By: Rick Landers
Lucas Peaquin – photo credit: Camille Péaquin
Leaving no stone unturned, The Brotherhood of the Guitar discovers a new generation of talent all over the world and global talent seeker, Robert M. Knight, found Lucas Péaquin in the Luberon area of France.
Studying guitar before entering his teens, Lucas was listening to American artists Stevie Ray Vaughan, Alvin Lee, Gary Moore and Joe Bonamassa. By the time he reached 14, he was sharing the stage with Ana Popovic and serving up his own sense of the blues that was by then influenced by Robben Ford and Scott Henderson.
In 2013, Lucas started the Lucas’ Blues Project and in 2014 the group represented his home country in the youth category at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tennessee, where they laid down some tracks at the legendary Sun Studios.
Knight and Péaquin met and Lucas joined The Brotherhood of the Guitar that mentors and provides a network within the music industry for young highly talented guitarists. Sponsored by Ernie Ball-Music Man and Guitar Center, The Brotherhood is fueled by some industry heavyweights with seek to work with the next generation of guitar heroes.
Guitar International caught up with Lucas to check-in to get the inside scoop on how The Brotherhood works to help build the careers of young guitarists that have the talents, the skills and the “it” factor that tends to be self-evident for those on the move. We also talked about some of his favorite artists, his perspectives on the need for diverse life and musical experiences to draw from, as well as the road he’s been on as he makes his mark in the world of the blues. And since we did this interview, he has launched his new ensemble, Yellow Fall.
******
Rick Landers: The Luberon area of France is known for its beauty, its hilltop villages, its biodiversity, and as a place with artists and craftspeople. What do you think growing up in the area offered you culturally that you bring to your music?
Lucas Péaquin: It’s true that many famous artists, painters, musicians, photographers and actors are living here or come to this nice region to find or renew their inspiration.
But to be honest, when you are an 18 year old guitarist who wants to be a professional musician, you would tend to prefer living in a big musical metropole, like Paris, London or Los Angeles !
For sure, I will soon leave my region to follow my music studies, and I will miss my sun and my hilltops!
Rick: How did you discover American music and especially, what guitarists captured your imagination and inspired you to play and study the guitar?
Lucas Péaquin: As a guitar player, I was naturally inspired by western music and its guitar heroes, and by the music of my parents’ generation. My my first influences were principally Stevie Ray Vaughan, Gary Moore, Jeff Beck and Joe Bonamassa.
Today, I identify the musical road I want to follow with artists like Robben Ford, Scott Henderson and Allen Hinds. My favorite guitarists-singers of the moment are John Mayer, Jonny Lang and Philip Sayce, for their ability to sublimate their voice with their guitar, or vice versa.
Rick: When did you decide to become a professional musician ?
Lucas Péaquin: In 2011, my father and I went to a blues festival to see Ana Popovic. The concept of the Ejamslive Festival is that the artist chooses someone in the public to jam with on stage at the end of the show.
I put my guitar in the car, kept my fingers crossed, and Ana chose me to play with her on stage!
I was impressed! It was the revelation. Ana, If you read this interview, thank you!
I still have contacts with drummer, Stephane Avellaneda, who is now one of the top drummers of the international blues scene.
Rick: How did you react when Robert Knight contacted you and what was the process like becoming a member of The Brotherhood of the Guitar?
Lucas Péaquin: I was just 14 when Robert contacted me on Facebook, at the end of 2011. He explained to me that he was browsing the web to find the guitarists of tomorrow, and wanted to know more about my story.
I quickly realized how lucky I was. There I was, Lucas, a boy lost in the French countryside, spotted on Youtube by the legendary photographer of the greatest rock stars since the ’70s. I was jumping around with happiness and had several sleepless nights!
We built a friendship and in July 2013, flying to Europe, Robert arranged a meeting in London, where he photographed me and filmed my first interview.
I was officially part of the Brotherhood Of The Guitar, supported by Robert M. Knight, himself.
Rick: Many of us learned the licks of Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan and other legendary players, and slowly, we find our own styles eventually emerge. Have you discovered that your playing has not only improved, but you’ve found that you put your own spin on playing that feels like you own it?
Lucas Peaquin – photo credit: Robert M. Knight
Lucas Péaquin: I’ve been playing the guitar since I was eleven. From the very begining, my teachers directed my learning towards blues-based improvisation, which makes up the essence of my playing.
During the last three years, I tried to develop my own style whilst discovering the works of artists like Wes Montgomery, Pat Metheny, John Scofield, working on complex harmonies, with different metrics.
People all around me told me that my guitar and musical skills were improving. Their comments encouraged me to work again and again, and I hoped one day I’d be able to play with my heart wide open and my eyes shut, so I’d be able to transmit what I was feeling at the moment with my guitar.
I love playing on stage, because music is so beautiful when you share it with the public, and with other musicians on stage.
Every lick you have learned is beautiful when you place it in the right context : the right musical moment and at the right time with the public.
Rick: Tell us about how you got your first guitar and some of your latest guitars that you find have the right and that you can finesse or wrench the sounds you want out of them.
Lucas Péaquin: My parents handed me my first real guitar when I was twelve, a white second hand Les Paul, heavier than me!
A couple of years later, I found a ’79 Strat lost in the dust of guitar shop. It had no paint on it. I gave her a second life with the help of my friend, Célia Enoc, a French woman luthier who takes care of my guitars.
Last month, I started a collaboration with the firm Ernie Ball, and I’m now playing a great Music Man guitar, a Petrucci JPXI model. The manufacturing quality is exceptional! The neck is as fast as an “autoroute” – like we say in France, and I really love the piezo.
