BeatRoute Magazine BC Edition December 2018

Davers - Davers Foxwarren - Foxwarren Heavydive - Warn the Dark
Clocking in at around three minutes a piece,
the tracks include the previously unreleased
“Some Faces,” “Bite My Hip” and “Boys.” Not to
be confused with Small Faces, “Some Faces” gets
around town with a strummy, upbeat energy that
suggests early Stones and Animals smoking hash
in a back alley. Equally short and punchy, “Bite My
Hip” was later reworked and issued as “Lagartija
Nick,” but here it’s a jukebox boogie that does
the twist in pointy leather boots. Yearning after
Blondie, the skankin’ “Harry” stirs up a caffeinated
coffin hop. The quirky sing-talk caricatures turn
cranky on “Boys” with its terse vocals and goading
percussion. Then there’s the real reason you’re
going to pick up this album, the slowly unravelling
funeral dirge for the beloved Dracula of the silver
screen, “Bela Lugosi’s Dead.”
Glory in the familiar spinal rat-a-tat and
slithering strings as their immortal muse coasts
across the room like a shadow. What had once
seemed so desolate and lonesome now explodes
with life thanks to engineer Mandy Parnell
(Aphex Twin, Björk, Brian Eno) who painstakingly
remastered the original analogue tapes. Every
tiny sound and gesture is set in high relief as the
atmospheric 9:36 runtime creeper returns to vinyl
for the first time in three decades. Cherished
phantom of fandom, The Count himself bleeds
through speakers and headphones with a
phenomenal vividness that cries out for a virgin
bride and yet another spin.
• Christine Leonard
Daniel Romano
Finally Free
New West Records
After releasing two surprise albums to ring in
2018, Daniel Romano returns with a third set of
songs to ring out this tumultuous year. Three
full-length albums in one year (plus nine solo
albums over the last 10 years, amongst EPs and
other projects) might sound like too many, but
this musical shape shifter (seriously, he even
looks strikingly different across the varying album
covers) has made every single album sound
impressively distinct from any of the others.
This time out he mostly channels ’60s folk
music (but not like Bob Dylan who he already
mimicked on 2017’s Modern Pressure) coming
across sounding like a modern James Taylor at
times and like The Birds at others. Here on Finally
Free, Romano has once again dropped the twang
and pedal steel guitar that marked some of his
earlier work and embraced soaring melodies
alongside beautifully crafted music that isn’t
afraid to occasionally go heavier than the listener
may be expecting. This prolific artist is even more
impressive when you consider that he plays and
writes almost all of the music and lyrics on his
many diverse albums.
Fans of his previous work will want to tune in to
see which way he’s steering the ship this time,
and those who may be unfamiliar with his music
would do well to check out his entire catalogue to
appreciate such a diverse and talented artist.
• Craig Douglas
Davers
Davers
Oscar St. Records
O Brother, there art thou! Meet Davers, formerly
known as David Lang, founder of indie rock
mainstay Current Swell. He’s the denim-shirted
crooner with sunshine on his shoulder and a song
in his heart. Presenting five tracks laid out under
the eye of engineer/producer Colin Stewart (Black
Mountain, Dan Mangan, Cave Singers), Davers’
eponymous EP has the vintage feel of dusty
dungarees and a mouthful of fine BC wine.
Light floods through the cracks in opening cut
“Brother Brother” with its wire and wood notes
of tobacco, oak, leather and Young. Childhood
fireside tales tug at the apron strings of truth
as Davers praises the wrinkles around your
eyes on the folksy “I Watched You Grow Up,”
flooded with solar energy and bass drum wombpulse.
The methodical uprising of “Tooth and
Nail” recalls the spiritual solidarity of a Woody
Guthrie union ballad. Meanwhile, the plucky
ivory tickling on “Heart of Glass” conjures up a
bus stop busker romance, before rolling into the
altruistic troubadour’s march, “Put Your Pain on
Me.” Accepting the weight of the world without
resignation, Davers turns out a gentle answer and
melds all the broken pieces back together with
guitar gold; kintsugi for the soul. If you see his case
ajar, be sure to toss Davers a fiver.
• Christine Leonard
Foxwarren
Foxwarren
Arts & Crafts
Regina, Saskatchewan singer-songwriter Andy
Shauf continues his poetic journey with Foxwarren,
a new acoustic/indie rock group he formed with
childhood friends Darryl and Avery Kissick and
Dallas Bryson.
After being shortlisted for prestigious honors
such as the SOCAN Songwriting Prize and the
Polaris Music Prize, it might be hard for Shauf
to shield himself from the inevitable acclaim
or backlash (or both) that could come from an
entirely new venture. Fortunately, Foxwarren
arrives without any colossal expectations and
instead just delivers a pleasurable, uninterrupted,
and coherent piece of work that he can definitely
be proud of.
While their path is certainly forged from
Shauf’s mellow, introspective lyrics and acoustic
troubadour roots, Foxwarren adds just enough
spice to distance itself from his solo work. The
songs on this debut feel fleshed out and complete,
often travelling to new heights and introducing
innovative flourishes into the fold within a four or
five minute span.
Previously released single “To Be” is sure to be a
future live staple, with it’s chilled out strumming
pattern and unexpected - but genuine - vintage
guitar solo.
Up-tempo track “Everything Apart” keeps things
interesting, mixing Radiohead breakbeats with
boogie-woogie synth soundscapes.
Handclaps drive “Sunset Canyon,” while the
swirly, phasing background of “Fall Into A Dream”
takes you to another planet and back.
Named after the small town in Manitoba,
Foxwarren’s debut is a treasure worth of addition
to your vinyl collection. Don’t be surprised if you
see this one on the Polaris shortlist next year as
well.
• Trevor Morelli
Heavydive
Warn the Dark
Independent
Shake off the sadness and gloom. Delve below
the surface, beyond image and shallow facade,
into the warm, wet heart’s blood of the matter.
That’s what post-punk trio Heavydive want you
to do with their new release, Warn the Dark.
Generating an atmosphere of rainy rendezvous
and passion-fogged car windows, “Room 213”
mounts an impressionistic painting within an ’80s
synth and drone framework. Prone to free-falling
through memory, vocalist/bassist Randall Squires,
guitarist Juan Ortiz and drummer Santiago Ortiz
conduct a hovering shoegaze séance to contact
their former selves. Soon the mellow blush of
“When the Sunsets” pinches the pallor from your
cheeks and whispers a hot breathy secret in your
ear. Their subtly persuasive soft sell continues
with the windy ruminations of “Wax Dreams,”
featuring delicate guitar threads that bow down
to the cool nonchalance of Squires’ narratives. The
instrumental interludes with nostalgia samples
deliberately divides the joy; segmenting the EP’s
tracks like the chapters of your John Hughes-pink
diary. Snagged in a complex crash of emotion,
the shimmering scales of “Sirens” drowns out
existential angst with a cascade of lush modern
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PAUL ANTHONY’S
TALENT TIME
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RIKI OH: THE STORY OF RICKY
Friday Late Night Movie
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THIS MOUNTAIN LIFE
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STORY STORY LIE:
Family Feuds
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Vancouver Premiere!
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John Waters’
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THE SOUND OF MUSIC
Singalong!
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COMPLETE LISTINGS AT WWW.RIOTHEATRE.CA
December 2018 35