Honest Heart Collective's Thunder Bay Road

The Honest Heart Collective’s ‘Liars Club’ has a built in contradiction. The album is the debut from the Thunder Bay rockers who combine some good ol’ Yankee heartland rock (Springsteen, Mellencamp) with some northern most tip of the Canadian country sound (The Band); Thunder Bay to Thunder Road.
Lead vocalist/guitarist Ryan MacDonald says the Liars Club is for good people who do bad things, “every person has two sides, it’s about making mistakes and making up for them. Just because you've done some bad things doesn't make you a bad person,” he says.
MacDonald and his brother, bassist, Nic, form the heart of the Collective. They shared music tastes when they were young and a taste for the devil’s water as they got older.
“My brother and I have been playing in bands since we were kids. In 2012, I moved to Ottawa for school and somewhere along the line I developed a love for Irish whiskey and started writing/recording songs. I'd send the Pro Tools sessions to Nic and he'd write all the bass parts for me and send them back. Those songs eventually became The Honest Heart Collective and we've had that brotherly, whiskey loving attitude ever since,” says MacDonald.

Other members of the band are Kevin Heerema on guitar, Jay Savage on drums and keyboardist Conner Harris. 
MacDonald says musically they have been compared to the Boss and while he says Thunder Bay has no direct influence on the music they make he adds “lots of people have said we have a Springsteen-esqe sound and I think that comes with growing up in a small blue collar city just like he did.”
The T-Bay is a working class town and as such its glory days may be behind it now. There have been a lot of changes in The Lakehead however as the area transitions. MacDonald says the music scene is thriving and the city is an open and intense place to learn and earn your chops. It is after all where Neil Young met Steven Stills.
“There's so many great musicians in Thunder Bay so everyone feeds off each other, it’s a friendly competition but it's extremely supportive at the same time,” he says.
Aukland (Mississauga) are supporting the Honest Heart Collective on their current south Ontario tour.
 

Hey Mother Death are gone daddy gone

Canadian author Hugh Maclennan wrote “Go to the musicians . . .  in the work of a few musicians you can hear every aspect of this conflict between light and dark within the soul.” 

Hey Mother Death are among those enlightened musicians MacLennan spoke of. The duo also bring to mind MacLennan’s great novel of national identity, Two Solitudes. The dual European heritage of Canada dealt with so eloquently by the Haligonian writer is mirrored in the duality of Hey Mother Death. Denma Peisinger is an English Canadian (from Halifax) and Laurence Strelka is from Paris, French French as she says.

The two met in Paris and the project was born there. They have since moved to the wild barrens of Cape Breton. They create sonic soundscapes tracks that run between the two solitudes of light and dark, of space and confinement, of wide open landscapes and close quartered urban streets. The name references an Allen Ginsberg poem and the high priest of beat was no stranger to the pursuit of balance. Much of “Highway”, their debut five song LP, was composed partly in Paris and partly in the Canadian and the French countryside says Strelka and the trick was finding the road between. 
“There is definitely tension, a clash when the album was beginning. I felt the music itself, when we made it was very very atmospheric. Laurence really wanted to groove and I actually really love to too. At first I didn’t get it but once it clicked then it was finding the groove and we found it naturally in the rhythms that were happening in the ambient parts. But 'The Hills', that started with just drums and then we took a more dub approach to build that atmosphere,” says Peisinger.

“When I came back to Canada to work on “Highway” I was bringing a kind of grooving, beats and kind of a dancing rhythm which is really part of French culture,” says Strelka, “The French love beats and groove and basslines.” 

Peisinger says there is no line in sight when they begin to write. They just begin. They take a very spontaneous approach, mixing free jazz and dub and just “follow the music,” he says.

“We have found it very productive to be in wild spaces when we work because I think whats going to happen is that for us its always a surprise and always uncovering. For us, its constantly, we don’t know where its going. Its always uncovering and developing. Its completely uncertain and can be nerve-racking when we are composing. When we were making Highway there were times when I completely doubted it, whether it was working and what was going on but we just pray and follow it.”
While France and Canada are the physical landscapes they draw from they say they bring a wide mix of influences and music styles to their own compositions but always seeking the edge and how far they can travel to find it.

