By Michael Swanger michael@dmcityview.com

One-man bands are great in theory when you're an insecure, egomaniacal artist who wishes to control every step of producing an album from start to end. Unfortunately, a lot of those artists fall into the "two turntables and a microphone" category and are unable to translate their music to a live setting.

That's not the case, however, for Boy Eats Drum Machine, one of Portland's buzz bands. On the record, BEDM is the voice and multi-instrumentation of Jonny Ragel, 32, who as one of his songs suggests, has more to offer than "a turntable and a Casio." The turntablist and vocalist is embarking on his first national tour as BEDM, which includes his Des Moines debut on Saturday at GT Lounge, and he's learning that with the help of former Stereo Crunch bandmates - drummer Peter Swenson and multi-instrumentalist Benjamin Rickard - his music is easily transposed live. And though the Des Moines show is the last of only 12 shows on the tour, he's seen a marked improvement since the group's first gig last December.

"I thought it might be a challenge to flesh it out live," Ragel says. "I wanted something to challenge me, but I was crapping my pants the first time out. I don't crap my pants now, but I do get a little nervous. Fortunately, the audiences have been receiving us well."

Ragel channels that nervous energy when performing songs from his new album, "Pleasure." The album is a high-energy mix of beats that borrow from James Brown, Prince and other R&B influences, which lay the foundation for songs that explore social commentary and are autobiographical in nature, like those Ragel grew up listening to by The Cure and The Smiths. This is the rarest of albums in that it has serious subject matter that you can shake your ass to.

"It's about continuing into adulthood and feeling better about myself," he says. "The beats are what sets it apart. They have a vibe that fits the song and yet doesn't fit the song in a weird way."

Ragel, who started out playing guitar in rock bands, has been experimenting with instruments to find his ideal musical voice over the years. He finally switched to the turntable as his lead instrument because he says it offers more musical possibilities than any other instrument. Influenced by DJ Shadow, he wanted to use it as a way to explore unique sounds and emotions, which is why he doesn't fancy himself a groundbreaking or competitive turntablist.

"Everything I do is pretty simple," he says. "If you practice a little bit, it's not that hard."

The practice-makes-perfect mindset is what inspires Ragel to consider taking BEDM back out on the road this fall.

"Overall, we're pretty happy with the live thing," he says. "The stakes are low for us compared to a major act, so as long as the price of gas isn't killing us in our Astro Van, we'd like to come back to the Midwest."

As a one-man band, it seems he's bucked the trend by finding a way to share his music with fans.

"I just hope people can connect with the honesty and the vibe of the material," he says. "I'm just fortunate to be able to play my music for a living. It beats the hell out of sitting at home." CV

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