Backroads is made possible by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund with money by the vote of the people November 4th 2008.

[instrumental music] I just need to get this out of my head I just need to retrace all the things that you said I just need to get this out of my head cause the thoughts I thought and forgot coming full steam ahead [instrumental music] I just need to find a song I can sing it doesn't have to mean much of anything I just need something I can sing so turn the oldies station on it's the only thing we need right now [instrumental music] And it all.

It'll come down Weather or not you're still curled up on the couch and the thunder ahead, don't mean a thing but when it comes down...oh it comes down it comes down it comes down it comes down I just need to find a place I can go and let it all come down now nice and slow I just need some shelter I can see cause it all comes between you and me in it all it'll come down Whether or not you're still curled up on the couch but when it comes down and the thunderhead ahead, don't mean a thing but when it comes down... it comes down it comes down it comes down it comes down let it all fall, let it all fall let it all fall, let it all fall let it all fall, let it all fall let it all fall, let it all fall baby [inaudible lyrics] I'm Gabriel Douglas.

I write music, I play in a rock and roll band called the Four on the Floor I also play in an alt country band called Silverback Colony.

I play songs solo with Rhodes and guitar and I also have a down temple band called Orca Colony.

And it's really great to have different outlets as songs come to me and come to other people that bring them to me.

I started in music in elementary school.

I was in band.

I had a very enjoyable experience then.

I was in bands in high school, in college and it's been great for the last decade or so to do that as a full-time endeavor.

[instrumental music] I took what I could get [instrumental music] The smile on your face [instrumental music] yeah I took what I could get, make it beautiful.

I'll wait.

[instrumental music] she wants to burn it down inside, late at night I'll watch the village burn [instrumental music] One day she'll want to call me home [instrumental music] but I...I want more [instrumental music] but I...I...I...I want more [instrumental music] you...

I think you...

I think you... want more too... [instrumental music] but I...

I want more but I...

I want more... but I...want more.

For songwriting I usually start with an experience I have, so most of my songs are based on something I've seen or something I've read.

It might be a fictional thing I've seen I read but I always draw from my personal feelings from experience I have.

And that can be the lyrics, that can be a jagged riff, that can be a lot of things, but it always starts with something that I have had with my own emotions.

To talk about my experiences in front of an audience is actually a very healthy thing for me.

I sometimes don't use words correctly when talking with people and so I think connecting with people through both my music and just music in general has been an extremely powerful tool for me in my life.

They got down when they should've got up They got down when they should've got up... they got down when they should've been getting back up again [instrumental music] well she comes from the right side of town and you know she doesn't exactly slay her right down but she would never believe and you would never see her again [instrumental music] Nope!

[instrumental music] In the summertime everybody gonna go to the bar, to the beach, to the rail river show everybody gets a going, everybody get the thrills end of the night you don't know who pay the bills but she would misbehave oh she'd never misbehave oh in the spring comes she bringing home the title again.

[instrumental music] woo whoo whoo whoo woo whoo whoo whoo all right.

[aah aah aah, ooh whoo whoo, aah aah aah, whoo whoo whoo] [instrumental music] when the spring comes around everybody gonna say now that girl got a title to maintain, that sash isn't always seen at first sight Who would be the queen of coronation night?

But she wouldn't misbehave, oh she'd never misbehave, oh when the spring comes she bringing home the title again oh she'd never misbehave, oh she'd never misbehave, oh when the spring comes she bringing home the title again.

So I do have a lot of musical projects that I'm in, The Flagship is the Four on the Floor, that's a rock and roll outfit.

We play very riff rock and roll.

It's awesome.

I scream a lot and talk a little bit.

We've got Silverback Colony that does a lot of oldcountry stuff so a little more jingle jangle, some lap stealing a lot of songs, some three or four guitar part harmonies.

I do solo stuff as well just me and a guitar, me and a Rhodes piano and then I also have Orca Colony that does a lot of down temple music so it's been a lot of fun to explore and experiment with different sounds and different people as well.

So some songs I'll be performing today are from the Four on the Floor, the rock and roll band.

They'll be stripped down.

Some of them will be slower, especially a song like Lake Street which is a song about the fleeting, meeting of people or even not meeting people as you traverse through life so that's always a fun one to play extremely fast with Four on the Floor and then give it its own breath when I'm playing it with just me and a guitar.

Where you pull them to a stoplight it's always the same I think you know the face but you don't know her name where's she coming and where's she going and where are she from by the end of the day she already gone green light she gone yeah we all seem to seem to be moving on well flushed by a victory you could taste lost by frenzy or an almost disgrace coming in clean coming in strong you know exactly where she would belong green light and she gone yeah we all see you see me moving on we move on yeah yeah we all seem to seem to be moving on yeah we don't exactly know where we come from yeah we all seem to seem to be moving on yeah we don't exactly know where we belong yeah we don't seem to seem to be moving yeah we don't exactly know where we belong, yeah we don't exactly know where we belong In songwriting for me inspiration is a pretty heavy thing so I don't necessarily set blocks of time away to do songwriting but I do give myself blocks of time to work on musicianship so maybe if a song isn't you know showing itself to me I can still run some chords or maybe learn a song that's inspiring to me to maybe try and figure out where my next song will come from.

I've always been curious on if people are heavy into other music or just kind of are on an island listening to their own stuff.

Me, I am a sponge.

I listen to so much music all the time.

Even when I'm in a studio if there are certain albums that I'm really digging on I will continue to listen to those throughout the sessions so for me utilizing every resource I have in one of those resources is other excellent musicians in the world.

[instrumental music] Our bodies break and the blood just spills and spills [inaudible] man, it's just a shame my hand just kills and kills, there's gotta be an end to that oh... oh... [Instrumental music] oh... oh... oh... oh... oh... oh... there's gotta be an end to that, there's got to be an end to that there's gotta be an end to that, there's gotta be an end to that So with the Minnesota music scene I've been lucky to listen to a lot of music before I started making music.

And so, a lot of different scenes and different venues and different festivals, really helped me grow my appreciation for local music.

And as well local musicians as people.

And so it really is still inspiring for me to be able to go out into the world and then come back to Minnesota and be able to see all my favorite people and favorite bands play in my favorite venues next to my home.

[instrumental music] There's a lion I see at night Oh, right before twilight.

I don't where it's going.

And I don't know where its been all I know is that cat gotta get fed, oh yeah, yeah, oh...oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh [instrumental music] there's a lion I see at sunrise, everyday a bigger surprise I can remove all the weeds, I can remove all the lies, I take what I need, cut all the ties oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh There's a lion that sits on my bed, lord knows that she never been fed she just sits and waits, you just sit and wait and you know one day she gonna not hesitate, you better you better find your feet, you better your better get your legs beneath, you better find those feet below, you better get to the street and run, oh yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh oh, yeah, oh oh...yeah...oh Backroads is made possible by the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund with money by the vote of the people November 4th, 2008.

If you enjoy watching Backroads online please consider making a tax deductible donation at lptv.org.