Calexico has been a favourite of mine since we were exposed to that “Desert Noir” track last year, which is also on this album. Also I really like westerns.

Rome by Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi is a tribute to the soundtracks of old Spaghetti Westerns. The album includes the vocal talents of Norah Jones (above) and Jack White on several tracks.

Hard to pick one track. I love them all! This is from their first album. Thanks Saskatchewan.

Frank Bango
Touchy/Feely
Good stuff from Bango who has his talents on full display. It may take a couple listens to sink in, but he has a way with a melody that is unique and worth seeking out.

Jonny Polonsky
Intergalactic Messenger of Divine Light and Love
Jonny Polonsky is weird. Sometimes he can be very poppy and sometimes he’s a little more hard edged. This album adds a layer of incomprehensible lyrics that make little to no sense. A couple good songs, but not much to grab onto.

Smash Mouth
Magic
Listen, they might be just recycling and not really original, and kind of pandering to a certain audience, but I like some of it. They somehow make fun pop songs that are just fun and nothing to think too much about.

The Sheepdogs
The Sheepdogs
Their EP was a slice of Creedence Clearwater Revival revival rock, it was kind of interesting as a novelty, but I wondered if they could do more with it. So this album is not just CCR revisited, it pulls in a few other influences, none of which really help their cause. It is uneven, and doesn’t feel “real” whatever that means.

of Montreal
Daughter of Cloud
I don’t really “get” the whole Georgie thing, I think I’m tired of it though. I kind of want to feel like there is some sort of truth behind it. Even most of of Montreal’s catalog is utter nonsense, I need a little more to really plant itself in my mind. Let’s face it; I just want playground silliness again.

December is starting to heat up with early Christmas presents for fans of live music.

Vancouver popsters Mother Mother are bringing The Sticks to Edmonton. They’ll perform Friday, Dec. 7 at Edmonton Event Centre. Tickets are $29.50 plus service charges at Ticketmaster.ca. On sale: Friday, Sept. 21.

The Sticks is Mother Mother’s latest four-star album. Their opener, Hannah Georgas, will release her self-titled affair — featuring a collaboration with MM’s Ryan Guldemond — on Oct. 2. (Watch the two — and other Canadian notables — perform Elephant, one of the songs from Hannah Georgas, posted above.)

A week after Mother Mother’s gig, The Sheepdogs will perform on Friday, Dec. 14 at EEC. Tickets are $27.50 plus service charges at Ticketmaster. On sale: Friday, Sept. 21.

The Saskatchewan natives and Rolling Stone cover boys are slinging their just-released self-titled album — their first since winning a contest sponsored by the magazine.

Okanagan pop-rockers Yukon Blonde will open.

Rating: 8/10 milkbones

Score one for Canadian rock.

I’m not sure what exactly is in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, but I’m certain that The Sheepdogs are one of its best features.  The self-titled fourth album by The Sheepdogs, released in early September, rockets these boys onto the worldwide stage like never before thanks to their big-label release.  They’ve already garnered rave reviews and accolades for their previous work, and this was their first chance to impress the mainstream.

Needless to say, they’ve done it.

Produced by Patrick Carney (drummer for the Black Keys), the album is a blend of modern production and classic rock, with more of an edge than noticed on the first three albums.  The band has moved from jamming to the Allman Brothers in their garage to a fuzzier, yet cleaner studio sound.  The result is an album with more consistent presence than previous efforts without losing the fun of the music.  You listen and still imagine these guys as down-to-earth dudes you’d love to have a beer with.

Thank goodness; that’s what we want to hear!

With their previous efforts, you’d swear The Sheepdogs were rockin’ from south Georgia.  Although this album loses a bit of that swanky southern vibe, you can still get your fill on tracks like “Javelina!” and “How Late, How Long.”  Instead, Patrick’s production has an obvious impact on their sound, bringing them into the 21st century and making them more accessible to modern listeners.  The sound is closer to the Black Keys’ fuzzy blues, but still retains the wooly Sheepdog boogie (the first three tracks are prime examples).  You’ll be tapping your foot and wagging your tail to this album, I guarantee it.

