Erik Athavale
Athavale
(Indie)

B+

Website: www.athavaleonline.com

Steve Bell
My Dinner With Bruce: Songs of Bruce Cockburn
(Signpost Music)

A



Website: www.steve-bell.com

Larry LeBlanc of Billboard Magazine has called Steve Bell a “musical treasure,” and I’m sure LeBlanc wouldn’t hesitate to apply the same label to Bruce Cockburn. Bell himself would certainly agree, so he decided to cover 13 of his favourite Cockburn songs on My Dinner With Bruce. The result is a lovingly selected, delicately delivered series of songs that have become a part of Bell’s life. Steve is a passionate, deeply spiritual man, and songs such as Red Brother Red Sister and Thoughts on a Rainy Afternoon resonate with those qualities. Front and centre are Bell’s fretwork and voice. Both are impeccable, and on Wondering Where the Lions Are Bell comes pretty damn close to capturing the brilliance Paul Simon mastered on Graceland. If you think of Bell simply as a Christian artist, you’re missing out. This guy’s good, period, and if there’s any justice in the world Bell will one day actually get to sit down to dinner with Cockburn. — MW

Chelsea Crawford
The Masquerade
(Indie)

B



Website: www.chelseacrawford.com

Some debuts sound exactly like debuts, while others are fully realized compositions that skilfully introduce an artist. The Masquerade, the first offering from singer/pianist Chelsea Crawford, is of the latter variety, which is a credit to Crawford; her four-piece band, The Styles; and producer Jeff Lukin. Lukin, who also plays guitar in the band, highlights Crawford’s voice, adding a touch of reverb to give things a sexy, loungy vibe, especially on cuts such as Oochy Koochy Man. The 13 tracks included here cover a wide range of styles; the title track is a jazzy number, Listen is just a little bit rootsy, Intro to Insomnia is a clever piano piece that successfully incorporates a few classic radio samples, and Perfect Day has a hint of new wave pop. As eclectic as The Masquerade is, everything fits together pretty well. The aforementioned Perfect Day is a miss, and Crawford’s smoky voice can be just a bit too breathy at times, but overall this is a very nice introduction to a young woman to watch for in the future. — MW

Crosley
The Crosley Collection
(Indie)

B

Winnipeg’s most prolific asshole serves up the disc the public has been waiting for — a greatest-hits collection that selects only the most offensive tracks from his five previous assaults. Yes, the production values are still crap, but that’s beside the point. Crosley makes me laugh — plain and simple. It’s not a giggle but rather the kind of laughter that occurs when someone rips a fart so beautifully heinous that you can only gag and bust a gut at the same time. If you like Kids in the Hall humour, old Andrew Dice Clay and vicious social commentary, check this out. Previously unreleased cuts When She Hits the Stage and Coleslaw Ribshack round out the set, but the semi-apocalyptic It’s Just a Matter of Time and the nonsensical The Evil That Dogs Do still make me laugh the hardest and cringe the most. — MW

If The Duhks are modern bluegrass tastemakers and D. Rangers are mutant bluegrass rockers, then The Doug and Jess band are Winnipeg’s old-time bluegrass purists — and thank goodness for that. With a sound and style steeped in the Appalachian music Doug Reimer listened to while growing up, this father-daughter team (he plays guitar and his voice is high and lifeworn, while she handles a double bass and offers up a clear, bright alto) has developed a one-two punch that touches on all aspects of bluegrass tradition. You’ll find lovelorn laments, richly textured life tales, heartfelt spiritual testifying and even a traditional blues sashay on this collection, which is split between songs penned by both of the group’s mainstays. While the Reimers provide the tunes, banjo player Tim Osmond and multi-instrumentalist Jeremy Hamm give them their colour, bringing wailing, piercing tones that make the songs seem to drip with bluegrass authenticity. Congratulations also go out to local producer Norm Dugas (Alana Levandoski, The Duhks), whose deft touch with acoustic instruments is tremendous. — JK