“We come from many different places,” says Peisinger, “I spent some time apprenticing with free jazz composer Jerry Granelli whom I relate too but my vision is spontaneous composition. Laurence comes from a theatre background and she has the same approach. Musically we both love blues music. I was the first thing we spoke about when we met. What we listen to a lot is music coming from Black art and culture, also the Jamaican dub tradition. We have been introducing each other to music. Laurence has introduced me to the world of European electronica. At the moment we are both very excited about Grace Jones.”

Jamaican and New Yorker Jones is a great touchstone for Hey Mother Death who trade in the sounds of the old trade routes between Nova Scotia and the Caribbean as well as the French Connection. From Jones its an easy leap to Massive Attack and the Mad Professor and from them a sly Vespa ride to Hey Mother Death.

The Ginsberg quote by the way is from Father Death Blues, “Hey Old Daddy I know where I’m going”. Hey Mother Death don’t want to know where they are going they are just going because, as Ginberg's mate Kerouac said “There was nowhere to go but everywhere. . .”
 

Grey Lands' Right Arm took some left turns

In one of the first interviews I had with the Hamilton-based, Oshawa-raised, Wayne Petti, he told me when Cuff The Duke started their intention was to marry the punk of Nirvana with the country of Johnny Cash to create a new sound.  For most of Cuff's records the songs veered more towards the Cash side of things but with Petti's new project Grey Lands he is steering things back to the punkier side of the street.

"When I first started playing guitar all I was listening to was Nirvana, Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., Pavement," says Petti, "I've always really liked the sound of those bands. In Cuff The Duke we touch on those influences but never went head first into those sounds and styles so to speak."

He says he wanted to take a break from the roots scene he has long been a part of and explore some other styles. The tracks on Grey Lands' Right Arm available on Paper Bag Records have been brewing for almost five years he said. He just had to wait and see where they took him.

"I wanted the songs to be melodic but also have the option of taking a complete left turn away from that at times. The rest of the record has a lot of moments like that," he says.

A video for False Alarm has been released. Listen for the left turns.

Q&A with folk singer Nick Ferrio

Peterborovian Nick Ferrio has a new album, Amongst The Coyotes and the Birdsongs" available on Shuffling Feet Records. He has been touring and will play the Manantler Craft Brewery in Bowmanville Aug. 15. 

Q - How long have you been solo and how many records do you have?
“I've been making music on my own in a variety of projects since I was a teen. Under my own name, I've  recorded and released two full length albums and two 7" records. My first was "Introducing Nick Ferrio and his Feelings" in 2012, followed by a 7" "Half the Time," in 2013. Then in 2015 I released a 7" "Come Hell or High Water" and my recent full length "Amongst the Coyotes and Birdsongs."

Q - The title Amongst coyotes and birdsongs indicates a place where the record was built - tell me about that place?
“I wrote a lot of the songs on this album in Dawson City, Yukon. I was there for a month-long writing residency put on by the Dawson City Music Festival. A lot of people I love have been drawn to Dawson - it's sort of the final frontier - and so I was drawn to write about that place and the relationships I had with those people.”

Q - So many collaborations, was that something that was planned or just evolved over the course of recording?
“The collaborative spirit kind of came together spontaneously on this record. It's a lot of friendships and a lot of love. I'm a bit of an over-sharer, and as I wrote songs and denied them, I would contact friends like Ian Kehoe or Steve Lambke or Tamara Lindeman - musicians and friends who I admired and trusted - and send them a song to see what they thought. I felt like they needed to be a part of being the record to fruition.
“I mean, I recorded a part of the album in Sackville, NB and I wanted to work with Julie Doiron because she's one of my musical heroes and more importantly a great friend. Steve Lambke, of the Cons, who I've worked with and been close with for many years was in Sackville and had amazing ideas for contributions, so we worked together in Sackville as well. 
“In the Toronto sessions, I worked with Gavin Gardiner of The Wooden Sky in a producer, engineer role and asked Ian Kehoe of Marine Dreams, Steve Lambke and Gavin to make up the core of the band for the majority of the songs with a full band. Jonas Bonnetta and Sylvie Smith of Evening Hymns are dear friends and so is Tamara Lindeman of The Weather Station, and I wanted their input, their magic on my record too.”

