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The 42nd annual Regina Folk Festival probably put a lot of performers outside of their comfort zone, but probably none more so than Regina’s own Rah Rah. The sassy sextet has only grown more appealing to me as it’s widened its tent the last few years, allowing contributions beyond Marshall Burns’ stately rock songs to occupy space on their records. Good idea, because the rest of the group has put forward some of their best numbers.

But the comfort zone thing: the reference is two-fold. Our interview was with the band’s unassuming drummer and singer Erin Passmore, who approached the tent with a modicum of nervousness (a quality that carried through into the question and answer session as well). Whether or not she’s getting used to interviews I can’t say but despite whatever hesitancy she was feeling her answers were more often than not wry and hilariously self-deprecating. I’d interview her again in a second.

Also, she spoke about the difficulty the six-piece band was having trying to nail down a set list for their main stage festival performance, considering their “teaser” set on Sunday was restricted to only three members. You can probably see why that might be tricky, considering a lot of their songs utilize some pretty fancy electric guitar work and the playing of more people than I can count (on one hand, anyway). Sadly I wasn’t present to see the results but I imagine it would’ve been a treat to see a band Regina knows very well deviate from their norm.

Now, that’s all well and good but one of the highlights of our chat was when Passmore revealed the first few details about some forthcoming solo material she’s been working on. That, to me, is exciting because she just happens to be responsible for my second-favourite Rah Rah song (1. “Fuck NAFTA” 2. “Salty Cities”). To say my hopes are high for that material is to say the least!

Listen on, dear readers!

 

 Erin Passmore (Rah Rah) interview [7:06m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Rah Rah - Salty City: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Rah Rah’s latest release is the EP Sailors, which can be found on iTunes, along with their other material. Their new label, Hidden Pony, is also getting set to release an EP of remixes of their songs. Fun!

Pat entries #RFF11, Canadian content, Erin Passmore, local flavour, Rah Rah, Regina, Regina Folk Festival, rock

During what can only be described as an indescribable set at the Regina Folk Festival on Saturday night KD Lang encouraged us all to repent. So here it is: I’m sorry I’ve taken you for granted for so long.

Let’s back up. My day was jam-packed with festival goings-on, due in no small part to my inclusion on CJTR’s first-ever live broadcast from the RFF site. The four hour spectacular saw us interviewing a boatload of performers, organizers, volunteers, even festival-goers. We’ll talk more about that later, along with the rest of the night’s main stage performers.

But my goodness, even if KD Lang was the only performer on Saturday I think it would’ve been one of the more memorable nights at the festival. Taking the stage as headliner after an incredible set by Taj Mahal and his backing band, Lang strode purposefully to the front of the stage after her band The Siss Boom Bang fell into position. From the first chord that stage belonged to Lang and only Lang.

I don’t think it’s inaccurate to say that she has swagger. Stage presence like this is a rarity. From the outset Lang alternated between stalking, lunging, walking, and dancing over every single available inch of the stage, making constant eye contact with audience members, even stopping at the front of the stage and staring intently at one person for ten seconds at a time. Intensity in 10 cities, Live at Budokan, as Wayne Campbell would say. At times she began gyrating her hips, the visual and her unmistakable voice making a pretty goddamn good argument that KD Lang is the closest thing we’ve got to Elvis Presley right now (in a good way, obviously).

Her band is big and brilliant. Six players flawlessly recreate Lang’s catalogue numbers and tracks from their latest album, Sing It Loud. Lap steel, piano, and fantastic guitar work are all effortlessly performed and the band look good doing it; like Lang, they dress in all black, including matching tailored jackets. Most of the group looks young enough to have missed out on much of Lang’s career but their performances are fantastic, especially the spot-on, perfectly harmonized backing vocals.

But the show is 100% Lang. She is as malleable performer as she is a singer, putting forth an incredible intensity for new track “I Confess” before switching to a coquettish vampiness (including unexpected self-groping at the front of the stage) during a terrific rendition of the vaguely Latin-flavoured “Miss Chatelaine.” She emoted about as much as one can responsibly get away with during her hotly-anticipated cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” long a centerpiece of her own act but given new vitality after her crackerjack performance at last year’s Vancouver Olympics. I’ve long held that Jeff Buckley’s version is the definitive one but I’m having doubts after seeing the power and intensity of Lang’s live arrangement. It was nothing short of astounding, I assure you — it might actually be the best argument I’ve heard yet for the existence of God.

And the surprises kept coming. After Lang exhorted the crowd to repent, she and the band broke into a song that made my face look like this:

Lang and the band played a cover of “Heaven” by the Talking Heads, one of my all-time favourite bands of all time. And it was a great cover. Like all of Lang’s songs her voice makes whatever she plays her own. Her tenor never wavers, carrying even the lengthiest notes at a strong and steady clip. Even when it drops to a whisper it has total command of the audience, even more so than her physicality and performance. She’s the total package as an entertainer.