You might have heard Floor Thirteen’s Bright Light Rockin’ City on Power 97. It’s a straight-up cock-rockin’ cut, but it isn’t really all that indicative of the music the quartet plays. Bright Light is a guitar-driven rocker in the vein of AC/DC, but the next four tracks on this EP paint the band as a melodic post-grunge outfit that’s been influenced by the likes of OLP, Live, Incubus and Moist. What’s clear is that these guys are still discovering themselves. Jeremy (Koz) Kozielec, Aaron Vandall, Marc Jaworski and Billy Kiely are working on a full-length follow-up, and it’ll be interesting to see which direction they take. There’s potential here, but Floor Thirteen will need to dial it in to take the next step. — MW

In just 65 minutes, veteran Canadian singer/songwriter Don Freed tells the tale of an entire people, from origin to present day, in a thoroughly researched, wonderfully humanist history of the Métis and the Red River Settlement. The scope and magnitude of this project is almost unfathomable — work began with a small grant in 1991 — yet Freed manages the journey from beginning to end in just 15 songs, culminating with a breathtaking singalong of When This Valley (considered by some to be the Métis national anthem) at the old church in Batoche, Sask. This musical trek, which encompasses folk, roots, blues, jigs and reels, begins in the 17th century and touches on the fur-trade wars, the first settlements at Red River, the massacre at Seven Oaks, the politics of ‘Manitobah,’ the tale of Louis Riel and Sir John A. Macdonald, and the struggle of a people without a home. Along the way we meet many remarkable characters, from the first man named ‘Sansregret’ to Gabriel Dumont and his rifle, ‘Le Petit.’ Aided and abetted by a star-studded cast of local roots and bluegrass players, from Dan Frechette to Sierra Noble to four-fifths of The Duhks, the thin-voiced but always passionate Freed has created a masterpiece of musical storytelling. How he’ll recreate this live is anybody’s guess — but I’d love to see him try. — JK

Scott Hinkson was last heard on Under the Radar as a member of Snooper. Hinkson’s on his own again, and Tracking Outside In finds him mining the melodic rock vein — with a little experimentation thrown in. Hinkson was once a member of Far Gone with Trevor Tuminski of Jet Set Satellite, and both Tuminski and fellow JSS member Dave (Bulldog) Swiecicki lend a hand, as do Serena Postel and others. For the most part, however, this is all Hinkson — he wrote, performed, recorded, engineered and mastered all 12 cuts here. These songs were recorded over a five-year period, so there’s some variety. Some experiments aren’t as successful as The Bow Song, but on that track Hinkson manages to create not just a song but an environment and a mood. Lately, Everything Solo and On the Inside also warrant some love. Nice stuff, with more to follow, hopefully. — MW

Instrumental. Funkadelic. Bassoholic. Stereophonic. Scratchomatic. Hypnodelic. Soulfantastic. Veggieorganic. Monumental. Ecstatic. Fundamental. Experiential. Breakbeatmental. And so orchestral. Yes, describing The Hummers requires a shopping trip for adjectives to the same magical corner store that carries the ingredients of the band’s super-rich, eclectic stew. Call it funk for backpackers if you will, but these white boys create a hip-shaking, earth-quaking, spine-motivating pastiche of sounds — most live, some Memorex, but all put together in a way that should see this loose collective of Winnipeg musos and misfits shaking dance floors across the country for at least the next year, if not more. Joel Klaverkamp, Benoit Morrier, Craig Bjerring, Jason Banman, Joel Shane, Mark Hoeppner, Matthew Lawrence, Mike Germain and Tyler Sneesby were the cooks this time out. Let’s hope it doesn’t take another three years for them to digest this one. — JK