Q - Why use so many?
“Everyone involved is a songwriter or composer in their own regard, so having many songwriters thinking about my songs allows the record to be more complex and enriched than it would've been otherwise.”

Q- with so many people involved how did you ensure your vision and voice wouldn't get lost?
“Gavin did a fantastic job of making sure that the record stayed cohesive and focused. I mean the songs are such Nick Ferrio songs, that my voice and vision are at the forefront. 
“It's all about doing what's best for the song. So at the end of the day, everyone's contribution was aiming to guide the song, give it room to be its own entity, stand on its two legs.”

Q - How do you know Jonas and how did you end up on his label?
“Jonas and I have been friends for a decade and have worked on a bunch of projects over the years. He's one of the funniest people I know and has this innate ability to make whoever he's hanging out with feel like what they are doing is important and meaningful. When I finished recording "Introducing," I sent it to Jonas and he urged me to release it through Shuffling Feet. He's been a huge supporter of what I do and a mentor. I love the guy!”

Americana Review of Daniel Romano latest

by Guest writer Jason Gartshore of Americana Review

The current state of country music is a hotly debated subject in several music circles.  The widespread popularity of the most current incarnation of what is considered country is undeniable, but there remains a small group of rebel artists out there that are not buckling to the pressures of mainstream country music stardom. Indeed, these modern day outlaw musicians such as Sturgill Simpson, Jamey Johnson, Jason Isbell, Kasey Musgraves and Brandy Clark are carving out a little piece of the traditionalist pie while making some real hay on the music scene.  Among these wonderful artists who is picking up the traditionalist flag is Welland, Ontario’s own Daniel Romano releasing his fifth album “If I’ve Only One Time Asking” on independent powerhouse New West Records.

Released on July 31st, Romano takes the listener on a journey back in time with a record that harkens back to a real classic, Nashville country sound.  The uniqueness of Romano’s creativity comes through with some of the psychedelic interludes between the tracks on the album. The effect is what sets Romano apart and showcases another side of his immense talent.  

Leading off with “I’m Gonna Teach You”, Romano makes clear that his heart lies in the old school of classic country music. It’s a great song about revenge on an abusive boyfriend/husbandand could be told from the perspective of a woman’s brother.  “I’m Gonna Teach You” is a short song, containing only one verse and the chorus.  The string section adds classic country feel. The song highlights Romano’s unique ability to capture the pain of George Jones, the growl of Conway Twitty and the soul of Keith Whitley. The listener learns right away that this gentleman is a special talent.

“Old Fires Die” speaks to the slow demise of a marriage, and features a killer line “I get more happiness from a bottle, and more love from a stranger.” The line captures the bitterness and sorrow of the subject matter in all its painful glory.

“Strange Faces” is a solid mid-tempo number that will appeal to steel guitar aficionados, with that instrument featured prominently. This is a great song of awakening, liberation and acceptance reminiscent of singer-songwriter Murray McLaughlin’s earlier material.

“If I’ve Only One Time Asking”, the title track, is a lyrical wonderpiece, a finely crafted tune that leaves the listener with a few ways to interpret the story.  Does the lead get the girl at the end after professing his true love?  Or does he get spurned by the object of his affection?  

“The One That Got Away”, the album’s first single is just a killer song.  It’s a familiar story of a young man suffering a broken heart, but what sets this song apart from the field is the way the main character discovers his lover has chosen a past flame over him.  The despondent lines “the one that got away, came back today” and “from lover, to yesterday’s news” captures the disappointment and hurt that we’ve all felt at some point in our lives.

((( Listen to The One That Got Away here ))) 

“Two Word Joe” is a fun little up tempo song about a guy whom love drives insane, to the point where he only speaks to words at a time, mostly reminiscing about the end of his past loves.

While country music may be experiencing a general identity crisis, with the subject matter focusing more on tailgate parties, tan lines, pickup trucks and girls in tight tops and short shorts, it’s comforting to know that artists like Daniel Romano are around to remind us that some purveyors of country music are sticking true to their roots.  “If I’ve Only One Time Asking” is a fine example of that strength.