Bell, aka Mainstream, started working on his debut solo album with Thompson in January. The album, “While I’m Here,” was released in September.
With a new backing band, Bell will make his Mainstream solo debut in Dayton on March 6 at the Hidden Gem Music Club, 507 Miamisburg Centerville Rd., Dayton. His band, Mainstream and The Family, will be joined by the area’s own Cheezcake.
Boogie Matrix Mechanism is no stranger to genre fluidity. Every song contains a mix of genres — hippie-hop jam rock, as the name suggests — which has become a genre unto itself. Mainstream’s solo project is similar in that regard, though each song here is more clearly defined rather than fused.
There’s reggae, hip-hop, funk, jam, R&B, ballads and some spoken word elements on “While I’m Here.” Mainstream subtly differentiates itself from Boogie Matrix, though the throughline is obvious: Bell’s vocal inflections are at the forefront of both.
Bell’s syllables are rounded, smooth; he has a mouth that can spit like the whirring mechanical symphony of a film projector. He’s essentially a rhythm section, backed by another rhythm section.
“I have always had this thing with words since I was a little kid,” Bell said. “At first, it was memorizing other people’s stuff, people like Young MC or Tone Loc. I could spit as fast as them. And then once I started writing, I tried to keep the same thing going.”
Hip-hop is a touchstone for Bell; he’s as much an emcee as he is a singer. Boogie Matrix bandmate Johnny K has lauded Bell’s lyrical talents, quipping he somehow jams a thousand words into a song — though that quasi-exaggeration is not far from the truth. Enunciation is key for Bell, and he wants to ensure his lyrics are heard.
“I can’t control what the sound guy does at the venue,” he said, “but on wax and live in person on my microphone, I want to make it as clear to you, because I feel like the words have a lot of meaning.”
Bell has brushed up against death over the past few years. He was hospitalized with COVID-19 in 2021. His father-in-law died. His dad died. Friends died, too. His experiences with death made him realize how short life is, which explains the title of the album, “While I’m Here.”
“I’m about three years sober from alcohol, and I’ve just made changes, physically, mentally, spiritually, based on the knowledge that we are not promised tomorrow,” Bell said. “We need to record and play and enjoy the gifts that we’ve been given to make other people smile and laugh and dance and sing.”
When he moved back to Toledo, he reconnected with the Boogie Matrix guys and pursued his solo project, too.
Mainstream and The Family debuted the new album in September at Sacred Harvest Music Festival. It’s an eight-piece band with a revolving lineup anchored by a few staple members, including lead guitarist Ross Thompson, Bell’s co-writer and producer.
Bell says the live show is closer to jazz than rock, with members improvising throughout. A two-minute song on the album could turn into 15 minutes live. During those long instrumental breaks, Bell vibes and freestyles and dances around, as he does in Boogie Matrix, which only further suggests his unbridled lust for life.
“I want to put out every note and word that pops into my head,” he said. “I want to put it out for people to enjoy when I’m gone.”
Brandon Berry covers the music and arts scene in Dayton and Southwest Ohio. Reach him at branberry100@gmail.com.
HOW TO GO
What: Mainstream and The Family / Cheezcake
When: 8 p.m. March 6
Where: Hidden Gem Music Club, 507 Miamisburg Centerville Road, Dayton
Cost: $10 advance / $15 at the door
Tickets: ticketleap.events
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