Out of the Grey into the fire...
or hey, did anyone happen to get the license number on that truck?

Release
October 95

It's all about logistics. You've got to somehow feed the baby, get her to stop crying and
put her down for her nap in time for the interview while you have to keep running out of
the room to check on the other kid every time he bangs his head on a table or chokes
on a grape because it all absolutely has to be under control before your session in the
studio this afternoon and did you, by the way, manage to take some introspective
hours to get that lyric crafted and whoops! the baby's crying again so let the answering
machine pick up that call, and say, you really need to find some quality time to spend
alone with your spouse before that grueling two-month burn on the road starts but you
remembered to pick out the photos you liked, I'm sure, because if you didn't they'll
probably use those dorky ones and hey, do you feel a little tense this morning 'cause
you sure look a little tense this morning. . .

Question: The above paragraph best describes:

a) The plotline for yet another charmingly abrasive FOX sitcom
b) What really goes on during those White House staff meetings
c) The reason dinosaurs became extinct
d) A day in the life of a pop star

(check one)

"To record our fourth album at all was a bit of a miracle," says Out of the Grey's
guitarist Scott Denté as he reflexively doles out another round of blueberries to
daughter Corinna, 11 months, and son Julian, 3 years. "But the fact that it came out
somewhat coherent and that the record company wanted to release it made it feel like
a major accomplishment to us. It's been a crazy year. . ."

Gravity, the latest offering from husband and wife duo Scott and Christine Denté winds
up sounding in some ways like a chronicle of their recent existence. While it furthers
the musical sophistication and lyrical intelligence of previous Out of the Grey projects,
Gravity has, at the same time, a certain aura of earthiness and immediacy that seems
to spring from the ups and downs of daily life.

"We're in such a mad dash ahead that we find ourselves playing catch-up most of the
time," says Christine. "The trick we've been trying to learn is how to be thankful and
focused right in the middle of that mad dash. There are definite expressions of those
whirlwind emotions scattered through this record. It's a state of being we've come to
regard as 'the happy struggle'."

Pausing to fetch some juice from the refrigerator for Julian, Christine continues. "I love
where we are and what we're doing, both as parents and as musicians, but I often find
myself wishing that I had more time to do the reading and the introspection and the
praying--the things that I need to draw substance from when it's time to sit down and
write a song. With this record we're so busy being Out of the Grey that it's difficult to
find time to grow Out of the Grey."

"With our first record," Scott adds, adjusting the baby's high chair tray, "we had all the
time in the world because nobody even knew who we were. Once you put out that first,
though, you've only got a few months to come up with the next one. A lot of artists
stumble at that point and really have nothing to say after that first record because of the
pressure of people saying, 'Oh, hurry up and be great again!' It took us awhile to
become semi-comfortable creating music within that context."

So how does a Denté deal with the mounting frenzy of priorities and responsibilities,
and the constant tension between the dreams and the realities of life as they pile up all
around? Exactly! They write a poignantly autobiographical smash hit song about it.

"The season of life we're in is encapsulated in the song "So We Never Got To Paris,'"
Christine explains. "You take some of your dreams, you weigh them with where you're
at right now, and you say 'This one can go.' So we never got to Paris. Big Deal. We've
got everything we need right here. There are only so many things that you can do or
accomplish in a given year or even in a given lifetime. Choose what's most important
and don't lose time crying over the rest. Your satisfaction and contentment have to be
found where you are right now or you'll never find them anywhere."

Having spoken as long as the demands of motherhood will allow, Christine leaves the
room to nurse Corinna. Scott, meanwhile, wanders over to the espresso machine and
returns to the table nursing a third cup of coffee.

Pegged by some as an 'alternative pop' act after the release of their first album, Out of
the Grey has finally (after four years in the business) all but managed to shed that label
as they've focused more and more on expressing creativity in the context of craft as
opposed to expressing creativity in the context of a vacuum.

"We're not as interested as we once were," says Scott between sips, "in being
different just for the sake of being different. Or, as our producer Charlie Peacock would
put it, we're not trying to deny the song where it wants to go just for the sake of being
odd. Of course, we still throw a few musical curves here and there, but we're no longer
so blatant as to try to hit the batter with them."

Christine returns to the kitchen (after settling Corinna into her crib for a nap) and deftly
sums up her previous line of thought.

"We make time for our kids and we steal time with each other whenever we can, even
if it's just in snatches of five or ten minutes before we go on stage, or in the bus after a
show, or during a break in the studio. The truth is, children aren't convenient in the
world of business, but our commitment to actively parent our kids every day is an area
where we refuse to compromise. Occasionally that may mean your hair doesn't look
too good when you come on stage because you didn't have the luxury of an extra
fifteen minutes to work on it, and sometimes we're frazzled by the end of the night
because we're tending to the kids and to the audience and to the press, but somehow
or another it all gets done. . ."