Bottom Line: No matter what you enjoy, The Sheepdogs are fun to listen to.  You probably won’t mistake these guys for a late 60s-early 70s band you’d never heard of (which was very possible with the first three albums).  But that’s not a bad thing.  These guys have put together a great album that gets better with each listen, and their accessibility will hopefully earn them leagues more fans.  And, if you love the album, be sure to check out the rest of their catalog for even more boogie Southern rockin’ goodness.

Tracks you must hear: “Feeling Good,” “The Way It Is,” “How Late, How Long,” and “In My Mind.”

The deep American South.

Origin of some of the greatest classic rock of the century; everything ranging from Marshall Tucker Band to Lynyrd Skynyrd and Charlie Daniels – all twangy strum-savvy legends whose bluesy tales finally decorated the airwaves after being carried in their empty, lovelorn and tattered back pockets.

Saskatoon.

Not exactly the origin of too much musical genius. But, something relative about the endless plains and valleys managed to accomplish breeding the contemporary Canadian version of such righteous rock ‘n roll entertainment, better known as The Sheepdogs.

Similar to the old adage that an owner slowly begins to mimic their dog after years together – or maybe it’s the other way around – this scruffy foursome certainly look the part. The part being both country canine and free-spirited revivalist rockers.

Over a year and a half after the Canuck clan won Rolling Stone Magazine’s Cover Challenge – a contest auctioning off a spot on the coveted front page, record deal with Atlantic  and subsequent airwave acclaim in return for voter’s approval of submitted tunes – the band is full leaps and bounds outside of Saskatchewan small gig territory. Their nearly immediate release Learn and Burn spread like prairie wildfire – with the olden-rock anthem “I Don’t Know” and it’s velvety, Ewan Currie-led harmonies winning hearts north and south of the border at first radio spin.

And last week, after a year of festival hopping, opening for some of their genre’s biggest acts and pressing songs in between, the ‘Dogs were let out last week – in the form of their scorching full-length major label debut.

And it really is stage-melting rock. Some people will argue that rock music has gone by the wayside, and it’s my opinion those people lack the open-mindedness to embrace new and more eclectic variations of the genre. But, oof – if you’re looking for that drive down the dusty road, cold cracked Budweiser, head to toe denim, pressed up against your sweaty love interest at the front of the stage straight-up kind of rock reincarnation, then you’ve got our home-grown boys, and producer Patrick Carney of the Black Keys, to thank for this one.

Similar to early embodiments of what so many of us view as “real rock” – the kind “they don’t make anymore” (again, a moot point – they do) – The Sheepdogs have achieved that gooey kind of 70s feel-good intimacy on this album. The kind that’s captured through an unmistakably perfect male vibrato, growling and shaking alongside the amp-baking electric guitar solos and swirling psychedelic keyboard. The kind that’s equal parts croons and riffs speaking to love lost, love gained, the ride and all of the bulls**t in between. The real rock stuff of real rock artists.

On “Never Gonna Get My Love,” a sliding George Harrison guitar wails away alongside marching band percussion while Electric Light Orchestra choral harmonies chirp from the background. Golden time-machine highlights that preach carelessness and idle, ramblin’ freedom come in the form of Allman Brothers-esque anthems “Alright OK” and a trippy sitar-laden “In My Mind”; pacified ditties that highlight Currie’s bellowing and milky Morrison-meets-Fogerty vocals. Possibly most single-ready is “Feeling Good” – a buzzing boogie so obviously influenced by Carney’s production team with a rhythmic addictiveness that will easily coax concert goers onto shoulders and women out of their shirts, whether by way of the breezy lyrics or plodding clap beat. And all of the above, plus extras and a fall tour line-up, will remind any listener that rock ‘n roll is alive, very well and proud to be Canadian.

I’ll be seeing The Sheepdogs this weekend at Echo Beach in Toronto, ON – tickets can be found here!

