Kyp Harness Review In The Toronto Star • 24.05.11

I’m sure guys like Kyp Harness get sick and tired of being called “underappreciated” because they’re actually very much appreciated by the people who know and love their music. And, anyway, would Harness or “always a bride’s maid, never a bride”-ish contemporaries like his pal Ron Sexsmith – who contributes guitar and piano to four tunes on Resurrection Gold, Harness’s ninth album – be as cherished as they are if they ever broke through to the wider audiences that pretty much everyone agrees they deserve? Aren’t the little tics and idiosyncrasies that get in the way of their mainstream success the very things for which their fans have come to love them?

So, no, Resurrection Gold is unlikely to liberate Toronto’s Harness from the “underappreciated Canadian singer/songwriter” designation that has clung to him for the better part of two decades. If you’re into what the man does, however, or if you’re simply curious what the fuss is about, this pleasingly tattered and unpretentious folk-rock record – a shambling, jangling, altogether amicable creature that’s a bit Bob Dylan, a bit Willie Nelson and a bit Lou Reed all at once – is as solid a testament to his craft as they come.

Where Harness’s last album, 2006’s Fugitives, made very public its author’s embrace of Christianity, Resurrection Gold seems mostly preoccupied with a different kind of faith – faith in love as the purest essence of human emotion, the one terrestrial gift that makes it possible to see “beyond this cloud of doubt and the bleak machinery of fear,” to borrow a phrase from “Wandering Heart.” And, man, can Harness write a mean love song. “You’re a delicate thing / You’re a dragonfly wing,” he drawls on “Dragonfly Wing,” one of numerous, elevated sweet nothings to be found here. “You’ve got the sweetest face I’ve ever seen / Even if I have to look at you thru tears,” from “Diggin’ Your Vibe,” comes pretty close in the lady-killing department, too. If there’s someone in your life who needs serenading right now, you could do worse than pinch a few choice lines from this pro.

http://www.toronto.com/blog/post/684739–a-reason-to-live-kyp-harness-resurrection-gold-independent

Kyp Harness Review In Exclaim • 24.05.11

Harness is routinely described as a long undervalued singer-songwriter. That happens to remain true, but the determined Toronto, ON troubadour continues to put out albums for a loyal, if small, following while continuing to earn serious peer respect from the likes of Daniel Lanois, Bob Wiseman, Ron Sexsmith and Mary Margaret O’Hara. Sexsmith has covered a Harness song (“Thumbelina Farewell”) and he plays guitar and piano on two songs apiece here. Harness’s 2006 album, Fugitives, incisively explored his faith, but that theme is less prominent on Resurrection Gold. He is one of the most adept lyricists around, as shown on “Diggin’ Your Vibe” (“if you were a Broadway show, I’d be there every night in the front row”) and it’s a pity his lyrics aren’t included in the album notes. Harness’s rather nasal vocal delivery is capable of being both tender and tart, and backing vocals from Megan Keough add a sweet touch to some songs, including the lovely “Wandering Heart.” Aiding his cause is an able cast of accompanists that include producer David Picco on fluent electric guitar. Twenty years into a discography now nine albums deep, Kyp Harness remains at the top of his game.

http://exclaim.ca/Reviews/FolkAndCountry/kyp_harness-resurrection_gold

Herohill Reviews Kate Maki’s Moonshine • 03.05.11

One room and a group of friends singing, playing, eating, and drinking. It’s easy to see why the cozy confines of a house party are as an oasis for musicians in traveling in today’s troubled economic times. The vibe of the room influences everything; the sound, the energy, even the songs that get played. The saddest songs sound better when sung together, and the chill of the studio is taken out of the air.

For under appreciated Sudbury songwriter Kate Maki and her new record Moonshine, the room and the people in it define each and every note. Settled into a basement with a collection of talented friends (Brent Randall on keys, Dale Murray on slide, Nathan Lawr on the skins, Dan Levecque on guitars, Paul Lowman on upright bass and David Mackinnon on organ), Maki shared her sketches with her new session band.