"And in a strange sort of way," Scott adds, "we even enjoy it. But that's probably
related in some way to our shared coffee addiction."

Which bring us to our next point. . .



GRAVITY, LEVITY, BREVITY, BOXERS AND BRIEFS OR EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO
KNOW ABOUT YOUR SPOUSE BUT DIDN'T CARE ENOUGH TO ACTUALLY ASK UNTIL YOU
WERE FINALLY FORCED TO BY A THIRD PARTY

Wouldn't it be fun to have Out of the Grey's Scott and Christine Denté interview one
another? After all, they know better than anyone what goes on inside one another's
heads. They could dig up lots of interesting information that your run-of-the-mill
journalist would never even think to ask about. What a personable touch that would add
to a magazine feature! (Or so the theory went...)

Christine: (hereafter referred to as Chris): Where does your love of coffee come
from? Is it genetic, or is it learned behavior?

Scott: (hereafter referred to as Scott): My love of coffee? What about your love of
coffee?

Chris: Just answer the question, please.

Scott: I'm convinced that my love of coffee is learned behavior stemming from a
genetic predisposition. I don't have a scripture to back that up but I'm pretty well
convinced of it all the same.

Chris: What do you want to be doing twenty years from now?

Scott: You already know what we'll be doing twenty years from now. We'll have moved
to Branson, Missouri, and set up our Out of the Grey dinner theater.

Chris: Besides that.

Scott: I could see myself still working in the music business in some capacity. Let's
see. . .I'm a people person and I like to talk so what would that make me?

Chris: An A&R guy?

Scott: That's it, an A&R guy. I just need the leather couch, I've already got opinions. So
let me ask you a question. Do you have any dreams outside of our current careers that
you hope to someday pursue?

Chris: Someday I'd like to be able to sleep for eight hours at a stretch, uninterrupted.

Scott: (still referred to as Scott): I'm talking about realistic goals.

Chris: So what about you, what's your big dream?

Scott: I'd like to have the time to sit alone in a room for a year and create a guitar
album.

Chris: And you had the nerve to call my dreams farfetched? Okay, here's a question
for you. Now that we have been Out of the Grey for four records, do you feel that our
music and our lives are the original meaning of Out of the Grey itself or have we
changed in any way or has the meaning of Out of the Grey changed in the last four
years with us.

Scott: You know what, you'll have to ask that again. I don't know what it means.

Chris: Is Out of the Grey still the original Out of the Grey or. . .

Scott: Or have we changed members?

Chris:. . .or does our music still represent what we wanted to say in the first record or
has the meaning of the name changed along with what we want to say or what we do
now finishing our fourth record?

Scott: Christine, that question should be taken outside and put out of its misery.

Chris: Why do men so often try to skirt deeper issues and make jokes out of
everything?

Scott: Because we fear death. Okay, answer these quickly. Biscuits or cornbread?

Chris: Cornbread.

Scott: Chocolate chip or oatmeal?

Chris: Cookies?

Scott: Yes.

Chris: Both.

Scott: Boxers or briefs?

Chris: Boxers are way too violent. I'd have to go with briefs. Your turn. If you were stuck
in a prison cell and could have only one hobby to occupy your time, what would it be?

Scott: Tunneling. So Christine, have you ever been to Paris?

Chris: No, we never got to Paris.

Scott: If you could go anywhere in the world you wanted, what two books would you
take?

Chris: Fodor's Guide to the World and. . .

Scott: No, wait. I misstated the question. If you could go back to any time in your life
and observe yourself. . .what would you wear?

Chris: Rose-colored glasses. Okay, if you could go back now and talk to yourself
when you were fourteen, what advice would you give yourself? You only have ten
seconds, and the clock's running!

Scott: Now? . . .Drink your milk, and. . .

Chris: Time's up.

Scott:. . .and buy stock in Microsoft!

Chris: Too late. If you could pass on one personality trait to your daughter, what would
it be? And vanity doesn't count.

Scott: Is the ability to sleep with one's eyes open considered a personality trait?

Chris: No. Did you ever own a black light?

Scott: No.

Chris: Strobelight?

Scott: No.

Chris: Fuzzy poster?

Scott: Okay, so I had the one with the black panther. Anything else you want to know?

Chris: No, that's it. The prosecution rest. Your witness. . .

Douglas Kaine McKelvey, recently absolved of any wrongdoing in the Iran-Contra
Affair, currently lives and writes in the general vicinity of Nashville, Tennessee.


copyright 1995 Release Magazine