Single Servings, Feb. 14, 2022
In this week’s Single Servings, Orville Peck proves he’s no one-trick pony, The Rural Alberta Advantage returns, Ellevator keeps going up, Pretty Archie are feeling it, Yves Jarvis is perceptive, and much more!
By Jason Schneider
In this week’s Single Servings, Orville Peck proves he’s no one-trick pony, The Rural Alberta Advantage returns, Ellevator keeps going up, Pretty Archie are feeling it, Yves Jarvis is perceptive, and much more!
Orville Peck – C’mon Baby, Cry
Release Date: Feb. 11
Label: Sony Music Canada
The mysterious country singer is preparing to launch Bronco, the follow-up to his internationally acclaimed 2019 album Pony. C’mon Baby, Cry mixes classic honky tonk with expansive ‘60s pop, while showcasing Peck’s impressive pipes. Proof once more that he’s pushing Country in important new directions, much like k.d. lang did in the ‘80s.
Kathleen Edwards – Love
Release Date: Feb. 9
Label: Dualtone Records
The pride of Stittsville, Ontario will release a four-song EP entitled Dogs And Alcohol in April, containing the brand new title track, acoustic versions of a couple of songs from her 2020 album Total Freedom, and this tender John Lennon cover. Although a nice performance on its own, the string part really makes Edwards’ interpretation shine.
Pretty Archie – Familiar Feeling
Release Date: Feb. 11
Label: Curve Music
These Cape Breton folk-rockers are celebrating their ten-year anniversary with a new eponymous album out now, produced by legendary Canadian sonic wizard Mark Howard (Bob Dylan, The Tragically Hip). However, the band’s upbeat energy remains front and centre on Familiar Feeling, a pleasant ode to a long-lasting relationship.
Lisa LeBlanc – Me semble que c’est facile
Release Date: Feb. 9
Label: Bonsound
The previews of LeBlanc’s forthcoming Chiac Disco LP have so far seen the New Brunswick native push her traditional Acadian banjo-based sound into previously unexplored territory. But on Me semble que c’est facile, LeBlanc offers a haunting acoustic ballad whose title translates as “seems easy to me.” Could there even be a hint of Stairway To Heaven in there too?
Yves Jarvis – Prism Through Which I Perceive
Release Date: Feb. 8
Label: Flemish Eye
To coincide with his soon-to-launch tour with Andy Shauf, the ever-prolific Jarvis has shared this new track, accompanied by a typically brain-melting animated video by Chad Van Gaalen. On Prism Through Which I Perceive, Jarvis remains impossible to categorize, but even at just over a minute, this song packs more into it than many artists are able to do on a full album.
Ellevator – Slip
Release Date: Feb. 11
Label: Arts & Crafts
Hamilton’s Ellevator has been building a buzz since releasing their self-titled debut EP in 2019. The full-length, The Words You Spoke Still Move Me, will finally arrive this May, and with superstar producer Chris Walla (Death Cab For Cutie) at the controls, it’s likely to make a splash everywhere. Slip definitely sounds tailor-made for alt-rock radio, showcasing frontwoman Nabi Sue Bersche’s magnetic voice.
The Rural Alberta Advantage – CANDU
Release Date: Feb. 8
Label: Paper Bag Records
It’s been five years since we’ve heard from The Rural Alberta Advantage, and they’re making a tentative return with a two-song release, the “A-Side” of which tells the boom-and-bust story of Uranium City, Saskatchewan where much of the raw material for Canada’s nuclear reactors was mined. The song is an anthemic, bittersweet tribute to the vagaries of human endeavour.
Harrow Fair – Shadow (Acoustic)
Release Date: Feb. 2
Label: Roaring Girl Records
Shadow is the second song from Miranda Mulholland and Andrew Penner’s 2020 album Sins We Made to receive separate acoustic treatment. In this case, the stark arrangement fully underscores the song’s theme of addiction.
Jean-Michel Blais – passepied
Release Date: Feb. 4
Label: Mercury KX/Arts & Crafts
Montreal pianist Jean-Michel Blais’ approach has been termed “post-classical,” which can probably be better interpreted by the sound of his first ensemble album aubades. The piece passepied references the lively, fast-paced dance popular in the 17th and 18th century French court. Composer Claude Debussy composed his own version of the dance in his Suite bergamasque for piano, and inspired by Debussy, Blais successfully updated it for the 21st century.
JC Campbell – Walk In Love
Release Date: Feb. 11
Label: Merilainen Music
Following the path of contemporaries like William Prince and Julian Taylor, Winnipeg singer/songwriter JC Campbell uses vintage country and blues as the basis for his sound, which also draws heavily from his Indigenous background. However, Walk In Love is a pure outpouring of Soul, and a fine taste of Campbell’s new EP, Lately, out March 4.
