Matt Epp and the Amorian Assembly, At Dawn

I was sent a digital pre-release version of this album over the weekend.  Matt Epp and Amorian Assembly are making their way to the West Coast in a bit so I thought I'd give it a listen and let you know what I got out of it. 

The first word is... Surprise.  I'll admit my exposure to Matt Epp has been pretty limited.  The first couple of notes had me thinking it was opening with a cover of the Beatles tune "Rocky Raccoon".... I've heard worse ways to start an album I guess.  The song, it turns out, was not a a Beatles cover.  It features some haunting ambiance from huge-sounding drums and a surprisingly fitting Spanish horn arrangement.... making the showdown theme of the song striking. It makes me want to watch the duel that was no doubt going down during the recording. I'm hooked... and certainly curious what the rest of the album has to offer.

One of the main things that struck me listening through the album for the first time was how well the acoustic instruments were captured, at least on the first few tracks.  The drums sounded as though they were recorded using primitive methods, a sound I love... creating a lot of space and depth, with a certain taste of some of Zeppelin's recordings.  Other instruments, notably the piano and acoustic guitar sound like the were isolated and masterfully recorded, not only making you feel like they are in the room but that you have your ear right inside them. I like the balance of the 2 sounds on may of the tracks.

Sadly, the other arrangements aren't as creative as the opening track. In the middle there are a few songs that are more "radio friendly" pop-rock that don't deviate too far from your basic pop formulas ("Met Someone" in particular).... It even seems that the emphasis on sound quality isn't the same (New Sunglasses)... making it feel a lot less personal.

Nearly every tune on the album contains a greasy guitar solo that would make Neil Young blush.... That, to me, is a very good thing.  Hints of Hammond organ and Rhodes piano as well as some Otis Redding-esque vocal hooks near the end of "Red Winged Blackbird" help make it a highlight of the middle of the album for me.

It's hard for me to sum this album up. It seems to be 3 EPs put together to fill the time slot.  I enjoy nearly all the songs individually but have a hard time feeling it flow together as a package.  My thoughts, listening to the songs as they are is that they will make for a good, dynamic live show but for a guy who has an unnatural love of concept albums and such I can't says I'm entirely in love with this album. 

If the surprise of that first track was relived a few times during the experience I'd be entirely sold.

I hear songs that would sound good on a mix with Jeff Buckley... Others more 54-40 and even some a little hint of Norah Jones...  Those Neil Young style guitar solos and the massive sounding drums keep it all sounding like Rock and Roll.  I tend to like music that alienates a certain number of people... I like this album overall and I don't think it would truly alienate anyone.... maybe that doesn't sound as much like a compliment as I mean it to be.

I can't wait for the show in a few weeks and I'm definitely going to have a listen to more Matt Epp.

Shortly after publishing I got a review.... ummm... review from Matt himself:

"Just saw your review and was happy to read how much care you took in listening - it was fresh air to know someone had insight into the process and the sounds... and what it takes to make the record."

And he left me a little insight as to how the album was recorded:

"Regarding the capturing of sound on the record, I wanted to let you know that we made the record live-off-the-floor in 3 days (vocals, guitars, drums, bass all final) and then tracked the keys in Spain... and then a few other things (like back up vocals) later on. So those takes you hear all had the same studio set up and separation - it's probably the differences in how we dealt with it in the mix that makes it so dynamic and changing. I'm not sure if I'll ever find one 'sound'!"

Thanks for your kind words about my review and thanks for the info Matt.

Thanks for reading and happy listening,

Tri Continental, Tri Continental

Tri Continental is the name used by three Canadian songwriter/guitarists when they get together to record or perform.  Lester Quitzau, Bill Bourne, and Randriamananjara Radofa Besata Jean Longin who, thankfully goes by Madigascar Slim.  While all these guys had great things going on before Tri Continental and continue to produce a ton of great music. This, the first collaboration of the three continues to be a favourite of mine.

