Friend’s death inspires musician to write songs that matter
It's amazing the impact someone can have on your life, even if you haven't known them for very long. That's what Jesse Sprinkle has found.
The singer-songwriter's latest CD was written and recorded in honour of Erik Secker, an acquaintance of Sprinkle's who died last December at the age of 29.
He wasn't a guy I [knew] for very long, I wasn't super best friends with him, [but] I was starting to get to know him," the 34-year-old explains by phone from his home in East Avon, a small town 15 minutes outside of Rochester, New York.
He had really been turning his life around and had been quite an influence on other people going through stuff, and he just seemed like one of those what-you-see-is-what-you-get, real-deal type dudes."
Sprinkle notes the impact Erik had on the community.
People just loved him. I couldn't even get into the funeral. I was at the very back, almost pushed out the door."
A few years prior, Erik's brother died in a car accident. Sprinkle, himself a father of four, couldn't fathom how Erik's mother must feel having lost two sons.
After the funeral, Sprinkle approached Erik's family about recording a CD in his honour, with the proceeds going to support the family financially.
Sprinkle has forged a genre-spanning career over the past 15-plus years, releasing somewhere around 17 albums, from a classical guitar project to a hip-hop project.
He also played drums in pioneering Christian grunge band Poor Old Lu, acclaimed heavy metal band Demon Hunter and the post-hardcore band Dead Poetic.
After Secker's funeral, Sprinkle quickly went to work writing and recording at Bluebrick, the studio he built in the garage next to his house.
The result is Streamstory, a collection of 13 richly-textured, acoustic-based pop-rock songs that explore themes of loss, love and faith.
Sprinkle enlisted the help of numerous friends to make the album, and did all the lead vocals, some guitar playing and all the drumming himself.
Standout tracks include “Color of the First Light," a melancholy pop-rock song with a beautiful violin part, and the title-track, a simple ballad in which Sprinkle describes Erik as a friend who gave everything 'til his heart stopped beating."
Lately, I've been very inspired to use my musical gifts and connections for a greater purpose," Sprinkle says.
It's a surprising statement coming from someone who has played in many bands who have been outspoken about their faith.
Wasn't he always using his musical gifts for a greater purpose?
I guess that would be more a matter of the heart to be honest, because I've played with bands that a lot of people would consider ministry-oriented," Sprinkle says.
Dead Poetic and Demon Hunter were on Tooth and Nail [a large Christian record company in the U.S.], and we had our fun and it was interesting, and we got to shoot cool videos and be on MTV, but that didn't hold any real value.
As fun as it was to see it initially and have people say, 'Hey, you were on MTV,' ... I just knew music had something more valuable, I guess.
Even if it's on a small level, I want my studio and I want my songs and I want my drumming to be able to do something better than just, 'Hey, check me out. I'm awesome.'"
Sprinkle says this realization comes after renewing his commitment to his faith, as well as being impacted by five trips to Uganda he's made to work with the Ugandan Water Project, an organization that provides safe and accessible drinking water to communities across the Eastern African nation.
You feel a sense of responsibility whether it's the family that you have or the job that you have or the social responsibilities that you have," Sprinkle says.
You kind of just feel like you need to be doing something with purpose and with value to it, and I guess after years of kind of wandering, I wanted to do [music] for real, you know?"
Streamstory is worth checking out (www.jessesprinkle.net) not only for the cause it supports, but for the thoughtful song writing and passionate performances.
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