A number of new album releases have come out in time for those hitting the classrooms but are not necessarily enjoyed only by the student crowd.  On August 28, supposed former infatuation junkie Alanis Morissette released her new studio album Havoc and Bright Lights which has topped the Billboard Canadian Album Chart.  Released the same day was Vancouver rapper Madchild’s Dope Sick which made it to #3.  On August 31, Manitoba punk band Propagandhi, around since 1986, launched the album Failed States.   We already talked about the new release from Montréal’s Stars (The North) which managed to top the iTunes albums chart a day after release on September 4.  We’ll profile some more albums coming out later this month.  For now, other releases that came out September 4 include the following.

Catherine Durand – Les murs blancs du Nord

Studio Album: #5
Province: Québec
Félix Awards: 2 Nominations
Album Certifications: None yet
Official Website:
http://www.catherinedurand.com/

Folk singer Catherine Durand was signed by Warner Music and released her first album, Flou, in 1998. Her song “Peu importe” received a SOCAN award in 2002 as one of the 10 most played songs of the year. She has sung with Kevin Parent and written songs for Isabelle Boulay, Renée Martel, and Annie Blanchard. In 2009, she won a Canadian Folk Music Award for Songwriter of the Year. Her music has been endorsed by France’s heavyweight star Francis Cabrel.

In her new album, Les murs blancs du Nord, Catherine surrounds herself with a legion of all-star musicians, like Jocelyn Tellier, Robbie Kuster (of Patrick Watson) and François Lafontaine (of Karkwa). All tracks were recorded live in just five days. Durand is considered to be a trailblazer for a new generation of cheerful young folk singer-songwriters.

Matt Mays – Coyote

Studio Album: #5
Province: Nova Scotia
JUNO Awards: 4 Nominations
Album Certifications: None yet
Official Website: http://www.mattmays.com/

He was born in Hamilton but grew up in Cole Harbour, NS. His first album, a self-titled work, appeared in 2002. He hooked up with band El Toredo and released an album three years later. Music videos were picked up by MuchMusic and Ron MacLean listed the band as one of his favourites. After releasing two additional albums, Matt Mays and El Toredo parted ways in 2009, although he kept a couple of its musicians to work with him. Coyote is released under his name, “Take It on Faith” being the lead single. Matt will be on tour to support the album, details on his website. Given the album title, I suppose he’ll be able to engage in product placement activities for Acme Corporation during his live shows.

The Sheepdogs – The Sheepdogs

Studio Album: #4
Province: Saskatchewan
JUNO Awards: 3 Wins
Album Certifications: 1 Gold
Official Website: http://www.thesheepdogs.com/

Heavily hyped by the media and no doubt stoked by their JUNO awards this year, Saskatoon’s The Sheepdogs have released a new studio album that was produced by the drummer of American country rock band Black Keys whose statement earlier this year that Nickelback was the biggest band in the world was promulgated enthusiastically by the press. Although this is the fourth album from the band, it bears a self-titled name. “The Way It Is” which tips its toque to Bruce Hornsby while paying homage to early 70s style rock and roll is currently in the Billboard Hot 100.

Roch Voisine – Confidences

Studio Album: #20
Province: New Brunswick
JUNO Awards: 2 Wins
Album Certifications: 3 Multi-Platinum, 3 Platinum, and 3 Gold
Official Website: http://www.rochvoisine.com/

Roch Voisine needs no introduction. He is one of the finest male vocalists around, and one of the few to have successful sales in both official languages. In 1989, he became the first Canadian singer to score a Diamond album in France. Its title track, “Hélène” was the first Francophone Canadian song to finish as the #1 song of the year on the Québec charts. The David Foster produced “I’ll Always Be There” is perhaps his most successful English song, which appeared on the RPM year-end charts of both 1993 and 1994. Having completed his Americana trilogy, Roch’s newest studio album, consisting entirely of original compositions, is a French-language release entitled Confidences, featuring the new single “Montréal-Québec” as well as a 14-minute song entitled “Le chemin”.

First… It’s About Time by Atlanta’s own Ruby Velle & The Soulphonics.  Ruby says she grew up listening to Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye and Otis Redding and It’s About Time is obviously influenced by those same soulful sounds of the 50′s and 60′s.

