Dallas Musician Shot Dead

[Darth Ape]

Dallas musician Carter Albrecht killed at neighbor's home

Gifted member of New Bohemians was mistaken for burglar


12:46 PM CDT on Tuesday, September 4, 2007

By TANYA EISERER and MIKE DANIEL / Staff Writers


The local music community was left stunned Monday by the fatal shooting of a keyboard and guitar player well-known in music circles.


Albrecht Police say Carter Albrecht, 34, beat up his girlfriend and then tried to kick in a neighbor's door in an apparent drunken rage. He died early Monday after being shot in the head by the neighbor, who thought he was a burglar.

Police said the girlfriend had bruises on her face but did not suffer serious injuries. The couple did not have a history of domestic violence, police said.

Mr. Albrecht was a guitarist and keyboardist best known for his work with the Dallas rock band Sorta, as well as with Edie Brickell & New Bohemians.

"He was my brother, he was my best friend, and my heart is completely broken right now," said Sorta bassist Danny Balis, who lived with Mr. Albrecht and added that people were "pouring in by the dozens" to offer condolences at their home.

"It's a sad day for Dallas music," local concert promoter Mike Snider said.

"He was a musical genius, a real prodigy – everything came to him naturally. He was an incredible instrumentalist – when he played, you could really see the joy he got out of playing."

According to police, Mr. Albrecht became drunk at a Greenville Avenue bar. His girlfriend drove him to her home in the 9000 block of Santa Clara Drive, just east of White Rock Lake, police said.

The girlfriend told police that Mr. Albrecht slammed a drinking glass on a table, cutting his hand. He then struck her in the face several times, knocking her to the floor about 4 a.m. Monday, a police report said.

After she ran outside, he followed, and she ran back in, locking Mr. Albrecht out, the report said. Mr. Albrecht then went to the back of a nearby neighbor's home, police said.

The neighbor told police "he was awakened when he heard his wife screaming that someone was breaking into the house." The man was kicking and banging at the door, and the homeowner yelled at him to stop.

When the man, later identified as Mr. Albrecht, didn't stop, the homeowner, who was armed with a handgun, "shot one time at the top of the door," the report said.

"He was trying to shoot over his head to scare him away," but Mr. Albrecht "is rather tall," said Sgt. Larry Lewis, a homicide supervisor, estimating the musician's height to be 6 feet 5.

A bullet struck Mr. Albrecht once in the head, and he died at the scene.

Police did not release the name of the homeowner. Investigators said the case will be referred to a grand jury to determine whether any charges will be filed.

A new law, nicknamed the "Castle doctrine," eliminates the requirement that someone has to retreat before using deadly force to defend themselves. The law already allowed a person to use deadly force to prevent someone from committing a break-in at night.

Mr. Albrecht's parents declined to comment on the events surrounding his death but did say that they had spoken to his girlfriend.

"She's a dear person," said the musician's mother, Judith Albrecht. "We've hugged and cried. I know they cared for each other a lot."

Mrs. Albrecht and her husband, who live in Plano, said they knew from an early age that their son had the makings of a gifted musician. Mrs. Albrecht began teaching him piano as a small child, and he later took lessons from a college professor while the family lived in Kansas.

"He had a wonderful ear," Mrs. Albrecht said.

"It just came natural to him. He had a way of making what was on the page come to life."

Their son attended Southern Methodist University on a music scholarship.

After graduating in 1995 from SMU, Mr. Albrecht was a pianist for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. He became involved in local pop and country music in the late 1990s, performing in bands such as the Limes and Sparrows before bassist Balis and others joined together in Sorta in 2000.

"He always wanted to have a band," said Kenneth Albrecht, his father. "Music was how he was going to make his living."

In 1999, he'd begun to perform with New Bohemians and was a full member by the time the band and Ms. Brickell issued its comeback CD, Stranger Things, in 2006.

"I always called him the real musician of the band, as far as New Bohemians goes," said New Bohemians guitarist Kenny Withrow. "He had an incredible ability to relate to people in general."

Mr. Albrecht also contributed to a number of significant local projects during his music career, including CDs by Travis Hopper, Salim Nourallah and Burden Brothers as well as regular sit-in roles that ranged from Mr. Nourallah's band to local Grateful Dead tribute act Dead Thing.

"Whoever was in the room would be blown away by his playing, with no exception," said Mr. Nourallah. "He was the best pianist I ever saw."

In 2003, Mr. Albrecht was named best songwriter and musician of the year by the Dallas Observer.

Mr. Nourallah and Mr. Albrecht's parents said he'd recently been working on a solo album.

"This solo record was jaw-droppingly beautiful and deep," Mr. Nourallah said. "Knowing that that album won't ever be done and the world won't hear it, it makes me sick."

Sorta's next album was also near completion, according to Carrie Garcia, the band's manager. But Mr. Balis and Sorta singer Trey Johnson expressed doubt about whether it will be completed.

"The things that sucks so bad about losing Carter was that he was the best, out of all of us. He was so much better than all of us," said Mr. Balis.