I first encountered these guys at the Regina Folk Music Festival about 10 years ago.  They were headlining one night of the festival and took the stage as the summer sun set. The festival itself took place in a park downtown but you could still see the lightning from a storm forming well to the north of the city behind the stage.

I was astounded by the depth of sound that three guitars and a stomping foot could generate, the energy of that performance set me dreaming about early CSNY shows.... It has fun and interactive, spititual and still one of my most vivid concert memories.... right up there with Aerosmith, Van Halen, Van Morrison, Bob Dylan and a lot of others.

The album is a sort of round table, with the players taking turns leading the other 2 through songs from their catalog. The other 2 filling in harmonies, tasty guitar licks,  pizzicota violin and foot stomps to great success.  A few songs really stood out to me... The opening track "Waiting" is a Lester Quitzau original, a haunting slide guitar piece with one of the best blues lyrics one could imagine "Maybe nobody loves me but Jesus, maybe nobody loves me but myself". The loneliness expressed in the song is inescapable...

There is a great goldrush ballad called Bill Miner, filling the listener with the fantasy of escaping to the mountains, fresh air and fortune... even if train robbing is part of the plan.

One of the things that captured me about the live show and the album was the groove.  Songs extend into long jams with vocal adlibs... not the calculated "Oh Yeah, West Coast in the house" adlibs we get today but you get a sense that these vocalizations were guttural and natural... inspired by the music. 

The guitar work too, I have a Gibson Les Paul that I've been fortunate to have signed by some of Canada's finest guitarists. Lester Quitzau's signature sits along-side Gordie Johnson, Randy Bachman and others.

Madagascar Slim's contributions are a little tougher for me to describe, some are in Madagas which is not a language I possess.  I am a huge fan of his playing. Complex at times and appropriately sparse at others.

So who is the album for? For me it's an album to listen to by candlelight... with a glass of wine. Some songs are deep accoustic blues, some pioneer ballads and some sing-along good-times folk.

Get the album here

Thanks for readin and happy listening, Geoff

Prince, Musicology

I know it's not very current but I was looking at my pile of tunes and this one just jumped out at me.  I don't dance... that might be the reason I started playing guitar, I could still go to a party with live music and not have to fear that someone would expect me to dance.  There aren't a lot of people better at getting folks dancing than Prince and one of my favourite albums of his is Musicology.... It's also a good gateway album to get people into contemporary Prince.

Keeping it simple Prince opens the album with the title track. A great dance number that is sort of a monolog of a party host who takes great pride in his musical offerings. 

Much of the album carries social commentary and a bit of comedy. "Illusion, Coma, Pimp & Circumstance" chronicles the tale of a funky guy and his funk-deficient sugar mama. 

Million Days is sort of an uninspired cheesy love ballad.  It features some great guitar and some Frank Zappa-esque moments but that isn't enough to save the song.

I love "Life Of The Party"... When I first discovered this album I was in a bit of a Rock and Roll Superstar mindset... this song was a bit of a personal anthem.  Party all night... I would blast this tune in my 1990 Toyota 4Runner like I was some Los Angeles hit maker producer... That was a long time ago but I bet this tune still inspires a lot of great parties

There are the obligatory, porn soundtrack, slap bass tracks and a couple that will simply leave you scratching your head but it wouldn't be a Prince album without them.

One of the songs that got into the mainstream radio a bit is "Cinnamon Girl". Far from a Neil Young cover,  it was something of a protest song for the war on terror.  Giving a little personification to the citizens suffering from the conflict.  It tastes a little bit like Little Red Corvette but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Basically, Prince can't be dismissed. Guitarist have to give him credit for his chops. Weirdos admire his wierdness and a lot of late night parties owe their success to his groove.  I bet Prince plays at the majority of the worlds late night, "leave your clothes by the door" parties and that's reason enough to shake a guy's hand.

I'd love to link to his Superbowl half-time performance from a few years back but between the NFL and Prince himself it's tough to find.. In fact I'm likely to get sued just for acknowledging it's existance.