Leaving nothing to chance, Lang pulled out all the stops for the fevered audience of thousands (including more than a few people who were listening in from outside the fence). She went all the way through two encores, even playing what is arguably her most well-known hit, “Constant Craving.” Needless to say no one left unsatisfied.

RFF artistic director Sandra Butel has said that there are still people who talk about Lang’s 1985 performance at the festival. I have no doubt that’s true, just like I have no doubt that people will be doing the same about this set in the same fashion for decades to come.

 

 KD Lang - My Last Cigarette: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 KD Lang and The Siss Boom Bang - I Confess: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 KD Lang - Hallelujah [5:37m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Check out KD Lang’s web store for for physical albums and iTunes for digital.

Pat entries #RFF11, Canadian content, country, covers, k.d. lang, KD Lang and The Siss Boom Bang, live music, Regina Folk Festival, rock

It’s that magical Regina Folk Festival time of year again!

We’ve done some cursory coverage of the festival in previous years but we’re going full-tilt this time around, as the kind folks in the front office have decided our site is an “approved and well-established website” and thus is worthy of media accreditation. That means I’ll be down in Victoria Park all weekend long taking in the sights and songs for the entire festival.

There’s a lot that I’m looking forward to, although some people are saying this year lacks the punch of a really big name to draw a sizeable crowd. That might be borne out by the fact that none of the day’s passes have been sold out yet.

However, if you can’t get excited about K.D. Lang’s return to the crown jewel of Regina then you’re a damn fool. Festival artistic director Sandra Butel told the media earlier this year when the line-up was announced that there are some festival die-hards that still talk about her breakout set at the festival in 1985 and what an incredible revelation it was. That sounds like a show worth seeing, never mind the fact that she’s had 26 years to polish her show. Her new album Sing It Loud (which comes on the heels of a two-disc greatest hits package issued last year) finds her reinvigorated by her new backing band, The Siss Boom Bang (a name, I admit, I hate). It’ll be a tough set to beat, I’m quite sure.

Closing out Sunday night is Hawksley Workman, a performer with no shortage of stage presence or desire to wow a crowd. He’s also in a creative peak, having released two complete albums in the span of about a year and a half. There’s no way he’ll play the song I’ve posted below but by god that would be something, wouldn’t it? Having never seen him perform live it will be interesting to see what kind and how fervent an audience he’ll draw on the last night of the show (which, by the way, could have rain if the forecast holds true).

Let’s not forget the artist with the most pedigree in the bunch. Taj Mahal is most often described as a blues artist but he is also known for folding world music elements into his guitar-driven numbers. I’m not sure if or how often he’s been in Saskatchewan but I’d be surprised if it hasn’t called to him in the past; the American singer has a serious passion for farming. As a younger man he was forced to choose between his two passions, having graduated with two agricultural degrees before going into music full-time. He’s a classic of the genre that I can’t wait to see.

International flavour is always a big draw at the RFF as well, and this year is no exception. Butel explained that she worked with artistic directors of other western Canadian folk festivals to ensure that acts like Etran Finatawa, a group of musicians from two separate African tribes that joined together in unity to promote peace among their people, had a string of dates across the country that would ensure it would be fiscally viable for them to come to the country. Quebec resident Marco Calliari has deep Italian roots and accesses them in his solo work, which has been compared to the high-energy melodic frenzy of Gogol Bordello. Honduran Aurelio Martinez plays a variation on the percussion-driven Paranda style of Garifuna music (in addition to being an incredibly-captivating singer.

Hip indie kids will have their run of great acts too. Vancouver’s laid-back acoustic song-slinger Dan Mangan, violinist and whistler extraordinaire Andrew Bird, french-speaking QC piano ingenue and tattoo maven Béatrice Martin (aka Coeur de Pirate, represented below with a track by her side project Armistice, which sees her singing in English for the first time), east coast quirk-rocker Shotgun Jimmie, indie rock upstarts Braids, and the newly-revitalized children’s songsmith Fred Penner will all take the main stage. All have their own uniquely melodic styles and I’m dying to see all of them.

And that’s just the main stage. The free daytime “workshops” on Saturday and Sunday are always a big reason to head back to the park outside the headliner hours. Local/provincial superstars like Library Voices, Slow Down Molasses, Jeffrey Straker, Zachary Lucky, Rah Rah, and the Hard Ramblers are all involved in the free day events, in addition to main stage appearances.

And the beer gardens last ALL DAY now! All day! Amazing!

 

 Armistice - Mission Bells: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Dan Mangan - Robots: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Etran Finatawa - Kel Tamasheck: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Hawksley Workman - Warhol's Portrait Of Gretzky: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Rah Rah - Fuck NAFTA: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Taj Mahal - Fishin' Blues: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

It’s all so much to take in! You can get the full details from http://www.reginafolkfestival.com and tickets can be bought from the festival site starting on Friday. DON’T MISS IT!