Passerbye is the follow-up to 2004’s In Reply, and the new offering finds the group a quartet again. Guitarist Wes left the band early in ’05, but his departure hasn’t really affected I Witness’ sound. The boys still play melodic rock, and frontman Robb still brings Raine Maida to mind. These are polished songs — getting elite local knob-twiddler Brandon Friesen to produce helped with that — but I’m just not sold on Robb’s voice. He’s an emotional singer and his passion is obvious on the 11 cuts presented here, but sometimes he just sounds strained and a bit nasal. See My Chemical for an example. It’s difficult to convey tension and strain without sounding tense and strained, but if it were easy Janis Joplin wouldn’t be a legend. These guys are dedicated and they’re in it for the long run, so keep checking back to see what they come up with. — MW

Kram Ran is Mark Wolgemuth, a young man from Southern Manitoba who uses electronic music as a vehicle to explore his feelings and thoughts on loneliness, love and God. For the most part, though, he should keep these thoughts to himself. Some of his lovelorn lyrics read like those of a cringe-inducingly bad emo band, but the spiritual metaphor in Press Play, I’m Leaving, while certainly not original, is rather deftly put. Wolgemuth fares better with the creation of his soundscapes, which can be harsh and aggressive but which most often sound like the tonal explorations of melody and structure that Radiohead and Wilco have toyed with in recent years. Again, it’s mostly derivative stuff — distorted string sections, amplified clocks and electronic heartbeats abound — but Wolgemuth has at least realized a vision. He may do better with film scores, where the textual structure is not his own. — JK

In 1997, Rik Leaf moved left the Okanagan for Winnipeg. That’s kinda weird, but so’s Leaf. He’s also kinda talented, and his latest album is proof of that. A 13-song serving of pop-rock, …Now Is the Winter of Our Discontent is the creation of a thoughtful poet with a gift for words. “Your love has ruined me/And I know you’d say the same/Still I can’t wait to feel you again,” Leaf sings on Our Love, and that lyric alone should be enough to send you thumbing through the liner notes for more gems. Leaf isn’t the most gifted singer, but he holds his own, and the layered vocals on Fly Away and Days of Wonder are a nice touch. Musically, What We’ve Been Waiting For is the best cut. Leaf adds a little fuzz to the guitar, throws in a synth and plays with dynamics to create a groovy foot-tapper that calls for repeat listens. Other songs put violin, viola, mandolin and didgeridoo to good use. Catch Leaf live April 1 at the Folk Exchange. — MW

Singer/songwriter Kim McMechan wrote all the tuness on this CD in Winnipeg before moving back home to B.C. Little Grey House is her parting gift, a collection of nine achingly lonely songs. McMechan is definitely a poet at heart, and it’s a shame that her voice can’t quite give these words the delivery they deserve. Still, the gentle guitars, pianos and strings here make for a delicate disc that’s pretty accurately summarized by its title. The best song here is Leah, a tune that will make you wonder just what emotions your environment makes you keep inside, and The Way You Come & Go is a heart-wrenching poem about a relationship we’ve all been in. McMechan has a gift for words and imagery — a trip to the diary section of her website further proves this — and she’ll be something when her musicianship catches up with her pen. — MW

Thank Slayer for Mung. Some Local Heroes issues go by with a parade of singer/songwriters — which is fine — but it’s nice to see Winnipeg’s metal community represented once in a while. Mung stands for the smelly, leather-clad, long-haired bangers who call the Albert and The Zoo home, and the three-piece outfit carries the pentagrammed flag well. Talented players Johnny Mung, Hawg and Peeker take legs from thrash, arms from death metal, a black metal torso and a hardcore head to create an undead monster that walks, screams, kills and worships Satan — all while offering a touch of social commentary. Only one song here breaks the four-minute mark, meaning these are short, angry shots of aural violence that get in, shout at you, wreck the place and leave a trail of blood behind. Standout track is Shadow, a multi-movement punisher that’ll leave you in pieces. The Dark Lord commands you to get this disc. — MW