Find the Album here

Thanks for reading and happy listening

Sean Ashby, 24 Hours Of Daylight

I came across Sean Ashby when he showed up at the Long Beach Radio studio. Touring alone in support of the album "24 Hours Of Daylight".  You've heard him even if you haven't heard of him. Guitarist for Sarah McLachlan for a decade or so, Sean was also the "new guy" when The Grapes of Wrath became Ginger.  The version of The Beatles' tune "Blackbird" in the soundtrack for I Am Sam features Sean's playing as well.

24 Hours Of Daylight wasn't what I had expected, neither was Sean for that matter. In Sean's case he was casual, almost disorganized and dishevelled when he arrived at the studio.  I had a preconception of a guy in a tie with airtight custom hard cases for his guitars.  I was pleasantly surprised by both the album and the artist.

The opening track "Shoulder Wide" has gotten a bit of airplay... It's not my favourite off the album, but it does carry a fair bit of the guitar sound that he's left on the Sarah McLachlan recordings over the years.  The drums are very present and Sean does a great job of using a limited vocal range to express a sense of desperation.

A number of the middle tracks use a great mix of bright surf-guitar sound and complex drums to create a hectic feel that seems like it would fit into a particularly dark scene in a Quentin Tarantino movie.  Around midway through the album Sean offers up a fairly straight ahead blues rock number "Barbwire Valentine" in the character of David Gogo or Colin James, featuring some compelling slide guitar.

For the last 3 songs things drop down and get a little more "coffee shop" than "blues bar". "3 sides" has a bit of a Jeff Buckley quality with a lot of space and a good emotional journey. 

The title track, second to last on the album is an instrumental piece. Guitar arpeggios that, despite being very tasteful and flawlessly delivered fail to deliver me anywhere.

The album wraps up in a similar mood to the on it began with, returning to a mellower groove with a little desperation and some very satisfying guitar interplay. 

Fan's of Canada's "Light Blues Rock" scene will enjoy this album I think, people who go for David Gogo, Colin James, Colin Lindon and even John Mayer will find the album pretty fulfilling.  If you're expecting Sarah McLauchlin style songs you won't find them. Sean is on his own road here and based on our interview from a while back it sounds like he's pretty happy to drive it.

Here's the interview with live in-studio performance.





You can get the album here

Thanks for reading and happy listening, Geoff

Luke Doucet and The White Falcon, Blood's Too Rich

I grew up one the prairies. While I was there I was exposed to a fair share of country music.  My particular town claims Terry Clark as one of it's own (Canadian Idol winner Kalan Porter and Blues-Reggae-Death-Country guitar sling Gordie Johnson went to high school there as well).  That said, I wasn't exposed to a lot of "good" country.  I may have played my share of Shania Twain and Gretchen Wilson in cover bands and but my heart wasn't in it.

To me the true successors to the country greats that still define the genre (ie. Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Jerry Reed, Ian Tyson) were the likes of Neil Young and Fred Eaglesmith.... Guys who wrote about trucks, trains, farming and life on the road and not in some ironic sense.  The swill pumped out of the big time country music machine these days is no better than that pumped out of the the auto-tune obsessed pop music world.... more about selling cellular phones than making music.

There is a new generation of "Alternative Country" musicians out there, carrying on that tradition and making music that could go a long way to saving the roadhouse's and and railway bars that have long been the breeding grounds of Canada's live music. These places are at risk of their decades of memories and local colour being painted over and filled with nothing but DJs iPod mixes.

Today I want to discuss Luke Doucet and The White Falcon's album "Blood's Too Rich".  I got a pile of discs from their label "Six Shooter Records" a while back and, admittedly this one wasn't really on my radar at the time. I worked my way through a number of albums from more familiar artists before putting "Blood's Too Rich" in the car's CD player for a drive.  In the car, on a sunshiny drive on the Pacific Rim Highway the CD was in it's element.