Pat entries Andrew Bird, Aurelio Martinez, blues, Braids, Canadian content, Coeur de Pirate, Dan Mangan, Etran Finatawa, folk, Fred Penner, Hawksley Workman, indie rock, Jeffrey Straker, k.d. lang, Library Voices, Marco Calliari, Rah Rah, Regina Folk Festival, rock, Shotgun Jimmie, Slow Down Molasses, The Hard Ramblers, world music, Zachary Lucky

This week brought the inevitable conclusion to a contest being run by Rolling Stone magazine, a contest that, by all accounts, will change the lives of four hairy fellows from Saskatoon.

Classic rock revivalists The Sheepdogs have won Rolling Stones’ modern version of Star Search, a contest for one unsigned band or musician to land a spot on the cover of the magazine (paging Dr Hook), a major label recording contract, and some cash to boot. Sponsored by a line of hair care products, the contest put dozens of groups into a big pool and encouraged readers to visit their website and vote for their favourites. Voting was done in several rounds, the number of competitors being pared down each time. The Sheepdogs ended up in the final round, going up against a spunky young singer/songwriter from the U.S.. Their reward was a set at Bonnarroo, a drastically wider audience, and a shot at the top spot, which, it was revealed earlier this week when the cover you see here was unveiled in Times Square in New York City, they won. I would imagine quite handily.

At the risk of sounding obnoxious, I wasn’t really that surprised by the outcome. Don’t get me wrong — I was surprised, just not very surprised.

The Sheepdogs’ sound is probably a dream come true for Rolling Stone, a magazine that hasn’t been relevant in actual music coverage in decades (one arguable low point: the overly effusive “instant classic” five-star review of Mick Jagger’s unholy dump of a solo record Goddess In The Doorway, which featured such rancid, past their prime if they ever had one, flavour-of-the-moment collaborators as Matchbox 20’s Rob Thomas, The Fugees’ Wyclef Jean, and Lenny Kravitz). The Sheepdogs’ sound cribs heavily from The Allman Brothers, The Guess Who, and other bands that were staunchly in favour of beards. It’s a sound that will resonate deeply with the divorced dads who keep copies of the magazine laying around their one-bedroom apartments to try and convince the kids they see on every second weekend that they’re still hip.

Moreover, Rolling Stone probably could have predicted this was going to happen. Canada may not be the United States, but we certainly still have a modicum of national pride and identity that can be, and apparently has been, exploited. I haven’t seen any insight into how the bands involved were selected but The Sheepdogs were the only Canadian band in the contest. The ONLY band in a country that has more unsigned bands than people (HYPERBOLE WHAT). It was inevitable that, to an extent, some nationalistic support would be drummed up. The band and its fans did their best to exploit it too, tweeting to the Prime Minister and other notable Canadians to pledge their support to the band.

Now, I have nothing against The Sheepdogs. Their music is well-constructed, hooky, and evocative of a by-gone era in a very genuine, if seemingly somewhat calculated, way. When Tanis sent me their record The Big Stand a couple of years ago I gave it a few listens, played a few tracks on my community radio show, and frankly forgot about it. Again: it just isn’t for me. I wish them all the success in the world; they certainly have worked pretty hard the last five years or so to get where they are.

I do, however, find it more than a little annoying that a magazine that is supposed to be in the business of taste-making is lazy and desperate enough to get some attention that it crowd-sourced it’s content, and that once-upon-a-time most coveted of music industry prizes, a spot on it’s formerly-iconic cover. If you weren’t already dead to me, Rolling Stone, you sure are now.

On the bright side, one has to assume that the attention brought to The Sheepdogs by this mishigas will extend, to some degree, to the music community that exists around them. Assuming they don’t light out for Toronto or some other big city that’s more connected to the music industry, other groups may get some residual spotlight shining on them, hopefully.

For instance, The Deep Dark Woods released their new album The Place I Left Behind on Tuesday, the same day the contest results and The Sheepdogs’ new major label EP came out. The Woods are a band we’ve gushed about here; they put out my third favourite album of 2009, in fact. While I have yet to delve too terribly far into their new release, it promises at first blush to be more of the sombre, engrossing rootsy storytelling that has made them one of the top five bands working in Canada right now, hands-down.

Maybe The Sheepdogs could take them out on tour if they go through America? Spread some of that love around?

 

 The Sheepdogs - Who: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 The Deep Dark Woods - West Side Street: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The Sheepdogs’ music can be purchased through links found on this page of their website or via iTunes.
The Deep Dark Woods’ material can be found in their web store or via iTunes.

Pat entries classic rock, crowdsourcing, desperation, rock, Rolling Stone magazine, Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, the biz, The Sheepdogs

Buckle up for some surprising news, readers: I’ve been getting older these last few years.

Shocking though it may seem, it’s true. To make matters worse my aging has been totally cliched. I go out to shows less and less often, “classic” soul and pop music has become my usual go-to instead of punk rock, my girlfriend and I stay in and read more often than we go out drinking, and sometimes I even go to bed before midnight. My teenage self is so ashamed.

