The Vintage Musician

M Ward will open for Norah Jones during her concert in Delhi today

On Tuesday evening,right before American singer-songwriter and jazz diva Norah Jones opens her Delhi gig at Siri Fort auditorium,those present will hear a series of husky drawls that will border on folk and are likely to sound right out of a 40s musical. Mathew Ward aka M Ward,the folk-guitarist dude may have been the Him in the Grammy-nominated indie outfit She and Him for as long as we can remember (with Zooey Deschanel as his partner in creating alt country and indie folk music),but his vocals have found a place in many songbooks,that of Jones being the recent addition. I began singing out of necessity. It all just came together, says Ward in a telephonic conversation between sound checks for Jones Mumbai gig.

Ward likes all things vintage,is not much of a technology guy (he still uses analogue recordings) and loves folk something that the West lost interest in long ago. But his haunting sound,which sort of gives an impression of thinking aloud,in tune that is,has found many takers in recent times. These include indie rock outfit The Bright Eyes,alt-rock singer Cat Power and American folk group The Monsters of Folk.

For the uninitiated,his outing with Jones in the playfully quirky track Sinkin soon (2007),where he played the guitar and gave backing vocals,was a result of Jones interest in his unconventional music. I got an email from Norah almost six years ago. She said she was familiar with my music and wanted to collaborate. Her music is beautiful and I thought it would be nice to be a part of it, says Ward.

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As a 15-year-old music buff,Wards education came from The Beatles. I went through The Beatles chord books and catalogues and that was my education. Well,it was good education. I began four-tracking when I was really young,but singing came much later and its been a brilliant journey, says Ward,who is referred as the analogue dude in the digital world.

Analogue recording just sounds better than digital. This was the music I grew up with and that was the sound quality I craved for in my music, said Ward,who enjoyed replicating the sound of the classic rock tracks with whatever instruments were available.

Tonight,Ward will play an hour-long set and feature a mix of his old and new tracks. His assortment of riffs and backing vocals will be a part of Jones lilting melodies for the next hour-and-a-half. I like to be out of the way when it comes to being a part of another musicians set. One has to let the musician get in touch with the sound,follow the song and let it go where it wants to. I dont want to be the intermediator but a part of it, said Ward.

The concert will be held at Siri Fort auditorium from 6.30 pm.

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