Moonshine dances freely, embracing the freedom of spontaneity. Surprisingly strong arrangements grew organically over dinners and drinks, and even though the vibe of the album is that of a live record, not one note drifts or loses focus. The songs, the most authentic and enjoyable Maki has put on record to date, crackle but rest on foundations as solid as bedrock. The gentle stomp of “Golden Thorns”, the keys and organ on “Fought The Cattle” and the impromptu jam that closes the swooning “Hanging On” hint at a playfulness that only surfaces when the stage lights start burning, but it’s the spot on harmonies and beautiful tapestries stitched with love that make this record so successful.

If you love country/folk music, I don’t know how you can hear the band harmonizes over top of the gentle bass plucks and twinkled ivories of “Fade to Grey” and not want to sing along, but really that holds true for every song on Moonshine. So solid that few songs stand out, Maki and her friends put together a snapshot in time you feel obliged to let it play start to finish each time you put it on. Sadly, most of us will only get to hear the songs in small clubs or on record in some stripped down fashion, but to be in the room when these songs were put to tape would have been magical. Thankfully Moonshine documents the experience.

http://www.herohill.com/2011/05/best-of-11-kate-maki-moonshine.htm

The Skope Reviews The Albertans’ New Age • 03.05.11

The Albertans aren’t from Alberta. Let’s just get that out of the way now. No gritty punk or honest-to-goodness country rock here. Instead, this Vancouver via Brooklyn five piece have combined the best of what both Vancouver and Brooklyn’s scenes are largely known for: fresh faced, melody driven pop with tons of indie sensibility and credibility as well. And to top it off, this is a band that has spent the majority of the last two years on the road, which could only mean one thing. New Age is a matured and timely debut full length that will soon be turning heads of the most discerning indie rock fans.

There is a certain gang mentality that permeates through the majority of New Age. And it’s not just the gang vocals and clap-along groove of “Mila” or the comfortable swoon of “Okay Now” which could easily corral a packed car full of road trippers into a sing-a-long. It’s the forward thinking mentality which keeps the band firing on all cylinders. There may not be a lot of rollicking, thrashing tracks on New Age, but what the album does feature is a constant build which never lets go. Quaint keyboards maintain a persistency on “People Don’t Go.” And just at the right moment, the album closing title track, a shuffling and bouncy number leaves the listener wanting more.

Writing catchy and mature pop songs is one thing, but having a sense of timing is another. Luckily for fans of the Albertans, New Age features both in spades.

http://skopemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/The-Albertans-New-Age.jpg

Peter Elkas Feature In View • 03.05.11

Spring is usually a dreary time for planting seeds, preparing gardens and beginning the first step in cultivating for a season’s growth. But for In the Soil, Niagara’s perennial arts festival its annual harvest is here and there is plenty to raise the spirits. This year’s Top Soil event features some of Canada’s most proficient and well–regarded musicians – Peter Elkas and Christine Bougie – in a special singer songwriter’s showcase.

Bougie may not be a household name, but she should be. She is an in–demand session musician and master of the lapsteel.  She has played on a number of Canadian albums including Amy Millan’s Masters of the Burial and Roxanne Potvin’s No Love for the Poisonous. She’s also crafted three vividly imaginative instrumental albums, Hammy’s Secret Life (2007), This is Awesome (with Dafydd Hughes) and her most recent Aloha Supreme (2010).  Aloha Supreme puts all sorts of jazzy spins on the lapsteel, an instrument usually reserved for folk, country and blues sounds. It’s supremely captivating and brilliantly tells a story without sharing a single word.

Bougie resided in St. Catharines for 18 years before heading to Toronto to study music at Humber College. She recalls he first few gigs downtown at The Club.

“Do you remember The Club? It was near where the Leonard Hotel was, a basement club,” recalls Bougie. “It was the only music venue I knew of that had bands every night and they had open mics on Sunday. I would hang around and play with whoever needed a guitar player to accompany them. That was when I was 14.