Junior Battles, it seems, can relate. The plucky Torontonians found a place in my heart last year, thanks to a flawless EP and a surprisingly charming video. On their new full-length album, however, it appears someone is going all Daniel Plainview on their glass-half-full mind-set.

The first half or more of Idle Ages (aside from album opener “Seventeen” anyway) is jarring for me. It really made me take a look back at the band’s previous work and reassess the tenor of it. Chalk it up to having spent a year singing the songs from their self-titled EP as loud as possible in my car but in my head the band has been a beacon of positivity and hopefulness but it turns out that as far as that EP goes that really only applies to my admittedly-favourite song, “Basements.” The rest of the tracks have a significantly darker lyrical tone.

That’s amplified in several tracks on Idle Ages, the group’s first full-length album. Specifically “Nostalgic at 23,” “Birthdayparties vs Punkroutine,” and “Twenty-Five.” I’m sure it’s no coincidence that all of those numbers are written and (primarily) sung by Aaron Zorgel, who had this to say about the latter track in a run-down on the album published by Property of Zack:

I was going through a time in my life where I was the most directionless, the most broke, and as a result, the most medicated I’ve ever been. At that time, I was unhappy with where my life was going, and I didn’t know where I wanted to be, or what I wanted to do. So, I was getting wasted a lot and feeling sorry for myself. I’ve since turned 25, and I’m happy to report that I’m generally pretty upbeat these days, and I’m feeling good about my situation. I think I just needed to put what I was feeling out there, and doing that was honestly very therapeutic for me.

The idea of self-medicating comes up a few times here in a very unglamorous fashion. “I guess I’m happy for now but we’re just tired and loaded,” Zorgel sings on “Send The Pilots Away.” “We reminisce ’til we’re fucked up and then we puke in our own sheets,” fellow songwriter Sam Sutherland insists on “Nostalgic at 23, adding, “I’ve got to be fucked up to put up with your bullshit.” Also kind of a bummer: “I can sleep maybe eight hours a day/maybe six hours I’m wasted/and the rest of the day I’m fucking tired.”

Zorgel also spends a track or two looking at the idea that while aging may bring confusion (and eventually clarity) it can also force a wedge between formerly close friends. He laments how once-close friendships can take a backseat as people’s lives take different paths, resulting in infrequent contact that consists mostly of remembering common history.

Sound familiar? It does to me. You bet your ass I’d like to be able to make more time for the people that were once the closest friends I had, but work, family, and relationship commitments sometimes make that difficult. It’s unfortunate, but it’s something I try not to dwell on; there are simply more people than there is time to spend with them. I’ve always tried to tell myself that there’s no point in worrying about the inevitability in life; you won’t get anywhere if you spend all your time obsessed with what happens when you die or having a mental breakdown just because you’re turning 30.

To me these songs illustrate a depth of understanding that covers what I’m sure is a fairly common experience for people who might have expected growing pains to end with adolescence. Transitioning into the world of adulthood is tough enough for most people but for creative types trying to make a living while creating music and touring clearly adds another level of difficulty. Perhaps the Junior boys are hoping that openly discussing such issues will help other people get past those rough patches and increase the optimism.

There is certainly a more upbeat side to the record, one that the album simply couldn’t live without, the yang to the bleaker yin of the album’s first half. One example is pushed up front with opener “Seventeen.” It’s a bit of a mixed bag but for me it sets up a feeling of resolve that the energy and power of the music of Idle Ages helps to carry through the album’s entire running time. “Here’s a list of reasons we’re making this morning/to never feel angry or get disappointed,” the band sings emphatically at the opening. That along with the “woah-oh” melodies create a bubble of energy and glee that even the refrain of, “Will I be happy?/No, no, no, no, no, no, no/I don’t think so,” in the following track “Twenty Five” can’t burst.

“Architecture” and “Living In The Future Of Feelings” shift the focus to what is presumably the band’s overwhelming source of joy: the band itself. Sutherland describes the latter as a “straightforward pleasure-cruiser” about how much goddamn fun it is to be able to make music and do something you love, even if it means making sacrifices along the way. “Even our worst work week is still better than your holidays,” they insist before heading into a chorus that is the hands-down number one sing-along moment of the summer as far as I’m concerned (it also made a pretty good title for this review).

Junior Battles also deserve credit for attempting to stretch themselves musically. While much of the music follows the loose template of up-tempo pop punk they’ve already laid out for themselves there are several moments of aggression and a focus on taking their arrangements to the next level that show some significant growth. Just check out the 1:20 mark of “With Honours” for proof. In an admittedly brief but deft move the band abruptly switches from one of the record’s first moments of quiet(er) reverie to twenty seconds of thrashing, chaotic, uncharacteristically harsh guitar tones. The already-aggressive “Ever Get The Feeling You’ve Been Cheated?” chastises sloganeering punk bands for phony political posturing and gets a big boost courtesy of guest vocalist Damian Abraham of Fucked Up. The palm-muted riffing and somber tone of “Send The Pilots Away” recalls more dour moments from groups like Bad Religion or Polar Bear Club. The dizzying arrangement of “Alternate 1985″ seems more like four or five songs mashed together but it works, drawing the listener further in with every left turn.