Earnest and admirably wholesome, Katie Murphy’s folksy pop is like a gentle breeze, in that it wafts over the listener without really stirring anything. On this eight-song disc, the prodigal Winnipegger (who just returned home from Toronto) lets her guitar and alto loose on songs that deal with motherhood, love relationships and the joys of living. The lyrics are undoubtedly sincere and her sentiment is sunny throughout, but most of these songs lack memorable melodies or even ear-catching refrains. The one notable exception is When I Got Sick, a soulful, jazzy ode to a lover that brings Joss Stone to mind. — JK

Alt-rock? Alterna-pop? Prog pop-rock? Cake on a bad trip? Neken is all those things and more, so, if anything, the band is representative of those groups that aren’t content with the status quo. Each of the eight songs on this alb has something different to it. For example, Tied up With String starts off as a basic acoustic guitar track, but soon a synth is bubbling and beeping in the background. Then we get a little screaming before Christopher Johns sings softly over an acoustic axe to close the song down. Some of the experimentation works and some doesn’t, but the main problem with several songs is that the vocals simply don’t seem to blend with the music. On verse sections of The Underground, Johns sounds like he’s forced into the mix, almost as though the vocals are battling the instruments. Still, this quintet should be commended for pushing further than the average pop record usually does. God knows we have enough cookie-cutter crap out there these days. — MW

God, it’s nice to hear some sophisticated, cosmopolitan pop/rock music from a Winnipeg band. That was my first thought as I dug into the latest offering from the reconstituted Paper Moon, a disc which comes four-plus years on the heels of the group’s debut. With a collection of 11 breezily bittersweet tunes, a full sound made fuller by expressive keyboard work, cascading vocals and exquisite production from Brandon Friesen, these five (now six) players have emerged as the city’s suave boulevardiers. Singer/keyboardist/guitarist Allison Shevernoha stands front and centre here, making this album a compelling pop confessional that recognizes life’s petty foibles, its stolen moments and its late, reflective nights. She and drummer Chris Hiebert (the band’s other main songwriter) truly hit the mark on songs such as So Far Away, Is It Too Much to Ask? or the absolutely sublime Daytrip to Salzburg. Call up a radio station and request it. Now. — JK

Released in January, Repeated Stories EP finds singer/songwriter Melissa Plett assembling a talented cast of locals to craft a great little album. At its core, this disc is a woman with a guitar, but the sound is fleshed out by Dave Pankratz (Quinzy), Matt Epp, John Paul Peters (who also produced the disc), Brian James and others. The full effect is quietly beautiful, especially on Be Here Tonight and Winter in September. Both songs are patient, down-tempo numbers that allow Plett’s clear, warm voice to shine, and both songs can stir up some emotion if they catch you in the right mood. Hell, the delicate guitars and mournful violin on Be Here Tonight made this banger sniffle just a bit. In the liner notes Plett writes: “Thanks for the song, now I’ll move on.” No, Melissa, thank you. — MW

Bands with ‘fuck everybody’ attitudes simply demand your attention — but once they’ve got it they’d better hold it. Thankfully, The Quiffs’ take on this approach beats with the feral pulse of primal rock ’n’ roll. In just 23 minutes and 17 seconds, bassist Meghan Flett, singer/guitarist Erica Jacobson, drummer Alana Mercer and guitarist Gillian Oswald declare that they don’t like boys, defend Paul Reubens’ masturbatory tendencies, sing a song named after themselves and offer up the best damn recorded version of the word ‘destroy’ since John Lydon. Just for fun they also tell jocko homos and tit-flashin’ bimbos alike to keep their shirts on. For some bands that would be a career. For these four proudly amateurish hellions it’s just a start. So rock on Quiffs (ROQ).
— JK

