When a band is working in harmony, the audience can tell. The notes land in appropriate order, the music works in concert, but more than that, the band creates an energy immeasurable in quantifiable terms but definitely felt.
Such an experience was captured on video last summer, when local musicians in the Kenny James Miller Band filmed an episode for Montana PBS’ popular program, “11th and Grant with Eric Funk.”
The resulting episode will premiere on April 15 at the Elks Club in Kalispell, and the show will air on April 23, 25, and 27.
Ken Sederdahl, the lead singer for the blues and rock band, said recording an episode showcasing his music was a comfortable, relaxed experience, meaning the music that came from the show will be a representative example of the band’s musical prowess.
“It was really, really cool,” Sederdahl said. “It was super professional, and all the people there were just great people. It was the real deal, as far as recording and filming.”
The show, which has been on the air for 10 years, showcases Montana musical talent, and has featured Flathead bands in the past, such as Tra Le Gael, and other recognizable musicians, such as Jack Gladstone and Tom Catmull.
Filmed in Bozeman, the show will have 52 episodes under its belt at the end of this season, according to senior producer Scott Sterling. Each musician or band is selected by artistic director Eric Funk, who also hosts the show while balancing a busy schedule that includes teaching some of the most popular classes at Montana State University and composing his own music.
“He basically hand selects all the different groups. His philosophy is to have a broad range of genres,” Sterling said of Funk. “It’s Montana music, not just Bozeman or Missoula. It’s diversified in terms of location.”
Each season has five episodes, which are all filmed over five days during the summer and post-produced in the fall and winter. Sterling, who directed the Kenny James Miller Band episode, said working with the Flathead band was a great experience.
“The biggest thing I thought was, ‘How can these guys sound so big?’ They have a really deep thick sound for just three guys,” Sterling said. “If you just closed your eyes and listened you’d probably think four or five or six people. And it’s all original music.”
Sederdahl writes and sings the songs for his band, along with award-winning bassist Mark Cornett and Mark Miller on drums. Former band promoter John Haus said he started working with the band when it formed about six years ago because Sederdahl’s talent was so magnetic.
“He sings the songs, he writes the songs, he has an incredibly gifted hand that he can play and fly up and down the neck of the guitar like he does, and he’s very engaging while he plays,” Haus said. “It seems like every song is a hit, that’s how good of a writer he is.”
Cornett and Miller are both talented as well, Haus said, with Cornett’s two awards as Best Blues Bassist from the Inland Empire Blues Society and Miller’s ability to run the soundboard while also playing percussion.
Sederdahl said he hopes the 11th and Grant episode will help broaden the fanbase for his band, which would allow them to play more instate shows. They’ve been successful in the Spokane area and the Flathead, he said, but there is always room to branch out.
The studio experience was top notch, he said, and by the end, the band was in such a groove that they were successfully recording songs only took one take.
“That’s the way I like to record anyhow,” Sederdahl said.
Doors open at 6 p.m. for the April 15 show at the Elks Club in Kalispell, with the show starting at 7 p.m. Admission is free, and there will be music following the show’s premier.
For more information on the Kenny James Miller Band, visit www.kennyjamesmiller.com. For more information on 11th and Grant, visit www.montanapbs.org/11thGrantwithEricFunk.