I could go on but if I haven’t lost you yet I should probably not run the risk.

I’ll be the first to admit this review may be short on criticism but that’s only because I like this record too goddamn much. There are a couple of things that don’t work for me here but it just doesn’t matter. Idle Ages is a record that is exactly what it needs to be: it speaks eloquently about shared human experiences in a voice that isn’t pandering, cloying, or condescending. The players are extremely talented and have formed a sound that is unique but feeds off myriad influences, appealing to anyone who likes any kind of punk and probably more than a few people whose tastes lean toward safer pop conventions. The end result is easily one of the top five records released so far this year, one that will be sticking around when the year-end best-of lists start getting churned out in December.

In short these guys are exactly what they want the rest of the world to be: honest, ethical, forthright, dedicated, and driven. If nothing else that alone deserves your attention.

 

 Junior Battles - Seventeen: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Junior Battles - Living In The Future Of Feelings/No Plan: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

You can purchase Idle Ages from Paper + Plastick Records right here, through their webstore. Don’t bother getting it from iTunes — buying the CD will get you an instant digital download. The band tells me that vinyl is coming soon so if that’s your jam keep checking back.

Pat entries adulthood, Canadian content, growing up, Junior Battles, Paper + Plastick Records, pop punk, positivity, punk rock, rock, Toronto

Remember, albums can be bought physically from their tumblr and the album is on iTunes too.

Pat entries acoustic, Don Giovanni Records, Laura Stevenson, Laura Stevenson and the Cans, rock

Canadian culture is an odd thing. In a lot of respects it is as much a mirror of the pervasive American entertainment spectrum we’re inundated by through no fault of our own. But while Canada struggles to create mainstream, popular art in the film and television realms truly Canadian music is a lot easier to come by. You know it when you hear it, whether it’s the punk-tinged story songs of John K. Samson or the choral allegories of Bruce Peninsula or, yes, even the overtures to modern rock radio of The Tragically Hip.

That’s a big part of what makes The Warped 45s’ sophomore LP such an unexpected delight for me. I’ve heard great things about their debut, 10 Day Poem for Saskatchewan, but I’ve never managed to find a copy of the damn thing. So when I got an email asking if I’d be interested in giving new record Matador Sunset a listen I jumped at the chance. And boy howdy is it ever Canadian.

The easiest shorthand for describing The Warped 45s is probably alt-country, but they see it differently. Their bio suggests “northern gothic,” “back porch of the apocalypse,” or “alt-country noir.” They’re a little more country than The Wheat Pool, a little more rock (at times) than Elliott Brood. But they also don’t pigeon hole themselves, at times fully embracing either or all sides of that spectrum.

Matador Sunset gets its hooks, both Can-con wise and musically, into the listener right from the get-go. A pure example of the band’s storytelling, “Pale Horse” paints a picture as stark as a Saskatchewan sunset, describing in vivid detail the visage of a stallion galloping out of a burning forest against the backdrop of a golden sunset. The band backs it up with some honky-tonk piano, loping bass, and lap steel guitar, a taste of the more country side of their particular brand of alt-country. This song is an antiquated oil painting flecked with specks of wind-blown dust, slapped together on a dirty canvas on a sun-baked porch in a Louis L’amour novel. But with, uh, words and music and stuff.

The story-song gets a lot of play on this record, in fact. “Grampa Carl” is a detailed account of Ryan McEathron’s great grandfather, who was a rum runner who traveled across the border via Lake Eerie and the Detroit River during prohibition. The song chronicles the sudden rush of wealth he experienced after the beginning of those dark, dry days in the U.S. and the bad deal that eventually sent him home penniless. It’s a superbly-written tale that is backed up by a stellar, muscular rock guitar riff that carries the band into a meaty bridge that will no doubt be an overpowering moment on a live stage.

There are splashes of genuine rock throughout the album, including the 50’s-era stomp of “Grime of Earthly Glow” (which features gospel-ish backing vocals and an energetic rhythm that would work equally as well for spiritual cousins The United Steel Workers Of Montreal) and “Live Bait,” an apparent long-time live favourite that found its home on this more upbeat album. It’s a lively number that seems like it would have had to come out of the west, not Ontario. The following track shows what happens when the rock edge wears off as the group gets downright old-timey on “Talk About Evil,” a fiddle-laden colonial-era country vibe that could practically give you the vapours.

