It's "Flood" season, An Island SoapBox album recommendation

When I woke up this morning ready to write my latest recommendation, I had to stop myself.  It was necessary to take a moment.  You see I am already a big Jeremy Fisher fan.  I bothered him via Twitter about a month back to see if Island SoapBox could review his album.   I was incredibly excited when I received a message back from him and an email from his PR person with a link to the album.

So when I went to start, I had to really ask myself "Is this really that good, or am I just way too excited about the whole experience?".  I think the answer is quite obvious, it's both.

Flood is terrific.  If you enjoy Fisher already, then you can pick this album up worry free.  If you don't know much about him, then pick this album up and see what you are missing out on, but be warned you will be buying up all his stuff soon after.

Furthering the diverse musician's development is his working relationship with Hawksley Workman. This is the second straight time Workman has produced for Fisher, and he credits Hawksley for really pushing him to be a better artist & musician.  For a man already so talented, it's an incredibly exciting thing for a fan to hear that drive to always be better.

The album starts with "Shine a litte light", the single in which Fisher released yet another DIY video earlier this month.  You never know what's going to happen when the very first song is the single you have already heard (especially if you really like the single).  This might be my favourite thing about the album, there is no drop off.  Every song is as good as the last.

It's 11 tracks, featuring all sorts of different instruments.  I'm not sure what it is about it, but "Alison" is definitely my favourite track on the album.  It kinda hops along and is just really fun to listen to.  The same can be said for the entire album though really, and it's an album that seems to grow on you with each spin.

There is no reason to think this album won't get some serious attention.  With two juno nominations to his credit already, Flood should conjure up some major interest.  With a Canadian tour starting in Victoria (!!) in November, now is the time to pick up this album and check him out.

Yes please to The Yes Way

It's not quite a full album recommendation, yet, but it sure looks like it's going to be that way.  NYC came knocking again, and again it is us listeners who are the benefactors.  "The Yes Way" is a rock outfit on the up & up.  With an album release coming later in the fall, there is no better time to start listening.  The music is solid, there is nothing special or fancy, just dudes rocking out together.  The vocals are strong, and the songs seem to be the perfect length.

Mets is the single everyone should be looking out for as "The Yes Way" take to the road this autumn.  With the video already shot and planned for circulation, this catchy tune should be everywhere in no time.  It gives a good feel for what the band is all about, and certainly leaves you wanting to hear more.  The band have themselves a great lead singer in Aaron Mendelsohn.  He has a great voice, reminding me of other singers I love, but still sounding unique.

As of now, "The Yes Way" have the month of August planned for touring, and more dates will be released  with the release of the album.  Such an energetic brand of music will lend itself nicely to live venues, and surely "The Yes Way" will have the nation singing along in no time.

When the album is ready, make sure to check back with Island SoapBox, as we will make sure to give the whole thing a spin!  In the meanwhile, you can listen to Mets, and two other singles by the band here.
Check out the bands main website (including a free download of their 2009 EP Who's better than you?) here.

Album of the Month/Week/Day

I thought you all deserved a treat, so I have come up with this :) Said the Whale and their album "Howe Sounds/Taking Abalonia" from 2008.
This group takes pride in their music and in their country, and in return, Canada takes pride in the group. With a moose and evergreens front and centre on the bands website (www.saidthewhale.com), Canadiana is on display. The music, is no different.
There is no better album going to match the happiness of Spring. Crawling out from
Canadian Winter (although most of us had a pretty easy go this year), this is a listen that will bring a smile as big as the sun (in fact listening to the album may be even healthier than a good dose of sunshine, forget vitamin D!).
The album uses different sounds, and skipping between genres at points, (including bubblegum folk (”The Light Is You”), thundering hard rock (”Last Tree Standing”) and gentle ukulele ballads (”The Real of It”). It truly is a treat, impossible to tire of, because you're not sure what you will hear next.
It makes sense that the band has such diverse talent. Recently during a "twitterview" ;) the band listed Phoenix, Gord Downie, and Jay-Z as artists the group collectively enjoys.
Of course the band released "Islands Dissapear" last year, and the hit single "Camilo(The Magician)", which grew the bands fan base even larger. This is also a very good album front to back, but I think fans will agree, listening to "Howe Sounds/Taking Abalonia" makes you like the follow up even more.
With the band touring almost non-stop, fans get plenty of chances to see the group perform, and a great mix from recorded albums, as well as songs yet to be recorded. The energy from the songs definitely makes its way to the stage, as the performance is fun to take in, knowing the band likes playing the songs as much as the fans like listening.
Perhaps the difficult part for the group now, is whether they can continue to put out top notch albums, one after the other. With so much touring, you wonder how the band has time to write at all. Yet all they do is record great tracks, one after the other. Something tells me that Canada has plenty more to look forward to as "Said the Whale" evolves, let's all enjoy the ride and grow with them.