Ram Project

VINYL FORMAT. In spring 2010 multi-instrumentalist Dave Depper hit a wall. He'd recorded and toured the world with internationally-renowned artists (Jolie Holland, Mirah, Decemberists), as well as beloved Portland institutions (Loch Lomond, Norfolk & Western, Musee Mecanique, Blue Giant), but to date had yet to record any music of his own. Lacking an album's worth of his own songs, he decided to take on the craziest project he could think of: re-recording Paul McCartney's finest solo effort, Ram, part by part, at home, all by himself, in 30 days. Using a couple of guitars, a keyboard, a Rickenbacker bass, a borrowed drum kit, one microphone and a laptop, Depper began obsessively hacking away at the record. He holed-up in his spare bedroom, often for 12 hours at a time, relentlessly pursing a task The Portland Mercury would later equate to climbing Mt. Everest alone. He meticulously recorded each nuanced piece and, bit by bit, the record began to come together. 31 days after he had started he emerged, The Ram Project finished. The result is a gorgeous document that both pays homage to the colorfully cinematic McCartney classic and is uniquely Depper's. The labor of love is apparent throughout The Ram Project, from the meticulously placed drum accents to fellow Portlander Joan Hiller's charming performance of Linda McCartney's prominent harmony vocals. As it often goes in the world of artistic endeavor, when Dave Depper set out to make a record for himself as a means of breaking down a creative wall, he unintentionally created a gorgeous aural gift for the listener and that gift is called The Ram Project.