The intriguing musical mix might most readily bring to mind the band’s American contemporaries in Okkervil River, another band that has crossed and melded together many different genre lines over the course of their six LPs and numerous EPs and singles. The two diverge in that Okkervil saw a fairly gradual progression from the heavier country influence of their first record through to the rock/folk meld of Black Sheep Boy and beyond to the more typically-structured pop and rock of The Stand-Ins and The Stage Names. This is only the second album from the 45s but the mandolin-heavy tracks here are very reminiscent of Okkervil’s first effort. The outlaw country vibe on “Grampa Carl” and “Hurdle River Crossing” bring “Westfall”’s dark brilliance to mind while tracks like “Widow’s Well” and “The Blade Thrower’s Wife” (an incredible number about a woman who puts everything on the line night after night only to have someone else win the praise and applause) have the deft story-song element that makes so much of Okkervil River’s work (”A Stone” or “Okkervil River Song” are some of my favourite examples) so intensely evocative. 

And if were talking Canadian how about “Victoria Day,” a song that openly questions the need for continued celebration and/or recognition of the monarchy. The McEathrons sing, “It’s less about history than a day without labour” and insist that if we’re honouring history we should go back to before colonies and queens and borders and do it right, honour Canada and not the antiquated forbears that spurred its creation. 

Matador Sunset is a real accomplishment, especially for such a young group. Their alt-country sound covers enough territory to put them alongside Okkervil River, Drive-By Truckers, The Wheat Pool, United Steel Workers Of Montreal, Elliott Brood, and others but their detailed tales of pale, riderless horses, regretless rum runners, buffalo jumps, and mysterious river deaths will continue to set them apart. 

Here’s hoping we get another record within another two years.

 

 the Warped 45s - Window's Well: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 the Warped 45s - Grampa Carl: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 the Warped 45s - Live Bait: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Matador Sunset can be purchased through Maple Music or digitally through iTunes.

The 45s will be on an extensive tour this summer that will see them play both Saskatoon and Big River (through the Ness Creek festival). Check out the long list of dates here.

Pat entries alt country, Canadian content, country, Pheromone Recordings, rock, storytelling, The Warped 45s

Laura Stevenson sings like she’s exorcising demons.

It’s an inexplicable fact that can’t be ignored: she can have all the backing band she wants, but me? I’m showing up for that voice. That incredible, soaring, searing, voice, that voice that can do anything it’s told.

On their first full-length record Stevenson truly becomes one iwth her backing band The Cans, and long-time listeners and new fans alike reap some incredible benefits from that meeting of the minds. Fans of their previous releases get eased into what is ultimately and undoubtedly one of the top records of 2011. The opening track, “Halloweens Pt. 1 and 2″ came across as painfully lo-fi on the Bomb The Music Industry split 7″ that came out last year. Like all the songs on Sit Resist it has a comparatively glossy studio sheen that is enhanced by an impeccable mix and mastering. Where the lows on the 7″ were so low as to require one to crank the volume only to have the speakers burst when the full band comes in on the back half. The new cut has a bit of a smoother transition, not entirely sacrificing dynamics but making it a lot easier to listen to.

Now, nitpicking aside, let’s talk about the songs.

I wrote rather enthusiastically about “Master of Art” and it’s wily “Be My Baby”-aping opening drum beat a couple months ago, but it’s remarkable how stirring that song remains after a LOT of repeated listens. The best way to describe the multi-tracked vocals on the song’s back end might be to quote the immortal words of Garth Algar: they wail.

The song also represents a few thematic and lyrical examples that carry themselves all the way through the record. One of the last phrases in the song is, “The wait is just a little longer,” a word and concept that comes back in spades on two tracks at the album’s end (companion pieces “The Wait” and “The Weight”). Time appears to be something that weighs heavily on Stevenson, showcased in the next song “Caretaker” as well, in which she implores herself to write down her childhood memories before leaving the home she grew up in behind for good. The future looks bleak in “The Healthy One” as well; while it’s one of the jauntiest numbers (thanks to playful accordion and xylophone) it’s also an incredibly bleak tale of an entire family being decimated by disease, leaving just one little child behind to spend the rest of their life alone.

On the other hand is “Red Clay Roots,” a song that transcends time itself. Stevenson explained in a recent interview with AMP magazine.

I wrote that song after I found my grandma’s unfinished manuscripts. She was writing her memoirs before she died and she told me she was going to name it “Red Clay Roots” when she was finished, but she never did finish it. It’s about her growing up in Greenville, South Carolina. Her mother was a bottle smasher during the temperance movement, and her father and three brothers all drank themselves to death, but she pulled herself out and moved to New York to sing with Benny Goodman. I wrote the song to sort of celebrate her story because she didn’t live long enough to tell it herself.

The song is an eery, tin can-sounding recording that features a dusty distortion on a spare acoustic guitar part and several vocal tracks. The layered singing and humming that make up the bulk of the track create an incredibly subtle but moving effect. The lyrics hew closely to the description you see above, creating a whole package that would be perfectly comfortable on the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack.