• Buy It’s About Time on iTunes or at your local record store
• Go see Ruby Velle & The Soulphonics in Atlanta 9/14 -> info
• Additonal tour dates

Second…  The Blight and The Bloom by San Francisco’s Two Gallants.  Available on ATO Records, The Blight and The Bloom, is this folk-punk duo’s 4th studio album, offering a mix of mellow tunes and raw, scrappy blues rock.

• Buy The Bloom and The Blight on iTunes or at your local record store
• Go see Two Gallants in Atlanta 9/12 -> info
• Additional tour dates

Third…  The Sheepdogs by Saskatchewan, Canada’s The Sheepdogs.  Their 4th studio album, produced by Patrick Carney of The Black Keys, has a sweet southern rock sound, reminiscent of the classic rock bands of the 60′s and 70′s.

• Buy The Sheepdogs on iTunes or at your local records store
• Go see The Sheepdogs in Atlanta 9/29 -> info
• Additional tour dates

1. The Vaccines – Teenage Icon

2. The Stills – Being Here

3. Crocodiles – Endless Flowers

4. Imagine Dragons – Its Time

5. Violens – Totally True

6. Contrived – Firing Squad

7. Beach Fossils – Lessons

8. The Sheepdogs – Alright OK

9. Stars – The Theory of Relativity

10. Sea Wolf – Where The Wind Blows

11. Pomegranates – Pass Away

12. The Neighbourhood – Female Robbery

13. The Helio Sequence – October

14. Birdy – Skinny

Second Hour

1. Melpo Mene – We Should Be Walking

2. Tiny Victories – Lost Weekend

3. Buchanan – Run Faster

4. Young Liars – Colours (Teen Daze Remix)

5. Number Station – Broke

6. Wild Belle – Keep You

7. Tahiti 80 – Keep You

8. The Shaky Hand – Summer’s Life

9. Icky Blossoms – Heat Lightening

10. Saint Saviour – Midnight (M83 Cover)

11. Milo Geene – Whats The Matter

12. New Look – Nap on The Bow

13. Cisco Adler – Sunshine or Rain

14. MS MR – Hurricane

15. Sloan – The Other Man

16. Sam Roberts – Where Have All The Good People Gone?

Pet Shop Boys-Elysium (Astralwerks) H
http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/pnx2

The Orb feat. Lee Scratch Perry-The Observer in the Star House (Cooking Vinyl) H

http://top40-charts.com/news.php?nid=80000

DJ Kentaro-Contrast (Ninjatune) M
http://www.mxdwn.com/2012/08/16/reviews/dj-kentaro-contrast/

The Helio Sequence-Negotiations (Sub Pop) M
http://thefourohfive.com/news/article/the-helio-sequence-negotiations-full-album-stream-uk-premiere

Parlours-All is Here (self released) M
http://www.desmoinesisnotboring.com/wordpress/parlours-all-is-here/

The Raveonettes-Observator (Vice) M
http://backbeatseattle.com/2012/08/11/album-review-observator-by-the-raveonettes/

The Sheepdogs-The Sheepdogs (Atlantic) M
http://consequenceofsound.net/2012/08/album-review-the-sheepdogs-the-sheepdogs/

Alexis Cole Sings Pepper Adams (Motema) L
Joy Road Sampler, The Complete Works of pepper Adams (Motema) L
http://motema.com/artist/pepper-adams-joy-road

JOY ROAD-THE COMPLETE WORKS OF PEPPER ADAMS (Joy Road Sampler)/various: Adams is one of those honking post WW2, Detroit sax men that time and tide are coming dangerously close to sweeping under the rug. A hard hitting cat that wasn’t fully appreciated in his time, a jazz historian is out to right that wrong by bringing together a bunch of new players that have the spirit to keep the vibe alive. This is a five volume set, mostly available digitally only but with a physical sampler that does a great job of getting your head in the game. Even if it’s played and interpreted by the new generation, it sounds like the real thing and you should check it out if you fancy yourself a real jazzbo. Fine stuff throughout.

