Spectral Acoustics Vol 1
Streaming & Download below
BIO:
Originally conceived as a Bandcamp exclusive, this 5 song EP is now getting a wide release on all streaming sites and a limited edition cassette. Featuring the new song “Leonard Cohen”, written the night of his passing, and being released for the 4th anniversary of that date.
Like all musicians this year, Shawn William Clarke has had to rethink his creative outlets. This process has expressed itself with 2 compilation releases on Bandcamp (In Basements On Sundays), a newly formed love of knitting and the new EP Spectral Acoustics Vol 1.
“A couple years back I went up to Curries Music in Gravenhurst, and recorded a handful of songs, with only one or two takes, and limited overdubs” Clarke says, “I sat on these songs, since I wasnʼt sure what to do with them. When the pandemic hit, I found myself with a lot of time, so I mixed and reinvented the project at home”. Some synth work was recorded in advance by Kristian Noel Pedersen, and Clarke overdubbed a few melody lines and added the soundscape that connects the tracks. “Iʼm always recording snippets of my life. Pulling out my phone and grabbing a minute of ambient noise, wild life, water, crowds, sort of audio postcards from my travels and experiences. I never had any plans for them, until now” These soundscapes bring a cohesion to the project, and create a more emotional listening experience, “On a personal note, I got surprisingly emotion first time I listened back. Especially the crowd noise before ‘The Touristsʼ. It really hit home how much I missed being with people”.
The opening track is a new instrumental called “Hearts Are For Strumming”, picking up a mix of ambient and folk influences left from 2017ʼs full length LP TOPAZ. Featuring synths from Kristian Noel Pedersen. It is followed by the new track “Leonard Cohen”. Written by Clarke the night Leonard Cohen died, recorded 4 years later, and released in time for the anniversary of his passing. "Leonard Cohen" is a contemplative finger picked ballad alluding to the songs and themes of his life. Recorded live off the floor with one mic, intimate and reflective. The last three tracks are songs that appeared on Clarkeʼs three previous albums, reimagined in a more intimate acoustic way that better represents Shawnʼs live performances. “Song For Kathleen” from 2010ʼs Like Birds Too Tired To Fly, is reimagined here with a Bossa nova flare, recorded (as with 4 of the tracks) on a 1967 Arcangel Fernandez classical guitar. “Ten Years Ago” from 2014ʼs William is presented here with a guitar intro plus a more ambient folk direction than the original recording. Finally, the album ends with “The Tourists” from 2017ʼs TOPAZ. This is the acoustic version, recorded on a 1969 Guild M-20 acoustic guitar, previously owned by Canadian music and cult legend Mendelson Joe. The strings are rumoured to be the same since the mid 80ʼs, this guitar has some serious mojo.
Spectral Acoustics Vol 1 kicks off what Clarke plans to be a series of releases exploring ideas and projects that donʼt quite fit the full length album mold. A place for him to push the boundaries of folk music, indie music and songwriting.
Recorded at Curries Music in Gravenhurst, April 2018.
Engineered & mixed by Rob Currie.
All guitars & Vocals by Shawn William Clarke
Keyboards by Kristian Noel Pedersen
All songs written by Shawn William Clarke
except Ocean Of Noise written by the Arcade Fire
DOWNLOAD:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/tn0beqbjqefj045/Spectral%20Acoustics%20vol%201.zip?dl=0
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