For me the album culminates with the final three songs. “The Wait” is the perfect embodiment of how timely yet out-of-their-time Stevenson and the Cans are. It’s pretty rare that you hear someone who is only 27 sing about their “life’s work” and “waiting for a train to come” and actually BELIEVE it. The band builds to it’s most raucous moment yet, electric guitar, trumpet, and drums all chiming in a melodically cacophonous coda that wanes into “The Weight.” Its finger-picked acoustic guitar and strings provide a temperate, gentle denoument to that moment of passion and fury while the repeated lyrics and withering tone of Stevenson’s voice emphasize the point: the wait is killing her.

Even more disarming is the record closer, “I See Dark,” a track that re-establishes the band’s penchant for experimenting within a familiar sound (something Stevenson did in spades on her first 8-song album, A Record). While it opens with some waltzing accordion, there are a few breaks of discordant distortion that might sound more at home on an Explosions In The Sky record. It works its way out with singing so pained and vulnerable it has to be genuine; Stevenson has revealed in some interviews that when the band raised the idea of changing the song from its recorded form she broke down in tears. She says it’s the most personal song she’s ever written.

The songs on Sit Resist aren’t upbeat summer jams. Stevenson writes from an extremely personal place and more often than not the subject matter, if not the backing music, is undeniably bleak. But for my money you won’t hear another record like this all year. It’s modern but respective of musical history, it’s powerful without resorting to power chords and screaming, it’s personal without being overly confessional. There isn’t a bad song on here and there isn’t a song you won’t find engaging on some level. As I said before, Stevenson is singing like she’s exorcising demons. I wouldn’t wish ill on anyone else but if that’s what it takes for her to keep writing songs like this then I hope she never finds salvation.

 

 Laura Stevenson & the Cans - The Healthy One: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Laura Stevenson & the Cans - The Wait: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

If you’re quick you can download Sit Resist for free from the LS&TC tumblr. Albums can be bought physically from that site and the album is on iTunes too.

Pat entries accordian, Don Giovanni Records, folk, indie rock, Laura Stevenson, Laura Stevenson & the Cans, Laura Stevenson and the Cans, rock, vocalists

Pretty tough to really put into words how excited I am about this one, you guys. Laura Stevenson and the Cans are releasing a new album!

I’ve done you a disservice by not talking more about Stevenson’s debut EP. It sort of fell into the cracks after it was released in 2008, in the sense that I hadn’t heard it until early 2009 after I’d already put together my annual best-of junk. I kind of worry all of her and the Can’s future work will be overshadowed by that eight song collection, in fact.

Released under Stevenson’s name by Quote Unquote records, the donation-based download-only label run by her Bomb The Music Industry! bandmate Jeff Rosenstock, A Record is a shiver-inducingly beautiful collection of songs loosely wrapped around an incredibly unique and uniquely-powerful voice. The first sound you hear is Stevenson’s multi-tracked cooing on opener, “Baby Bones.” It’s a structure that flows through about half the songs here: her guitar and banjo are relegated to quiet accompaniment while her angelic vocals soar through every possible note in whatever key she’s singing in. Then there is “Landslide Song/The Dig,” a track with punk rock guitars and drums melding with a bright horn section. “Source and the Sound” could be a Mazzy Star track, synthesizer notes pushed to the front of the mix while distorted vocals are pushed lower. Drums and distorted guitar power chords cut in halfway through, adding to the syrupy feel of the song. With a group of contributing musicians, several of whom would go on to form her backing band The Cans, the short (23 minutes!) album cuts a wide swath through numerous sounds, textures, and genres. It feels like a full listen.

For me, the highlight comes with “A Shine To It.” Another song comprised entirely of finger-picked guitars and a mournful vocal performance, it’s a captivating contradiction. While the tenor of the song is decidedly maudlin, Stevenson’s lyrics are a testament to the power of love, or more accurately the power love can have over us. She talks about resorting to selling her own blood to buy baubles and trinkets she thinks might please her lover, who remains distant regardless. It’s a haunting, even heartbreaking song that shows the full power and majesty of her singing, let alone her guitar playing.

The same goes for her cover of BTMI!’s “It Ceases To Be ‘Whining’ If You’re Still ‘Shitting Blood’” — possibly one of the finest covers I’ve ever heard.

Which brings us to this week and the debut of the first track from Stevenson and The Can’s forthcoming album, Sit Resist, out April 26th. “Master of Art” follows the progression the band set out on with its Holy Ghost 7″, a more expansive, full-band sound that trends closer to rock than the intimate acoustics of A Record. It opens with a wink to Phil Spector’s 60’s girl groups with its kick drums and tambourines, bringing in some gentle shaker, electric guitar, and bass leading into a chorus that flexes just a bit more muscle. Stevenson’s voice hasn’t lost an ounce of its power, exploding into some impressive runs in the choruses and the lyrics pick up where the intimacy of her previous songs left off, though it isn’t without it’s own sense of melancholy.

I’ve been saying since I found out last year that this record would be coming out that it will be the best album of 2011. “Master of Art” only makes me believe that even more. Rcrd Lbl has the exclusive, get it from there below.