“I also played in my high school jazz quartet. We’d play gigs, like weird hotel conferences and things like that. Actually, Jakub Zapotoczny used to play in the same group. I also played with Sam Turton quite a bit – I knew his son Jesse and I started playing with his dad. We had a weekly at Beantrees – that was when I was 16 or 17.” [Ed’s note: Both Zapotoczny and Turton are also playing In the Soil]

Peter Elkas will also have his chance to shine onstage at the Sean O’ Sullivan Theatre. Elkas has just released his third full–length album, Repeat Offender. Elkas is noted for many musical offerings and depending on who you ask, he may be remembered from his 10+ years in the Montreal band the Local Rabbits, or more recently as a player in Joel Plaskett’s Emergency.

Elkas first earned his musical chops by playing harmonica and singing for the Local Rabbits. At 15, the Rabbits’ guitarist and vocalist Ben Gunning taught Elkas a couple guitar chords and his hunger for music went from there.

“It’s funny when you’re at that age you have – well I did anyway –  a great hunger for music. Like even much more so than I have now. I would constantly be learning songs and maybe there was a novelty to it. That hunger you have when you’re young is something that you take for granted I think,” muses Elkas. “We just kept at it, I think there was a mutual delusion within the band where we thought we were a pretty incredible group – whereas I’m sure we were not. That propelled us forever.

“I can remember playing at the Jailhouse Rock in Montreal probably once a month. We always had a gig there, I remember getting great gigs, like opening for Archers of Loaf, just because we were persistent as a group. And then somehow through a much longer and more boring story we ended up making friends with Sloan and recorded a 7” single for murderecords.”

The Local Rabbits went on to record three full length albums, the everything–including–the–kitchen sink, You Can’t Touch This (1995), the jazzy Basic Concept (1998) and the experimental, and fully–realized This is it Here we Go (2001). This summer marks the 20th anniversary of the band’s first gig. And as Elkas so fondly remembers, “We really loved playing shows and touring, so we did it at any cost. I don’t think the band ever made a cent, in fact, I know that for a fact.”

Elkas began his foray as a solo musician in 2001 and over the years has recorded, worked with or played alongside Don Kerr (Rheostatics), Ron Sexsmith, Joel Plaskett and Sam Roberts. His latest, Repeat Offender is a timeless and classic record loaded with soulful guitar licks, crooner–inspired vocals, a heady nod to ‘50s blues and just a taste of AM radio rock. “I kind of felt the songs dictated their own presentation. So like ‘Cool Thing to Do’ – it’s pretty much inspired by Sam Cooke, like a ‘50s–soul vibe and we were going to bring some saxophones into it because it’s kind of begging for it. Then, as soon as you do this you put a stamp on it that says ‘50s.”

Bougie’s jump to a career musician happened soon after she learned to play lapsteel in 2005. She’s been able to balance her career as both a session musician and an original composer. “To make a living I play with all these different people and I enjoy it and like the variety. I can’t really see how I can make a living just playing my music at this point yet. I’m slowly building it up and growing it slowly. So maybe in a few years, I can do that more full time, my own thing,” explains Bougie. “Right now, it’s partly out of me that I need to spread myself around and play with different people. I play lapsteel, guitar and drums in different bands – all that keeps me afloat. I spend the early part of the days working on my own stuff and then I switch brains and work on everybody else’s music later. It’s hard to balance but I have it worked out right now.”

For Elkas on the other hand, balancing jobs can be a little ruff. In the daytime he’s a dogwalker – nine of his canine clients can be seen on the cover of Repeat Offender.

It’s quite dear to him and really helps keep his musicmaking special. “It allows me to play my tunes and just play with Plaskett and I don’t really have to take any other gigs if I don’t have to. If they come along – then fantastic, if they don’t, I’m not worried about it. Music stays precious instead of like mandatory.

“You know how a lot of bands end up having their first album be their best? It’s probably because they wrote those tunes working crummy day jobs and they were incredibly hungry to be successful in music. Then later on, these bands have these records that are about the industry and you can’t get anymore unrelatable and boring than that kind of shit. Like Springsteen –  he’s kind of an anomaly, mind you – but he’s always been able to write for the working dude, like your average Joe, even though he’s never really had to be one, but he’s able to tap into that voice. I think the only other way to do it is to participate in the real world, and really observe and take it in and be a part of it and then you can really sing and talk about it in your songs.”

http://www.viewmag.com/13613-Peter+Elkas+%26+Christine+Bougie+Get+Dirty+at+the+In+the+Soil+Festival.htm

Daniel Romano Review on Earbuds & Ticket Stubs • 03.05.11

Daniel Romano’s Sleep Below the Willow is a modern classic

Only once in a blue moon does a song jolt you like a thunderclap and grab your full attention on the first listen. Daniel Romano achieved that with ”Time Forgot (To Change My Heart),” the opening track of Sleep Below the Willow, his second solo full-length. Thankfully, the electricity doesn’t stop after the first song in this country/folk instant classic.