Yet another local who should be blessed with the time and money to record more often, Schellenberg is a well-travelled player steeped in the roots, folk and blues traditions of storytelling and songwriting. He’s also pretty good at recreating it in his own fashion, harnessing his richly timbred alto (which many liken to John Sebastian) to lovingly rendered songs of travel and settlement, hope and faith, love and despair. Best among the nine originals offered here are Beauregard Avenue, a finely drawn portrait of a rough-and-tumble neighbourhood, and Hit the Ground Running, an eventful but unsentimental father-and-son tale that may well be the best song he’s written — it certainly wouldn’t sound out of place next to recent similarly themed work by Rodney Crowell or Steve Earle. As if that wasn’t enough, Schellenberg throws in a couple of jigs and traditionals that show off both his virtuosity and his versatility. — JK

Without much fanfare, the fivesome that calls itself Sick City has become a formidable force in the past year, and the proof is in this five-song debut EP, which practically dares modern rock radio to come calling. If stations do bite, the freshness and ferocity of this band’s straightforward, unjaded approach to hard emo should help persuade those naysayers who still feel that melody and powerful, punkified crunch cannot coexist. At times, the dueling lead guitars, crunching changes and ambitious arrangements of this material recall the effect Def Leppard first had when it first blended harmonies and gang choruses with metal’s heavier elements. More recently, Story of the Year sometimes approaches this sound, but Sick City does it consistently, with more intelligence and with a secret weapon in singer Josh Youngson’s ability at the piano. Opening cut In the Millions sounds like a hit to me, and it’s the best kind of hit, too — one I’ll be happy to say I like. — JK

Silva favours house and house techno — laid-back sounds built around a basic groove that enables him to layer, loop and filter a variety of sound. On LoudMouth Sirens he creates an hour-long mood with varying results. First cut Sleepworking features a slow, funky groove with a jazzy sax floating through the mix, rising to the top just as the track reaches its most hypnotic vibe. Scorpio pokes fun at anonymous e-commerce and electronic dating with a hilarious spoken-word refrain. Another standout is Floaters, which slathers on layer after layer of sound and groove to become utterly compulsive, while the cowbells, misshapen piano and pipe sounds of Leaving New York will have you nodding your head and feet before you know it. The top track, though, has to be I Don’t Remember, a relatively simple funk shuffle that highlights the sexy, smoky vocals of Sherry St. Germain. — JK

Trouvères is the project of Jason Bernstein, who rounds out his rock-based sound with bassist Ariel Posen and drummer Darrin Cohen. This five-song EP moves easily from soft, rootsy music (Out of My Mind) to gentle retro rock (Common Problem), and it’s obvious that Bernstein learned a thing or two while busking in Canada and South Africa. These are casual acoustic songs in the best tradition of street-corner musicians, but they aren’t anything particularly special. Common Problem is the closest thing to a ‘hit.’ It’s got a Sweet Caroline sing-along quality, and I could see a room full of scruffies at the Times Change(d) singing “When I call you, I may as well cry-hi-hi!” with Bernstein. I might not buy this CD but I’d certainly love to finish a 40 of Southern Comfort with the band and then jam for a while. — MW

She’s a little bit folkie, he’s a little bit rock ’n’ roll. When put together, Brandy Zdan and Dave Quanbury are a rather exotic musical beast. Bethune is their first full-length as Twilight Hotel after a debut under their own names, and it’s a sprawling, well-crafted project that encompasses elements of Brecht/Weill cabaret (the title track and The Last Goodbye), down-home country (Lift Me Far), genuine swing (Scrapbook), straight-ahead rock ’n’ roll (34 Corduroy, Ponoka) and even a gentle reggae lilt (Santo & Johnny). Given its expansive tastes, Bethune is a hell of a journey — one that’s easiest made when Zdan is singing the lead vocal and Quanbury is accompanying her, rather than the other way ’round. Her voice best establishes this material’s emotional heart, while Quanbury’s guitar gives it colour, space and a sense of place. — JK