Stay tuned to the group’s web store for pre-order information or to get other tunes. Don Giovanni Records will be releasing it.

 

 Laura Stevenson - A Shine To It [2:56m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Pat entries acoustic, Don Giovanni Records, indie rock, Laura Stevenson, Laura Stevenson and the Cans, rock

It’s surprising we don’t see more massive, mainstream cross-over success with indie artists. You’d think with über-successful bands Coldplay and Kings of Leon that rely entirely on their ability to synthesize something an arm’s length from real emotion, so carefully ensconced in sounding earnest that nonsense lyrics can seem like cathartic epiphanies, more bands that actually take the time to actually BE earnest and mean what they say would eventually take hold.

But perhaps Hey Rosetta! is making their way down that road. The Newfoundland/Labrador six-piece saw a surge of success the last couple of years thanks to their second record, Into Your Lungs, which was released in summer 2008. While cynics might hear a record draped in pretension the highly-orchestral arrangements and drawn-out song lengths are evidence of a remarkably well-realized intent and vision. Singer Tim Baker’s impassioned vocals provide the anchor for the music, his sincerity and passion weaving its way through every note.

That being said it should be interesting to see what happens next for Hey Rosetta!, given that they’re releasing a brand new album next week that focuses and tightens up their sound while bringing in new elements.

Opening track “Seeds” is a manifesto for the album, with singer Tim Baker intoning, “We don’t look back/because we don’t need that.” Maybe not the most poetic statement but it does prove prescient, as Hey Rosetta! endeavor to move past the pervasive quit-build-loud dynamic that marked most songs on their first full-length. Eschewing slower build-ups, most of the songs on Seeds waste no time, heading straight into a full-band arrangement. There are also more straightforward rock and roll passages to be found.

I say passages because these songs are constantly in flux. The arrangements on the record are definitely next level, morphing from one phase to the next, songs ending up with a totally different palate of sounds than they began with. The transitions are far from jarring, but consider a song like single, “Welcome.” Baker’s ode to a friend’s newborn baby might be the catchiest song on the album, exploding right from the start with a pretty standard four-piece rock band sound, adding some strings to the chorus that follow the instrumental melody. Half-way through the entire arrangement drops out, reduced to Baker and some sparse guitar picking. Swirling strings make a return, carrying the bridge to the 2:55 mark when the distorted rock guitar comes back full force, soaring to new heights through the end of the song.

That’s the band’s stock in trade, the kind of dramatic number that is their bread and butter. “Yer Fall” follows in the same vein, opening with solo piano, adding drums and falsetto vocals, transitioning into a brief string interlude before moving back to the piano and drums and building into something approaching a frenzy in order to explode into one of the album’s biggest choruses. Baker sings at the top of his lungs alongside distorted electric rock guitar, the strings, drums, piano, all colliding into each other before dropping into a brief, quiet coda. Or take “Young Glass,” which adds and/or takes away a new instrument every 45 seconds or so, bringing them all back for a climactic finish at the song’s conclusion.

But while Hey Rosetta!’s fans seem to take great pleasure in the highly orchestral, jam-packed song formations, one of the most enjoyable moments on the album is it’s closing track, “Bandages.” Primarily just Baker and his acoustic guitar, it’s one of the most straight-forward, simple numbers here. Ghostly atmospheric sounds provide a wider canvas of sound for the first four minutes or so, before some march-worthy drums, tambourine, glock, and a raft of backing vocalists waft in and out of the last minute to augment the gorgeous vocal melody. It shows that for all their bells and whistles the core of each Hey Rosetta! tune is a solid, beautiful melody that would stand on its own regardless of how many kitchen sinks were thrown into the mix.

Baker is also set on relating a true, real human experience to his listeners through his lyrics. Be that by penning a song with real-world advice to the aforementioned baby (”I’m sorry this is it/it’s cold and hard and badly lit/and there’s no backing out of it/so forget where you’ve been/it’ll never be that good again/and we must only look ahead/soon you’re 33 and everything you tried to be/is pulled apart by fear and grief/but young hands build you up”) or in “Young Glass”’s reassurance that even if when you feel alone there’s an entire world all around you waiting to be explored (inspired, as The Broken Speaker tells us, by a J.D. Salinger book).

On the whole the record is somewhat shorter and perhaps considerably more concise than its predecessor, the shorter songs coming in briefly enough that they’ll set up well as singles in the coming months. It’s an intense listen that requires active listening if you really want to get the full scope of it.

Fans of earnest rock and roll may have just found their new bellwether.

 

 Hey Rosetta! - Yer Spring: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

 

 Hey Rosetta! - Young Glass: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

You’ll find Seeds available in all forms (pre-order so far) through the Hey Rosetta! website. Older CDs are also in there, I think.

Pat entries 2011, Canadian content, epic rock, Hey Rosetta!, indie rock, orchestral rock, rock