ALEXIS COLE/Sings Pepper Adams: Actually a break out set from the five volume Pepper Adams tribute set, up and coming New York vocalist Cole takes the artistic leap of faith by singing recently written lyrics to Adams melodies. Cole comes up a winner here by finding the cabaret vibe in 50s jazz like this. Even when the lyrics get too heavy handed, Cole can handle her voice like an instrument and let’s you just fall into the late night vibe that everyone needs once in a while. Very much a nice thing to reach for when you need something to give you the right dose of after hours.

Lorn-Ask The Dust (Ninjatune) L
http://dustedmagazine.com/reviews/7192

The Trouble with Templeton-I Wrote a Novel (Tiny Monster) L
http://www.last.fm/music/The+Trouble+With+Templeton

Black Pistol Fire-Big Beat ’59 L
http://www.crayonbeats.com/2012/05/soundcheck-black-pistol-fire/
Black Pistol Fire-Shut Up! A Tribute to Little Richard (Rifle Bird) L
http://www.butwehavemusic.com/black-pistol-fires-little-richard-tribute-shut-up-available-now-via-rifle-bird-records-15448

Kyle Cease-Highly Recommend This (Comedy Central) L
http://comedians.about.com/od/comedyalbums/fr/Kyle-Cease-I-Highly-Recommend-This-Comedy-Album-Review.htm

Goldenboy-Blue Swan Orchestra (eenie meenie) L
http://www.kevchino.com/review/goldenboy/blue-swan-orchestra/89

Two Door Cinema Club-Beacon (Glassnote) L
http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2012/09/two-door-cinema-club-beacon.html

Toadies-Play.Rock.Music. (Kirtland) L
http://consequenceofsound.net/2012/07/album-review-toadies-play-rock-music/

Smile Smile-Marry a Stranger (Kirtland) L
http://albumreviews.org/?p=1965

Turbo Fruits-Butter (Serpents and Snakes) L
http://turbofruits.com/08/2012/reviews-features-for-butter/

Ray Anderson Pocket Brass Band-Sweet Chicago Suite (Double Moon) H
http://www.npr.org/2012/06/19/155351507/ray-anderson-a-pocket-size-suite-makes-a-huge-racket

Frank Ocean-Channel Orange (Def Jam) H
http://www.avclub.com/articles/frank-ocean-channel-orange,82827/

Various Artists- Country Funk: 1969-1975 (Light in the Attic) H
http://articles.boston.com/2012-07-24/music/32785017_1_unsung-heroes-dale-hawkins-trippy-troubadour

Bill Fay-Life is People (Dead Oceans) H
http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/av/2012/08/album-stream-bill-fay—life-is-people.html

Just Tell Me That You Want Me-A Tribute To Fleetwood Mac (Here Music) H
http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2012/08/just-tell-me-that-you-want-me-a-tribute-to-fleetwo.html

Golden Retriever-Occupied with the Unspoken (Thrill Jockey) M
http://www.dustedmagazine.com/reviews/7274

Dirty Three-Toward the Low Sun (Drag City) M
http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16336-dirty-three/

Lee Hazlewood-A House Safe for Tigers (Light in the Attic) H
http://www.avclub.com/articles/lee-hazlewood-a-house-safe-for-tigers,84283/

Sugar-Beaster, Sugar-Copper Blue, Sugar-Live at Cabaret Metro (Merge) H
http://pitchfork.com/news/46582-merge-to-reissue-bob-moulds-sugar-discography/

Antibalas-Antibalas (Daptone) H
http://www.avclub.com/articles/antibalas-antibalas,83380/

Antony and the Johnsons-Cut The World (Secretly Canadian) H
http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/161750-antony-and-the-johnsons-cut-the-world/