The opening guitar and vocal bits of "Long Haul Driver" set the mood for a solitary cruise in the car and sent my mind wondering into the world of a rig driver out east, dealing with early morning border crossings, a lonely schedule and unceasing dedication to both his woman and his load.  I was delivered to that world like I'm delivered to the road life of Bob Seger's character in his song "Turn The Page"

The album continues in the vein of a great driving disc.  Great guitar tone, subtle female backup vocals (Think Neil Young's "Harvest Moon") and catchy choruses allow you to be drawn back in even if the spell is broken by a ringing phone or passing police car.  There is also an element of swing with walking fretless bass and twangy hollow body guitars that could get your butt shaking if you're not careful.

What I really get from this album and a lot of the current batch of great "alt country" acts out there at the moment is how well they would work in a live show.  Anthemic and intimate.  Songs that you can sing along with the first time you hear them without feeling like the artist has underestimated the listener.  It all sounds genuine to me... like live music should, often a difficult thing to put down on a record.

Neil Young fans will find this album pretty easy to get into, there are some moments that Beatles fan will be satisfied with.  In fact lyrical references to The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Rick Danko (Bass player for The Band) makes it easy to see where a lot of the influences come from.  Tom Petty could have produced some of the tracks as well... not a bad set of comparisons.

Get it here

Thanks for reading and happy listening, Geoff

Shooter Jennings and Heirophant, Black Ribbons

Here goes the first review of the new blog which will likely evolve into a radio show on Long Beach Radio in the near future. The album in question is "Black Ribbons" by Shooter Jennings' band Heirophant.

I first heard of this album through Canadian blues-rockers Ross Neilsen and The Sufferin' Bastards.  I gave them free reign for an hour of my morning radio show a few months back and they played a track or 2 from the album... I thought nothing of it and went on with my life.  Last week, I tracked the album down and started listening.... I haven't stopped since.

First a little background.  Shooter, as some might have guessed is the son of country music legend Waylon Jennings but this is no country album.  My not-so-original way of explaining the overall sound is "Pink Floyd meets the Allman Brothers". Southern Prog with a big dose of the occult and an even bigger dose of anti-establishment.  If you like novelty, the album owes some of it's charm to narration and some writing courtesy of best-selling author Stephen King, himself a confessed fan of Shooter's.

The album is, and please don't judge too harshly, a concept album. Set in the not-too-distant future, the album is presented as the last hour of the broadcast of a radio DJ before the government seizes control of the broadcast airwaves. Stephen King provides the DJ's voice and worked with shooter on the dialog.  Some of the songs play to the concept well, others are simply Rock and Roll for it's own sake.  Though I feel Rock and Roll is a good enough reason for most things.

The mood isn't all dark. There are a number of songs that could be considered as stand alone love songs, in fact the power of love is referred to as the answer to an oppressive police state.  "Fuck You, I'm Famous" has probably been remixed somewhere into a great dance tune.  While there are places where the Pink Floyd-ness borders on plagiarism that isn't a bad thing to me. Kind of like saying "She's hot but she looks too much like Kate Hudson"... not a great argument.

The end of the album and the fate of our fictional DJ are predictable but effective in completing the story and fitting the mood of the album.  This is one of those rare cases of a recent album that should be taken as a whole, in the dark, laying on the floor with the headphones on. 

I'd recommend Black Ribbons to fans of Pink Floyd and the Allman Brothers of course.   I also hear a few tunes that wouldn't sound too strange on a ZZ Top album. Fans of Astrology and Tarot will find references that will have them feeling at home. The Indie rock scene will hear some familiar 8 bit synth parts but likely be a little disappointed that the melodies aren't repetitive enough.

This album has the potential to enrage or inspire depending on the listener... Either way, that's what art is for and in a world where most of the music out there is "*processed bubblegum bullshit churned out by the overlords of doublespeak and meant to turn a grey world greyer" it's important to recognize something that isn't.  *from the album

Get it here

Thanks for reading,  Geoff

Here's The Plan

Tune in soon for album reviews, many of the albums reviewed will end up being played on Long Beach Radio in Tofino and Ucluelet. More information soon. I expect the first Album reviewed to be Shooter Jennings and Heirophant's "Black Ribbons"