Stephen Fearing says playing with a trio is scary.
The singer songwriter, who performs in Revelstoke on Jan. 31, has played alone for most of his solo career.
But with his new band and record, “Every Soul’s a Sailor,” came a challenge to fill a sonic space between the bass and drums. One he says is rewarding.
“Everybody finding the pocket is an interesting thing,” says Fearing, speaking to the Review by telephone from Victoria.
“I’ve played with bands over the years, but never on my own stuff, so it’s a different beat. It’s a real challenge as a guitar player, but realizing the sonic potential of what you can do is really powerful.”
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Fearing, who was born in Vancouver and raised in Ireland, has travelled from coast to coast over the years.
He settled in Guelph in 1992 where he began his music career with True North Records.
Years later he moved to the rugged shores of the Atlantic and raised his children in Halifax before moving back to what he calls the serene West Coast in 2015.
Victoria was never a place he thought he’d end up.
“I used to think Victoria was too sedate, but it’s perfect for me,” says Fearing.
“Like that old blues line, I decided to ‘go where the weather suits my clothes.’ The two coasts are so different and different people are drawn to them … I think the peace of the West Coast really affected the album. Most of the songs were written in a cabin in Wells, B.C.”
Fearing first travelled to Wells to teach a workshop and perform at the annual ArtsWells Festival two years ago. That was when he decided it would be a wonderful place to go and write some music in the winter. A friend with a cabin agreed to let him spend some time there. That was where “Every Soul’s a Sailor” was born: the first album Fearing recorded with a trio in mind.
“I really feel it out there,” he says. “I kind of had to learn again to make it work in the trio format.”
That energy inspired the album’s title track, which is about how each of us travels the ocean deep in our own way lit by the “guiding star of fate.”
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After writing the music, the album was recorded in Toronto at Canterbury Sound with Garry Craig and John Diamond of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings.
Fearing will perform here in Revelstoke at the Performing Arts Centre on Jan. 31. with Rob Becker on bass and Salmon Arm native Leon Tower on drums.
They will be accompanied by Torontonians Oh Susanna on their Alberta and B.C. Tour.
For more information contact the Revelstoke Arts Council.
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