Animal Collective – Centipede Hz
Azure Ray – As Above So Below
Bellamy Brothers – Pray for Me
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy – Rattle Them Bones
Blu & Exile – Give Me My Flowers While I Can Still Smell Them
Building 429 – Give Me Jesus: Live From Winter Jam [EP; MP3 Download]
Raymond Byron and the White Freighter – Little Death Shaker
California Wives – Art History [MP3 Download]
Cat Power – Sun
Kyle Cease – I Highly Recommend This
Chick Corea & Gary Burton – Hot House
Cult of Youth – Love Will Prevail
Deerhoof – Breakup Song
Melissa Etheridge – 4th Street Feeling
The Fresh & Onlys – Long Slow Dance
Gentleman Reg – Leisure Life Part Two [MP3 Download]
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes cast recording
Ian Hunter & The Rant Band – When I’m President
Imagine Dragons – Night Visions
Jens Lekman – I Know What Love Isn’t
Sondre Lerche – Bootlegs
Lina – The Love Chronicles of a Lady Songbird [MP3 Download]
Matchbox Twenty – North
Mono – For My Parents
Bob Mould – Silver Age
The Music Tapes – Mary’s Voice
Bill Ortiz – Highest Wish
Mark Schultz – All Things Possible
Brian Setzer – Rockabilly Riot: Live From the Planet
The Sheepdogs – The Sheepdogs
Smash Mouth – Magic
Stars – The North
Dave Stewart – The Ringmaster General
Tanita Tikaram – Can’t Go Back
Two Door Cinema Club – Beacon
Two Gallants – The Bloom and the Blight
Young Guns – Bones

“It’s not like we’re Drake traipsing around with all these bottles of Dom. We haven’t been diluted by luxury hotel suites and fat stacks of cash,” says Ewan Currie, singer of Saskatchewan’s most famous retro-rock band. “The dream is to make a living playing music, like someone like Sloan — they have a good life, they make albums and have good friends. It’s not like we have Bono-like visions of being the biggest band in the world.”

The Sheepdogs came out of nowhere last summer to become overnight sensations by winning Rolling Stone magazine’s “choose the cover” talent search. The band, however, had already been working for seven years, and the ensuing record, Learn and Burn, released this past November, was actually the third Sheepdogs’ release. For their self-titled follow-up, out Sept. 4, the band recorded quickly over two weeks in Nashville with Patrick Carney, drummer of The Black Keys.

[np-related]

“We weren’t hammering coke until the wee hours, but we had to be focused about it, because The Black Keys were about to head to New York to play Madison Square Garden,” says Ryan Gullen, who plays bass in the band. “Recording like that’s a challenge, but a bunch of buddies should be able to hammer something out that sounds like where they’re from.”

With their beards, torn jeans and guitar riffs, the group’s breakout has been seen as a reaction to the boy bands, American Idols and DJs that dominate the charts. Over pints, Gullen and Currie say they are happy to follow along in the footsteps of The Band and Neil Young, and distance themselves from Canada’s biggest rock band.

“People want to feel power and make a human connection, and if Nickelback’s songs are all in the same key and the chorus hits at the same time, OK, that’s smart, but that’s boring,” says Currie, who writes all the band’s songs. “We have problems with modern rock radio because it’s loud, but it’s also emotionless and feels like it’s made by robots.”

After appearing on Rolling Stone, playing the Bonnaroo music festival and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, the group faced pressure to follow up on the momentum they’d built over the past year. However, Currie says he wasn’t pushed in any direction while recording their first album for a major label, and there wasn’t an effort made for the band to work with for-hire songwriters in Los Angeles.

“We’re not going to sit in a room with Kenny Loggins. I don’t want to watch him get all red in the face,” says Currie, adding that it was the band’s choice to hire Carney, who they met at The Horseshoe after playing an after-party for the MuchMusic Video Awards. “We’ll take as much success as we can get, but we’re not going to compromise.”

In 2009, The Sheepdogs performed in Toronto when it didn’t seem like there was any life left in the group. They had no money for food, let alone a beer at The Horseshoe, where, today, that autographed magazine cover looms large on the wall. It’s an irony not lost on the band.

“We’ve been broke and just about laid out, where the only thing you’re thinking about is how can we put another tank of gas in the van,” says Gullen, as he smiles and poses for photos, seemingly at ease with himself and the anticipation surrounding his new disc. “I think you can hear some of those stories in our music; that’s what we try to do, at least.”

“Rock ’n’ roll should make you feel good when you hear it,” Currie adds. “I like music that’s soulful and fun and a pleasure to listen to and when I listen to Aretha, it makes me want to get down and dirty. Our music should do something like that.”