This modern guitar is very versatile and can be used for many styles of music.
You’re right, there’s a lot of work to get your own sound, if you want to define your own identity. You need to find the right amp, the right effects and the right settings. I’m also interested in testing out new gear and getting opportunities to demonstrate how gear works is something. I’m interested in doing that.
Rick: We all know about the legends of rock, blues and other styles of guitar, they’re easy to find. But, what about guitarists or musicians that are more obscure and so unique that you have to intentionally seek them out or you find them through happenstance? Any not so well known performers that you’ve discovered and find you want to learn their licks or their way of expressing themselves on their guitars?
Lucas Péaquin: I recently discovered Allen Hinds, not very mediatic in Europe, but for me an extraordinary guitarist. There’s also an exceptional French guitarist who for me is the nec-plus-ultra of the guitar style I’m working on and his name is Olivier Louvel. I’ll have a chance to work with him and he’s going to be my guitar instructor for the next three years at my school in Bourgogne!
Rick: How about telling us about the music institution (PESM Bourgogne) where you’re studying, the coursework, the challenges and where you want your studies to lead you? And, what’s been the toughest course so far?
Lucas Péaquin: In July, I earned a professional diploma of musician and interpreter of music (MIMA) after a three years course at the IMFP in Salon-De-Provence, where I learned the art of music in all its forms and where I also developed my guitar playing.
I will now be going for another three year program in the PESM of Bourgogne, to obtain teaching degrees; a performance degree and a B.A. in musicology.
I started in September and it offers me a wonderful opportunity to study in another European country, other than France.
Rick: What opportunities have been opened up for you through your association with The Brotherhood and Ernie Ball?
Lucas Péaquin: Robert and The Brotherhood of the Guitar network offered me opportunities to meet Josh Gooch on tour, Beth Hart, Jonny Lang, Joe Bonamassa, and helped me create links with other Brotherhood members.
I met some in Memphis during the IBC in 2014. Working with a famous brand like Ernie Ball has given me an opportunity to play high quality gear, and it’s given me a lot of visibility to enable me to meet a lot of people and reach out to others.
Being in the Brotherhood is a real vote of confidence in young artist’s abilities and talents that might also convince an artist who’s looking for a guitar player, or a producer who needs a session player, to give them a chance.
That said, I always keep in mind that I need to stay true to myself and that the road is still a long one.
Rick: I understand that you formed the Lucas Blues Project. How did that come about and who else is in the group? What do they bring to the group, besides their music, that makes the band work?
Lucas Péaquin: When I was twelve years old, I performed on stage with my sister, who has a fabulous voice, and also with some teen bands, as a sideman.
At the age of sixteen, my voice was still changing, but I really wanted to build my own road as a guitarist-singer through a blues project. After a difficult quest, I found three other young musicians, with the same passion for the blues.
Lucas Peaquin – photo credit: Camille Péaquin
Once a week and during the holidays, we had rehearsals in my cavern to write some originals, as well as revisit some old blues standards. Supported by my parents, I put some videos on Youtube, and started my band-leader job by sending emails and links to Selim Chikh, the president of the Blues Freeway, a blues association that works with festivals in the Provence region, and even to the president of France Blues! Nothing ventured, nothing gained !
Much to my surprise, they both answered me very kindly. As a very first performance, we were asked to perform a showcase for the Avignon Blues Festival in October 2013, who was featuring Jonny Lang. The audience fell under the spell of the band.
A few weeks later, Jean Guillermo, the president of France Blues called me and told me that he wanted the Lucas Blues Project to represent France at the 2014 International Blues Challenge in Memphis, in the Youth category.
My dreams were coming true. And I want to take the opportunity here to thank all the people again who helped me raise funds to make it all possible!
We spent an incredible week in Memphis. This American adventure opened doors for us in the French blues scene during the past two years.
Being the leader of my band was something else that was very instructive for me. I learned a lot about myself and on human relations, things like, what to say and what not to say, as well as how difficult it can be to make necessary decisions, and finally, the happiness that comes from sharing the stage and backstage experiences with my musician friends and I want to thank them too!
Rick: I’ve found that the best musicians tend to be explorers, always searching for new or unusual sounds [Frank Zappa once played a bicycle], different techniques and sometimes seek out music of other cultures, not their own. Has this been a path that you follow or are you focused on strictly western style music?
Lucas Péaquin: I totally agree with that, Rick. John McLaughlin became a guitar genius partly because he travelled the world and learned other musical cultures. The world of music is now accessible to everybody with a computer. This “mondialisation” of music is leading every musician to a mix of different styles and influences.
I try to include an exotic touch in my playing, moving slowly to a kind of jazz-blues-fusion. But, I also must admit that there is nothing better than an immersion period in a foreign country to learn from the others.
Rick: So, for now… where are you headed in music and what projects are you working on now to get you to your next goal?
Lucas Péaquin: I played with the Lucas Blues Project before school started. Due to my moving to Bourgogne for my studies, it’s difficult to continue the project with the same musicians. Perhaps it’s a sign to take a new direction?
This summer I recorded three tracks that are in a progressive rock style, in a trio. The mastering is going on and we will see if a producer likes it!
I will probably record a song in collaboration with my friend, Gaëlle Buswel, who I consider my French musical godmother !
I also want to earn another diploma, so I’ll be able to take teach and mentor children during summer music camps all over Europe.
My secret dream is to be contacted one day by a great singer and tour with her…but, like I said, her name’s a secret!