To say that he is a musician’s musician would be an understatement. Sleep Beneath the Willow was released by You’ve Changed Records, Romano’s own imprint, and the album was also produced, engineered and recorded by Romano himself. His solo accomplishments only add to the already sizable acclaim that he’s received as part of Attack in Black and Daniel, Fred, and Julie.

Throughout the 11-song foray into loves come and gone, Sleep Beneath the Willow exudes a warm glow. Instrumentally, the marriage of guitar, pedal steel, fiddle, banjo and organ lay the perfect setting for the vocalists’ exquisite four-part harmonies. Romano’s rumbling bass is complemented flawlessly by Misha Bower (Bruce Peninsula), Tamara Lindeman (The Weather Station) and Lisa Bozikovic, leaving listeners with tingles.

I fell in love at first listen. But whether you’re weeping from the gorgeous ode that is “Louise,” kicking up your heels to “Hellen’s Restaurant” or clapping along with the audience in live-recorded closer “Nothing,” Daniel Romano is going to have your undivided attention for the duration of this beautiful album. And that’s a good thing.

http://www.earbudsandticketstubs.com/post/4782816265/album-review-daniel-romanos-sleep-below-the

Shotgun Jimmie In NOW Magazine • 03.05.11

I first listened to the confident new album by Shotgun Jimmie, aka Jim Kilpatrick, while painting my basement, and it instantly made the task more enjoyable. Honest-to-goodness joy pumps through the 16 brief rockers and interludes on Transistor Sister, released on You’ve Changed last month.

“That’s the way I’m feeling right now – truly, truly joyful,” says Kilpatrick over the phone from Welland, Ontario, where he’s in a basement rehearsing with his old Attack in Black buddies (and sometimes members of his touring band). “I feel like I’m in the right place at the right time. Things are really perfect for me.”

So how did the Ajax-raised, Sackville, New Brunswick-based indie rocker come to find himself in such a place? For years he contributed to Shotgun & Jaybird albums, and released two solo discs in 2007 and 2009, yet none capture the laid-back yet rocked-out bliss heard on his latest.

“I’ve always enjoyed playing music, but I haven’t felt this crazy exuberance for it until recently,” Kilpatrick admits. “I think it’s because it’s actually working in a business kind of way. That probably sounds like a crappy thing to be excited about, but it’s a relief. It’s not as much of a struggle as it’s always been.”

Written last year while touring Europe (and riding the rails through the Czech Republic), the album is climbing the college radio charts and putting Kilpatrick on the road for so long that he’s given up his apartment. Recorded in a pro studio – unusual for him – it merges elements of 90s East Coast slacker rock with the brevity and punch of Jay Reatard’s Blood Visions, which he calls a “masterpiece.”

Even indie celebs are taking note. In a month, Shotgun Jimmie releases a split 7-inch (New Scotland) with Joel Plaskett, who joined him for an onstage duet at the Transistor Sister release show in Halifax.

“I’ve also always wanted an audience and not really had one before,” says the down-to-earth Kilpatrick. “This is the first time that people seem truly interested in a totally different way. That’s what’s really got me fired up.

“Now when I play there’s even more at stake. I look at every night as The Night. I constantly try new things so that each show is unique. All the musicians I surround myself with are highly experimental. It’s supposed to be kind of teetering, and it never gets stale.”

http://www.nowtoronto.com/music/story.cfm?content=180259

Daniel Romano Interview in Toro Magazine • 03.05.11

Daniel Romano spends his days fronting indie rock group Attack in Black, and his nights, so to speak, being Daniel Romano, countryfied solo artist.

