DAN MANGAN REVEALS 10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF BREAKOUT ALBUM, OH FORTUNE, OUT TODAY WITH A BONUS DISC OF ALBUM OUTTAKES


DAN MANGAN’S OH FORTUNE (10TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION) OUT TODAY VIA ARTS AND CRAFTS

LISTEN AND SHARE “ABOUT AS HELPFUL AS YOU CAN BE WITHOUT BEING ANY HELP AT ALL” (LIVE AT SIRIUSXM) HERE

BUY / STREAM OH FORTUNE (10TH ANNIVERSARY) EDITION HERE

VINYL LPs ARRIVE IN 2022

Photo Credit : Justin Trueman // (DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES)

Just a few days ago we marked the 10th anniversary of Dan Mangan’s pivotal, JUNO Award winning album, Oh Fortune. Today, the celebrated songwriter is re-releasing the album complete with a bonus disc of ten ‘mostly’ unheard album outtakes, demos, and live versions of tracks from that era. In an essay reminiscing about the making of Oh Fortune, Mangan says:

"Four years of thought and trial-by-fire manifested in the creation of Nice, Nice, Very Nice. I’d spent that time cutting my teeth in the corners of noisy bars to people who were there for the drinks and, almost specifically, not for the music. My presence was not anticipated, but, more accurately - tolerated. Sometimes I’d had other musicians with me, but most often, I was alone. I felt like a comedian, chiseling my material in the underground. Figuring out what kept people, and what didn’t. I had to earn every perked ear. I played cafes, living rooms, back yards, sports bars - literally anywhere that would have me.”

He also recently reflected on the making of Oh Fortune with Exclaim!

LISTEN AND SHARE “ABOUT AS HELPFUL AS YOU CAN BE WITHOUT BEING ANY HELP AT ALL” (LIVE AT SIRIUSXM) HERE

BUY / STREAM OH FORTUNE (10TH ANNIVERSARY) EDITION HERE

“Oh Fortune was born of a different kind of storm,” continues Mangan. “Luckily, Nice, Nice, Very Nice had succeeded. Those bars became theatres, and the momentum of a burgeoning career demanded a more consistent cast of faces in the van.

I knew that I had learned how to hold an audience. I knew that I had begun to unfold my mind through lyrics and melody.

Oh Fortune is about changing. Shifting. Adjusting to new footholds in new sands. Finding glory in letting go. Surviving another day and being a touch stronger for it. It’s about dangling your legs for the sharks. It’s about stories to tell as we age. It’s about aching for rain. It’s about the taste of something. It’s about the veins of a leaf mirroring the rivers of its forest. It's about flags burning together. It’s about the daylight forgiving you."

Read Dan’s full essay here : www.killbeatmusic.com/danmangan

Vinyl LPs of the Oh Fortune 10th Anniversary will be released in 2022.

BUY / STREAM OH FORTUNE (10TH ANNIVERSARY) EDITION HERE


(DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES)

OH FORTUNE TRACKLIST
01 About As Helpful As You Can Be Without Being Any Help At All
02 How Darwinian
03 Post-War Blues
04 If I Am Dead
05 Daffodil
06 Starts With Them, Ends With Us
07 Oh Fortune
08 Leaves, Trees, Forest
09 Rows Of Houses
10 Regarding Death And Dying
11 Jeopardy

BONUS DISC
01 Faults
02 If I Am Dead (Demo)
03 Oh Fortune (Demo)
04 Daffodil (Demo)
05 Leaves Tree Forest (Band Rehearsal)
06 We Want To Be Pleasantly Surprised, Not Expectedly Let Down
07 Rows Of Houses (Live In Calgary)
08 Starts With Them, Ends With Us (Live In Calgary)
09 About As Helpful As You Can Be Without Being Any Help At All (Live At SiriusXM)
10 Jeopardy (Demo)

DAN MANGAN
WEBSITE
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
INSTAGRAM

ARTS & CRAFTS
WEBSITE
FACEBOOK
TWITTER

JORDAN KLASSEN REVEALS VIDEO FOR RECENT SINGLE, “MILK AND HONEY”


WATCH AND SHARE “MILK AND HONEY” HERE

BUY / STREAM “MILK AND HONEY” HERE

“quietly contemplative meditations on finding your place in the world” - Exclaim!

“Insightful and vulnerable in equal measure” - The Line Of Best Fit

“Milk And Honey” Video Still

Recently, Jordan Klassen shared his first new single of 2021, “Milk And Honey”, a song about “feeling constrained, held up, waiting for something better to unfold,” he says. “And learning how to exist and even make the best of that space.” The new video for the track from director Joey Lopez embodies this idea. “The subject lives behind plexiglass (which we've all become familiar with) and dances there, expressing angst and fear and rambling hope. But still dancing.”

WATCH AND SHARE “MILK AND HONEY” HERE

BUY / STREAM “MILK AND HONEY” HERE

On the video, Lopez says, “for ‘Milk And Honey’ I wanted to deconstruct the original themes Jordan and I had come up with initially for the video. In my head, the video needed many moving parts, but at the core I found the most important thing – the thing I wanted to use to express the themes of the songs was movement. I wanted to avoid being direct with the scenes and instead wanted to focus on the body language of dancers. That’s when our choreographer and dancer in the video Anya Saugstad came in; we discussed what I wanted the video to be and after each meeting we had I began to simplify the message more and more, cutting away at what I felt were superfluous moments and instead began focusing on what I truly wanted from this video and that was pure emotional expression. 

