Mk.gee: the “new God” of the guitar (that Eric Clapton likes)

Eric Clapton and John Mayer, not exactly the latest arrivals, say that Mk.Gee reminds them of a young Prince. A cumbersome comparison, but not entirely bizarre. Listen to “Are you looking up?”his most popular track on Spotify, with over 10 million streams. Or the transition from “DNM” to “You got it”, with the piano riff of the latter that seems to come from one of the most inspired albums of the Minneapolis elf.He’s unique. He found things to do with the guitar that no one else does. When I first heard him, I felt the same way I felt when I first saw Prince.,” Slowhand told The Real Music Observer podcast last spring, when asked to name a new-generation guitarist he was excited about.

Who knows what reaction Clapton’s statements provoked in Mk.Gee, considering that in one of his first interviews, in 2018, he declared to Complex that he had started playing the guitar thanks to the ex-Cream (and Jimi Hendrix).Michael Gordonthis is the real name of the 27 year old guitarist, producer and singer who the authoritative and prestigious New York Times has nicknamed him “an unlikely guitar God”he left as a young boy from Linwood, New Jersey, a small coastal town near Atlantic City and now he aims to conquer the music biz overseas. In addition to Clapton and Mayer, his fan club also includes Frank Ocean, Tyler the Creator and Justin BieberThe latter wanted him as his main collaborator for the album that will mark his return to music, four years after “Justice”.

“The most fascinating producer on the planet”

Mk.Gee – his stage name was created by combining his nickname, Mike, and the initial of his surname – began taking piano lessons at the age of 5, then moved on to the guitar and finally, just to make sure he didn’t miss a thing, the jazz double bass. He taught himself to record music, first experimenting with GarageBand and then with a four-track Tascam. (“It’s a cassette recorder from my day, but he uses it as a preamp,” Clapton marveled.)

He began to make people talk about him among followers of the American independent and alternative scene when in November 2021 he published together with his colleague .Dijon Duenas the album “Absolutely”. “Mike is an unrepeatable guitarist. But I think if you listen to that record just for his incredible guitar playing, you’re missing out on the rest of it, which is that he might be the most fascinating producer on the planet right now.,” the former partner said. Bieber took him at his word. Today his videos on YouTube have 10 million views and on the forums of six-string enthusiasts, discussions are multiplying in which more or less young guitarists they wonder what effects and pedals he uses in his productions. Meanwhile his album “Two Stars & the Dream Police” has been one of the most talked about works in the independent and alternative scene overseas for months.

DIY Attitude

Mk.Gee doesn’t like to talk about himself. The lyrics of the twelve tracks contained in the album released in February are enigmatic, cryptic, full of surreal and dreamlike images: “I really like old, funny, mythical stories, Celtic tales and stuff like that.” But earlier this month he gave a long interview to the New York Times. His songs are like whispers. They are raw, chaotic recordings that sound like unfinished demos, soaked in do-it-yourself attitude. “They’re little refractions of perfect songs amidst a lot of chaos and weird atonal moments.”, he said speaking of the songs that make up “Two Stars & the Dream Police”, released by the small independent Los Angeles label R&R Digital.

Word of mouth and live performances

Word of mouth has made him a cult figure for fans of the alternative scene (“Your favorite musician’s favorite musician’s favorite musician’s favorite musician”the New York newspaper joked), allowing the twelve tracks contained in the album to rack up a few million streams on Spotify. In the YouTube videos taken from his concerts, Mk.Gee is portrayed on stage as a mysterious hero who brandishes a guitar as if it were a sword. And now fans are eager to hear what Gordon is producing together with Bieber: “Everything that comes out of his mouth is pop music”, says Mk.Gee, a musician allergic to genre labels.