By Will McGuirk
Singer slash songwriter slash producer slash hired hand Jim Bryson heads to Oshawa for a rare gig. He will be playing in-store at Kops Records in Oshawa Thursday Nov. 17 2022. Sagen Pearse of Hollowsage will open. The gig runs 7 to 9 p.m. Doors open 6:30 p.m.
Bryson has released several albums since he departed the band Punchbuggy in the late 1990s, the most recent one is ‘County WiFi’, recorded at his own Fixed Hinge studio. has worked with many artists including The Weakerthans, Kalle Mattson, Kathleen Edwards; he is the subject of Edwards's song "I Make the Dough, You Get the Glory." Edwards album ‘Total Freedom’ was produced by Bryson.
Slowcity.ca reached out to Jim by email for a catch-up.
Slowcity.ca: As you haven't played Oshawa before can you pinpoint some of your career highlights for the good folks here, and tell me why you chose those highlights?
Jim Bryson: “I have actually played here. . . in the 90's at the Moon Room but more recently somewhere like 2014 with Jenn Grant. . . Career Highlights? Hard to say. . . Had a song on the CBC top 5. . . have an old record recently mentioned in the UK as a top record of the 2000's in the Americana Genre. . . helping others make records and doing my own is a nice balance for the most part. I find myself feeling a sort of personal return in that I think my shows are better, I think I'm finding ways to be more consistent with the shows and just finding this community and friends are all coming out of the caves of Covid and looking for connection.”
SC: Country WiFi, what a fab little album, and I mean that in the intensity of its intimacy - tell me about the production on it and what you were trying to capture?
JB: “I think the idea was to make compact songs that carried their power in a subtle way vs yelling from the hilltops. I was making songs over last year's winter when the lockdown had us mostly home and no one on the songs were actually ever in the same room with me. . . it was all remote collaboration.”
SC: I hear something similar to Steve Lambke in your work; very personal, great beauty, - have you worked with Steve at all and is there any cross-over in your work and his?
JB: “I adore Steve and his Baby Eagle songs and way of presenting songs and kind of have always thought I'd be nice on his label, but I never asked except once a 1000 years ago. Hehehehe.”
SC: There are habits which built up during the lockdown for all of us, some of us were happy to withdraw, how have you been moving from the shut-down, in a certain isolation, and now being back on the road in front of people?
JB: “It was and is def a transition to be out in the world as I found myself, despite the public idea of me being very outgoing, of not being that way. . . texting and messaging friends but talking to people face to face much less and not meeting up or being out def had an impact on me where I find it a little harder to get the energy going, but I'm always up for some shows and moments like this. . . then I can just go back inside after hehehe”
SC: Tell me about some of your projects over the past couple of years as things were disrupted - you worked on Kathleen Edwards' Total Freedom, how was that to facilitate?
JB: “Kathleen was interesting because I wasn't initially involved, but got brought onboard when her initial Nashville sessions weren't exactly the sound that maybe she was seeking. . . I think it was easier for her to come over and work out ideas and such here and bring her dogs and leave when wanted etc. to get back to feeling more motivated to get the songs done.”
“Super happy with records from Ken Yates, Caroline Marie Brooks (The Good Lovelies) and Suzie Ungerleider which were made in a strange and different ways due to the constraints of the lockdowns, but oddly, they feel really refreshing to me in that they were made in a less tradition beginning / middle / way of working.”
Kops Records is located at 156 Simcoe Street South in Oshawa. This is an all ages show with a suggested donation of $20.
Below for your further edification is a fab long form interview Jim did with David Myles.
