his first scheduled Wachusett appearance in January, LaPerle will be at the Coppertop at 4 p.m. on Sunday.

LaPerle grew up in New Hampshire and now resides in Cambridge, MA, where a thriving folk-pop scene keeps him busy.

“I still have have very New Hampshire roots within me. I love the feel of being out in the open. It was a big transition going from the 603 to the 617. It’s a different feel, a different lifestyle,” LaPerle said.

With two CDs under his belt and a trip to the South By Southwest music conference in Austin last year LaPerle has carved out a place for his finely woven and detailed tunes. He is currently prepping for a third album, having stockpiled songs over the last year and a half. And, having done his fair share of solo gigs jammed amid bands, LaPerle is looking to hire a bass player and drummer whom share his acoustic-pop vision (interested parties are welcome to apply).

“Before I used to think I had to write a whole song in one sitting or it wouldn’t work,” LaPerle explained. “Now I am not afraid to work on a melody. Put it down. Work on some verses, and come back, come back, come back. I’ve learned I can bring the moment.”

LaPerle also said his new songs are drifting from stock themes (falling in and out of love) and focusing more on textures and word play that can evoke different moods and interpretations among different listeners.

“Love is easy,” he joked. At least for a songwriter.

In between Fullerton and LaPerle, the Coppertop has return visits by The Wandas at 8 p.m. Friday and Brian and Captain, same time on Saturday.

Scott McLennan wrote about music for The Worcester Telegram & Gazette for 15 years and is now a music correspondent for The Boston Globe. His column on Coppertop happenings updates here each Wednesday, and he can be reached at smclennan1010@gmail.com

- By Scott McLennan

Just when it seems that hardcore rock and metal bands have taken charge of the original music scene, Taken By Chance steps out to remind listeners that rock music can still sound good unplugged.

?You can go out in town just about any night and hear some screaming band, while there?s only a handful of bands that are easy listening and you can actually understand the lyrics,? said Keegan Heavey with Taken By Chance.

Taken By Chance is Keegan on drums, Kyle Heavey (Keegan?s younger brother) on bass and Ryan LaPerle on vocals and guitar.

?A lot of the songs are catchy. Sometimes it?s more drum-based, sometimes more guitar-driven. The music has this acoustic rock feel, with maybe a bit of pop elements,? LaPerle said.

For the first year, Taken By Chance had a difficult time finding a bass player that could fit their style. So, Keegan and LaPerle spent the first year just practicing and getting material together.

Keegan said it was because of the huge hard rock scene that they had a hard time finding a bass player. All the bassists wanted to play something harder, or they wanted to do the straight classic rock, as opposed to the leisure and acoustic rock style of Taken By Chance.

?Manchester is also probably one of the worst places for original bands. You go out and you hear classic rock cover bands everywhere, or you hear the hardcore rock,? Keegan said.

It?s been tough to make headway. But, after the first year of practice, they invited Kyle to take bass.

With original material, there?s always the chance that the audience won?t recognize and react to an original song like they would to a cover.

The best way, really the only way for an original band to warm up to a crowd, is to throw in a cover song they can identify.

?They can sing along and dance to a cover tune that they know. The hope is that the next time they come to a show, they?ll also recognize some of our original material,? LaPerle said.

Taken By Chance has about a dozen original tunes and works with an array of cover material, from Pearl Jam to Neal Diamond and Jimmy Eat World.

Another aspect of the band, LaPerle points out, is that their music is available for audiences of all ages. The music is never too loud for the older crowd or inappropriate for the underage crowd. - By: Erica Febre