Instead of creating a straightforward narrative we decided to go with a dance and a single set piece: the glass cube. I felt rather than interpreting the song directly I should instead use what I thought inspired the song – longing, nostalgia, loss and the toll it takes on our mental health. The cube represents that moment in our minds that we constantly return to and find ourselves stuck in. Instead of fighting them or pushing them away we choose to embrace them; to express directly how it makes us feel and to invite others inside to understand what this feeling really means to us.”

Over his career, Jordan Klassen has toured worldwide, becoming widely known for his well-crafted arrangements and nuanced songwriting. His sixth full-length record is due out in early 2022.

Photo Credit : Rachel Pick // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

JORDAN KLASSEN ONLINE
WEBSITE
TWITTER
FACEBOOK
INSTAGRAM

GEOFFROY SHARES ANOTHER NEW SINGLE FROM UPCOMING LP, ANNOUNCES CANADIAN TOUR DATES


LISTEN AND SHARE “LIFE AS IT COMES” HERE

BUY / STREAM “LIFE AS IT COMES” HERE

FORTHCOMING ALBUM, LIVE SLOW DIE WISE, OUT JANUARY 19, 2022

CANADIAN TOUR COMMENCES MARCH 5

ON THE NEW LP GEOFFROY BRINGS A CONTEMPLATIVE AND PHILOSOPHICAL APPROACH TO SONGWRITING INSPIRED BY ARTISTS LIKE PAUL SIMON, NICK DRAKE, JEFF BUCKLEY, AND THINKERS ALAN WATTS, ECKHART TOLLE, AND MICHAEL POLLAN

Photo Credit : Alex Dozois // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES


Today, Geoffroy (pronounced : Jeff-wah) is sharing the closing track from his upcoming self-released third LP, Live Slow Die Wise, out January 19, 2022.

“Life As It Comes” was “one of the first ideas that developed into a song after confinement had first started,” says Geoffroy. “I kept repeating those two first chords at the piano, they felt good. I felt at peace. The pandemic had forced us all to take a step back and it triggered this reflection. Despite all the curveballs that life had thrown my way, I was feeling happy and grateful for the life I was living. Feeling free, loved and content with where I was and what I had achieved, both on a personal and professional level. And so I wanted to dig into this state of mind and try to reason, or explain it somehow. The result is a testimony of gratitude. A song about acceptance, integrity and gratitude, all playing a crucial part in achieving well-being and self-realization.” 

LISTEN AND SHARE “LIFE AS IT COMES” HERE

BUY / STREAM “LIFE AS IT COMES” HERE

MORE ABOUT LIVE SLOW DIE WISE

The journey to the LP’s 2022 release began with the unveiling of “Cold World”, an intimate and reflective song that beautifully represents the album’s tone. “Live Slow Die Wise is the timeless story of societal individualism and ego,” Geoffroy shares. “We’re driven by an endless pursuit for growth, innovation and profit. But at what cost?” Live Slow Die Wise still features the personal and reflective touch Geoffroy fans know to expect, but this time through the lens tinted by experience. Inspired by artists like Ry Cooder, Paul Simon, Nick Drake, Jeff Buckley, and thinkers such as Alan Watts, Eckhart Tolle, and Ralph Waldo Emerson, Geoffroy brought a more contemplative and philosophical approach to the album’s songwriting than in previous works.

WATCH AND SHARE “COLD WORLD” HERE

BUY / STREAM “COLD WORLD” HERE

Live Slow Die Wise was penned during isolation in 2020, and brought to life in the studio with help from legendary French Canadian producer Louis-Jean Cormier. The songs mark a return to Geoffroy’s early days as an artist, travelling the world and playing solo on the streets as he went. A renewed appreciation for organic instrumentation and a recording process that favoured live takes in the studio added depth and authenticity to the songs and hopefully, forge a deep and intimate connection with the listener.

“Live Slow Die Wise represents a specific state of mind. It's about taking the time to live freely and consciously. It's about being aware and embracing the ephemerality and fragility of life.”

WATCH AND SHARE “STRANGERS ON A TRAIN” HERE

BUY / STREAM “STRANGERS ON A TRAIN” HERE


Geoffroy will take Live Slow Die Wise on the road beginning March 5, 2022. All tour dates are below and tickets can be purchased HERE.

GEOFFROY 2022 CANADIAN TOUR DATES
03/05 Trois Rivières - Cabaret Cogeco
03/11 Montreal - MTELUS
03/25 Quebec - Imperial Bell
04/05 Winnipeg - Good Will Social Club
04/06 Saskatoon - Amigos Cantina 
04/09 Vancouver - Hollywood Theatre
04/10 Victoria - Capital Ballroom
04/14 Red Deer - Bo’s Bar
04/15 Calgary - Commonwealth
04/16 Edmonton - Starlite Room
04/20 London - Rum Runners
04/21 Toronto - Axis Club
04/22 Kingston - The Grad Club
04/23 Ottawa - Club Saw

 
Live Slow Die Wise Artwork // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

LIVE SLOW DIE WISE TRACKLIST
01 As My Old Man Always Said
02 Strangers On A Train
03 Youngblood
04 Santa Catalina
05 Sweetpie
06 Cold World
07 Life As It Comes

GEOFFROY ONLINE
WEBSITE
FACEBOOK
INSTAGRAM
YOUTUBE