Not everyone is as immediately loved as you
In Dream Boogie, Peter Guralnik’s masterful 1996 book about legendary soul singer Sam Cooke, the celebrated biographer wrote about the singularly captivating vocal stylings of Cooke’s breakout hit, “You Send Me.” He outlined the way in which Cooke wrapped his voice around a single syllable, even a single letter, and elongated it for a full measure or more, ululating in a near-yodel that sounds much more romantic, whimsical, and melodic than those words would suggest. Cooke’s was a unique kind of vocal mastery and he used that trick as a trademark in his songs. He could transform even the most staid standards into signature works just by performing them in his own special way.
I’m not saying Erin Passmore is on the same plane as Sam Cooke. That would border on blasphemy. But on her debut album Downtown (don’t call it an EP) she’s definitely carving out her own niche in Canada’s rock spectrum and her unique voice has everything to do with it.
Passmore’s pedigree is well-established on this site. She’s a crucial member of Regina favourites Rah Rah and also spent time in Sylvie (a group I adore but, mysteriously, have never written about before) up until that band’s apparent dissolution. Her work with the former has always been arresting; her songs have an intangible quality that sticks with you long after the needle is lifted.
On Downtown her voice finally gets a chance to take the lead and hold it for a good long while. She has an entirely unique sound, which is not something that can be said about a lot of singers. Take opener “In The Woods” for instance; here Passmore shows the full depth of her range, stretching the low end of her registry when needed. Her vocal flourishes are sometimes quiet, sometimes not, but always comprised of a firm intensity that is shamelessly laid bare in front of the listener. I always picture her singing with her eyes closed, as if she’s channeling deeply internal emotions that no one else feels.
The title track sees her voice doubled-up throughout, creating a strong self-accompaniment that leads the way through a driving rock and roll song (the only one on this album that threatens to overtake her voice). “Not everyone is as immediately loved as you,” she intones repeatedly over crashing cymbals and increasingly ferocious electric guitar. This track showcases the band she assembled for these sessions better than any other, as the not-quite-frantic lead guitar winds it’s way through crunchy rhythm guitar and deft, galloping drums. Members of Wintersleep, Gramercy Riffs, Patrick Watson’s band, and Young Galaxy all contribute some stellar playing while Regina ex-pat Dagan Harding, formerly of groups like Geronimo and Despistado (which featured Passmore’s brother Joel on bass) also lends a hand.
The record takes an immediate left turn immediately after that number closes, veering into the quietly plaintive “Married.” The song is presumably about Passmore’s relationship (or a proxy, maybe the spectre of one) and the dichotomy she feels being happy but also uncertain about whether or not she wants more. She intones “I don’t want to fuck with that” and “Where would I be without you?” with equal passion over a tightly-wound yet twinkling piano figure that builds and builds alongside her increasingly-soaring vocals.
The fantastic “Rock The Boat” is next, a vaguely waltz-like, skewed prom ballad from a by-gone era that features the doo-wop backing vocals of yesteryear recreated by a spectral keyboard. When the chorus of real-life background singers comes in later they too sound hollow, as though they were recorded from the next booth over. The number is not only a showcase piece for Passmore’s ability to write different types of songs but also, again, for her vocals. At the song’s apex her voice climbs into a register previously hinted at on “Salty Cities,” the soaring highlight of Rah Rah’s Breaking Hearts album. It’s brief but startlingly moving.
The album’s highlight comes on “Monster,” a yearning pop song that boasts an incredible array of sounds. Somehow Passmore and the crew have jammed phased laser sounds, crisp and clear acoustic guitar, feedback, more tight and propulsive drumming, and washes of overt but not obtrusive noise all into one arrangement. The quiet verses give way to a mammoth chorus that explodes with all of those sounds at once with Passmore pleading for “No more favours,” in a melody that is equally confident and desperate. That voice remains the centerpiece here, the track mixed carefully to drape the cathartic beauty of the music bed in behind Passmore, never overwhelming her.
“Sad Song” further showcases the juxtaposition of typically-harsh sounds and gentle beauty that is pervasive on Downtown. Rife with tension, the drums pause and burst back at inconsistent intervals as something that sounds like a digitized version of an elephant horn sits insistent and growing in the back of the mix while fuzzed-out bass rumbles in the foreground. Passmore sings about being the spinster, of knowing devestating heartbreak that is obvious to all but the blind. It’s crushing.
The album’s closer is more like what people tend to expect from “solo” recordings, a voice-and-acoustic guitar number that proves Passmore is capable of anything. The guitar chords are spare, almost unnecessary, providing little more than melodic guidance as she sings a disarmingly naked ode to the fidelity and honesty she just can’t seem to find. It’s a wounded tale of broken expectations and unyielding hope. It’s a song so tender and yearning, so earnest in its delivery that the listener dares not even breathe at the risk of missing a note.
Downtown is not what I expected from Passmore’s solo debut. I think the general straight-forwardness of most Rah Rah songs can be quite disarming; those songs are brilliantly-constructed pop tunes but on their surface seem quite simple. On Downtown there are so many pieces that make up the whole, such a sophisticated level of craftsmanship it’s hard to believe any one person is responsible for its genesis. With so many elements at play these songs could have been noisy, overstuffed piles of instruments crashing and banging into each other but Passmore, her band, and producer Matt Lederman have instead marshalled them into cathartically beautiful moments of compressed bliss that are over all too soon. Downtown is a powerfully mature solo debut, a record of maximalist rock and pop that has come out of left field to set the standard for Canadian rock music this year.
Check out Erin’s CD release show on February 24th in Regina at The Distrikt. It should be really cool! If you aren’t in Regina you can pre-order the record via her web site. You could also check out Rah Rah tunes here too.
