THURSDAY,SEPTEMBER 19,2002
MUSIC
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 3
Jared Soares/Kansan
Members of the band Windsor tune up for future shows. Pictured are University of Kansas graduates Matt Cox and Kevin Gosa, and Lawrence resident Jarod Stevenson.
Easygoing Windsor Crow concert
By Sarah Smarsh
ssmarsh@kansan.com
Jayplay writer
Windsor Medium is a Lawrence poprock band that practices in a church and is named after a hamburger. But Saturday it will be among the opening acts at the Sheryl Crow concert.
Guitarist and vocalist Matt Cox said the band, which formed in August 2001 landed the high-profile gig when he happened to be "at the right place at the right time."
During a Cake concert last July at River City Market in Kansas City, Mo., Cox said he approached the 96.5 FM "The Buzz" promotional tent to speak with the promotions director.
"She said, 'Your stuff gets requested all the time — do you think you guys would fit in with a Sheryl Crow-type atmosphere?' "said Cox, a Lawrence resident who graduated from KU last spring with a journalism degree. The band is now preparing to play for thousands at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Bonner Springs, opening for Michelle Branch and Crow.
But Cox said the high-pressure environment hadn't changed the band's light approach to its art. He said the music for one of the songs the band will perform Saturday, "Jessica's Mirror," was improvised just last week.
The band is named after Cox's favorite menu item at Molly McGee's, 2429 Iowa St., the "Windsor" burger, which Cox
prefers to be cooked "medium."
"We're not trying to have this deeprooted meaning," said Cox, who works in the marketing department at the Lawrence Journal-World. "Plus, we like Molly McGee's." The band performed at the restaurant in April.
Windsor members said they didn't concern themselves with any sacred artistic mission. They live their lives based on a belief in Christ rather than the often cliched musician lifestyle of decadence.
"You can be a good rock band and not be stereotypical," said bassist Kevin Gosa, a KU graduate student in saxophone performance. Gosa cited Windsor's lyrics, mostly penned by Cox, which deal with "real-life experiences" rather than themes of sex, drugs, money and cars. In fact, the band practices next to the altar at Christ Community Evangelical Free Church, 1100 Kasold Drive.
Band members said they had made music an integral piece of their life experiences. Gosa, who joined the band in the spring as an acoustic guitarist and took over in the summer for bass player Andy Yates, Littleton, Colo., junior, gives private saxophone lessons, and drummer Jarod Stevenson has played with Cox and Gosa in Christian bands for five years.
Four years ago, Cox invested in digital recording equipment, on which the band's first album, Give Her Away, was recorded. He said the band strove to improve itself
SEE WINDSOR ON PAGE 5