The Sheepdogs’ self-titled album is out Sept. 4 on Warner Music Canada. The band plays Toronto on Sept. 15. For more information, visit thesheepdogs.com.

#1: Alabama Shakes at Masquerade Music Park 9/29

#2:  The Walkmen at Variety Playhouse 9/26

#3:  Two Gallants and PAPA at Terminal West 9/12

#4:  Snarky Puppy and Banda Magda at The Earl 9/1

#5:  Ruby Velle & The Soulphonics at The Earl 9/13 & 9/14

#6:  The Sheepdogs at The Masquerade 9/29

#7:  The Wallflowers at Smith’s Olde Bar 9/24

#8:  Seryn at Eddie’s Attic 9/23

#9:  Ben Sollee at Terminal West 9/22

Listen on Spotify:

Carney found two weeks in his busy schedule, and the Saskatoon-bred band flew to meet him in Nashville, where so many other career-making albums have been made. There, they created their fourth record, “The Sheepdogs.”

Rock fans are quick to label The Sheepdogs as a retro-’70s trip back in time, but members of the band say that sound isn’t necessarily intentional.

“You know, when you’re making music that’s honest and comes from where your tastes are, it might be like the ’70s but I don’t feel like it’s a conscious thing to bring back the ’70s, or a general movement toward that by any means,” says lead singer Ewan Currie.

When asked what kind of music they set out to create, he says he wishes it could just be defined as straight-up rock ‘n’ roll.

“Feel-good rock ‘n’ roll,” chimes in bassist Ryan Gullen, “good-time rock ‘n’ roll. You know, it’s the kind of music we like to play when we’re hanging out with our friends, or at a barbecue…”

“Cold beer!” Currie adds. “We’re beer rock.”

The new album, which drops Sept. 4, is the first to be released outside of Canada. The four — Currie, Gullen, drummer Sam Corbett and guitarist Leot Hanson — will embark on a six-week tour of the U.S. beginning Sept. 16, which follows a couple of Canadian dates in Toronto and Squamish, B.C.

And beer rock they will play.

The album features their now-signature sound, but there’s nothing stagnant about it. Gullen and Currie say the band makes a conscious effort to ensure that each song is different and speaks in its own way.

“We try to spice every track in a different way so there’s no fatigue. I think every track gives you something different each time,” Currie says.

“When you start recording a song you have to think about how to approach it. What kind of drum beat are you doing, what kinda groove, and what sort of extra instruments do you put on there. Do you put an organ on there? That’s of great interest to us. When you say colouring the song, that’s how you dress it up.”

The four knew that attention to colour would serve them well, especially when they got the text from Carney.

“We won a Pat Carney lottery that we were in,” Currie jokes, poking fun at himself for the Rolling Stone cover contest they won last year. “Naw. We met him in New York and we were talking about making an album, and he was very interested in what we were gonna do next. And we just threw out, ‘Well, why don’t you produce?’ and he was like, ‘Naw, too busy…’”

“And then he said yes via text message from Madrid one day,” Gullen says.

Despite a tight time crunch, they got the recording done without panicking or dropping the ball.

“It was one of the first times as a band that we were able to focus specifically on recording,” Gullen says. “‘Learn and Burn,’ we recorded that and it was in a house, and some of us would be working, some of us would be recording … (this) was very concentrated, focused, head-down times mixed with taking time off and not burning ourselves out.

“So even though we were under the gun to get it done in a certain amount of time, we didn’t ever feel like we weren’t going to get it done.”

Despite having won a much-discussed contest that landed them on the cover of Rolling Stone and becoming the first unsigned band to occupy that space, The Sheepdogs still feel like they have a long way to go before being well-known beyond the confines of Canada.

“I think there’s a lot of people who have no idea who we are in the U.S.; it’s definitely a different situation than in Canada. So that’s what our U.S. tour is about, is getting it out there,” Currie says.

And what about their home and native land? Currie says The Sheepdogs will do a Canadian tour sometime after the U.S. one.