His second record Sleep Beneath the Willow finds him moving further into that realm, creating rustic stories and genuine romance. We spoke to him recently about finding that genre and balancing the many elements of his career.

How were you introduced to country music?
Probably from my grandparents. They would play silly country songs when I stayed with them, during grade school lunches.

Were you drawn to it?
Yeah. It reminded me of things I liked, in terms of the songwriting.

What were you listening to, at the time?
Punk rock, probably.

What similarities did you see?
I felt the songwriting was quite similar, and occasionally the attitudes. They both can have an “outlaw” appeal. Yeah.

When you really started to delve into the genre, were you surrounded by peers who shared the same taste?
Not really, no. When I started getting deeper into it, I was on tour with Attack in Black. And I was the only guy really enjoying it. That is kind of a ridiculous thing, like if you don’t like (country music) you really don’t like it. You kind of have to pay really close attention to get anything out of it.

This is your second solo record in less than a year. Did you have a sudden burst of creativity?
I imagine I’ll be consistent (releasing albums). It’s an outlet for me. I can work on it whenever I want, don’t have to wait for anyone to come help.

Do you consider yourself a prolific writer?
Other people do. I don’t really know. I suppose, technically, that might be accurate by today’s standards. It wasn’t so unusual before country and pop really crossed over. Yeah, but generally all they had to do to compile records was to sing songs that other people wrote. It can take much longer to write your own songs. Generally, I like to write my own songs, but sometimes there’s something undeniable you feel you need to re-introduce. Some songs have such great melodies that need to be re-introduced.

Have you considered working as a songwriter for other artists?
I would love to be in that position, because I don’t necessarily like touring. That’s the ideal job, really. Writing songs and having other people record them. I like playing shows, but I don’t like touring.

What is the most challenging part of touring?
Sort of being contained. Not really knowing what to expect. The usual stuff.

In terms of assembling a backing group for a solo record, do you try and surround yourself with acquaintances, or maybe bring in musicians you’ve never worked with before?
I’ve been supporting the record with a great group of people, including my brother Spencer on acoustic guitar. The only guy I really didn’t know before was Aaron Goldstein, who plays pedal steel guitar. I’d met him a couple times, but I dropped him a line, and he was into it. And now we’ve all become good pals. It’s a really good group of people. They can learn things really fast.

Is it possible to have a productive music output with someone you don’t share that personal connection with? Have you been in that position before?
I have not, personally, but usually any sort of musical connection will evolve into a personal one. I have not been in that position before, but I would imagine it’s possible, sure.

Country music, more than most other genres, lends itself to lyrical storytelling. Do you consider yourself a storyteller?
I suppose so, yeah. That’s a relatively new thing for me, that I am enjoying.

How heavily do you draw from your own experiences, in that respect?
The new record has nothing to do with me, aside from the occasional love song. Many of the actual stories are just completely fictional. You just think of the most dramatic things you can, and then you dial it back.

What are your plans for touring this material?
I would like to. I’ve hired as the guitarist for City and Colour, and they are getting pretty busy, so I’ll be doing that for a good while!

http://www.toromagazine.com/music/interviews/081fed5d-145f-d2d4-85b4-3668a0218a5e/Daniel-Romano/index.html

ChartAttack Reviews The Albertans’ New Age • 08.04.11

Now Magazine Reviews Giant Hand’s Starting As People • 08.04.11

Armed with a guitar and just a few chords, Ottawa’s Giant Hand (aka Kirk Ramsay) has quickly made a name for himself in his hometown and beyond, opening for Immaculate Machine, Born Ruffians and his hero, Daniel Johnston. Produced and engineered by the Acorn’s Rolf Klausener, this EP features sparse, hypnotic arrangements that put the focus squarely on Ramsay’s plaintive vocals.

Committed to themes of mortality and death, the lyrics are simply poetic, with startling lines connecting the physical to the spiritual. Ramsay sings of becoming trees in the afterlife (Starting As People II), enjoying life while you can (Another Step Down) and the magic of reading by flashlight (Books) as told from a child’s POV. It’s an odd but interesting love letter to life, love and music.

http://www.nowtoronto.com/music/discs.cfm?content=180044