CHEMICAL CLUB RETURN WITH NEW SINGLE, ANNOUNCE PALE BLUE EP

OTTAWA DUO CHEMICAL CLUB (MEMBERS OF FANCLUBWALLET) PALE BLUE EP OUT SEPTEMBER 23, 2022 VIA ARTS & CRAFTS

WATCH / SHARE “HURT HAPPENS” HERE
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“their excellent new singles "Every Morning Is a Chance," "Spring" and "Hell in a Heatwave" blossom with chiming guitars, boppy drum machines and aching melodies, gesturing towards recent bedroom pop trends while sounding completely timeless.” Exclaim!

“With its vibrant melody highlighted by the gauzy guitar and the fantastically bouncing drum line, the song is the perfect soundtrack for a drive along rugged coastlines and open roads. …the song we turn to if we want something to help us forget about our problems and look forward the weekend.” The Revue on “Hell in a Heatwave”

Photo Credit: Ian Filipovic  // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Following singles “Spring”, “Every Morning Is A Chance”, and “Hell In A Heatwave”, Ottawa duo Chemical Club returns with another new track, “Hurt Happens”. The pair have compiled their most recent singles into their new EP, Pale Blue, out September 23, 2022 via Arts & Crafts.

"Hurt Happens" takes an in depth look at the first meeting between two people. Reflecting on the song, the band shares, "Deep in conversation within the honeymoon phase, telling each other your deepest secrets while underneath a blanket of stars. You become so close and care deeply for one another in such a short amount of time, then you quickly come to terms with the fact that you may never see each other again. Being willing to put your heart on the line even though it might result in pain and hurt. Understanding that vulnerability in relationships is necessary for a chance at love."

WATCH / SHARE “HURT HAPPENS” HERE
BUY / STREAM “HURT HAPPENS” HERE

“Hurt Happens” Cover Art  // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Chemical Club is the project of Eric Graham (he/him) and Michael Watson (they/them), both of whom perform in ascendant indie rock project fanclubwallet, with Watson also working as fanclubwallet's co-writer and producer. Graham and Watson perform tight, catchy indie pop songs, perfect for road trips or coming of age soundtracks, that deftly weave naturalistic lyrics with reflections on love, death, insecurity, and growth. Having grown up around the corner from each other, the pair didn’t truly connect until their teen years when they began playing together in garage bands. In 2019, they formed Chemical Club and have since released a series of homespun, self-released singles and EPs that’ve earned them a passionate following over the course of the pandemic.

WATCH / SHARE “HELL IN A HEAT WAVE” HERE
LISTEN / SHARE / BUY / STREAM “HELL IN A HEATWAVE” HERE

LISTEN / SHARE “EVERY MORNING IS A CHANCE” HERE
BUY / STREAM “EVERY MORNING IS A CHANCE” HERE

WATCH / SHARE “SPRING” HERE
BUY / STREAM “SPRING” HERE

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PALE BLUE EP TRACKLIST
01 Pale Blue
02 Hell In A Heatwave
03 Every Morning Is A Chance
04 Hurt Happens
05 Spring

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JENNY BERKEL REVEALS “WESTBOUND” FROM NEW EP

THE QUIET BETWEEN, THE NEW EP FROM JENNY BERKEL, OUT VIA OUTSIDE MUSIC ON OCTOBER 7, 2022

WATCH / SHARE “WESTBOUND” HERE
BUY / STREAM “WESTBOUND” HERE

PRE-SAVE THE QUIET BETWEEN HERE

Photo Credit : Danielle Berkel // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Recently, Jenny Berkel shared “Light It Slant”, the first new track from her upcoming EP, The Quiet Between, an EP of Berkel’s interpretations of poems from artists in her local community. Today, she shares “Westbound”, a creaky and hushed piano ballad. Based on “Westbound to London”, a poem by writer Ryanne Kap (author of goodbye already, Frog Hollow Press, and managing editor at The Puritan), the song is full of an aching longing. Recorded almost by accident – the engineer was testing levels while Jenny was working out the arrangement on the piano – the recording captures the vulnerability of the lyrics and of longing itself.

“The highway references remind me of my own slow and sometimes lovelorn drives between my hometown in southern Ontario and Toronto,” says Berkel. “This is the first time I’ve ever written a piano ballad; the ache of the poem called for it, just like it called for the sparseness of the arrangement.”

WATCH / SHARE “WESTBOUND” HERE
BUY / STREAM “WESTBOUND” HERE

MORE ABOUT THE QUIET BETWEEN
When poet and songwriter Jenny Berkel wrote her recent album, These Are the Sounds Left from Leaving, she was living alone in a tiny apartment full of radiant light and the ever-present soundscape of a leaky bath faucet. It was a sudden move at the time—a spontaneous departure from touring, bustling city life, being many things to many people—that landed Berkel in a space of self-imposed stillness. “The songs on These Are the Sounds Left from Leaving are a study of proximity, bringing big fears into small spaces,” says Berkel, reflecting on the album. “They’re intimate examinations of a world that often overwhelms.” 

The Quiet Between, written in the midst of the pandemic–and in the midst of the surreal stillness created by the pandemic–finds a different way of parsing through a kaleidoscopic world; written with quiet intention and attention, and more intimately recorded than previous albums, the EP features five songs that are interpretations of poems by writers Síle Englert, Sydney Hegele, Kevin Andrew Heslop, David Janzen, and Ryanne Kap, all of whom were part of Berkel’s artistic community in London, Ontario.

WATCH / SHARE “WESTBOUND” HERE
BUY / STREAM “WESTBOUND” HERE

“Light it Slant”, the first single, juxtaposes melancholy with an undercurrent of hope. Based on “High Level Bridge”, a poem by writer and teacher David Janzen (author of nature: nurture, Baseline Press), the song investigates the nature of wisdom as well as the wisdom held within the quiet of nature. The instruments swell gently together before the chorus, where Misha Bower’s (The Bruce Peninsula) harmonies lift the song out of its heaviness. “Westbound” is a creaky and hushed piano ballad. Based on “Westbound to London”, a poem by writer Ryanne Kap (author of goodbye already, Frog Hollow Press), the song is full of an aching longing. Recorded almost by accident–the engineer was testing levels while Berkel was working out the arrangement on the piano–the recording captures the vulnerability of the lyrics and of longing itself. Though still quiet and spare, “Blush On” is the most upbeat of the five songs on The Quiet Between. Based on “June First”, a poem by Sydney Hegele (author of The Pump, Invisible Publishing, a recent finalist for the 2022 Trillium Book Award), the song features Ryan Boldt (The Deep Dark Woods) and evokes Tucker Zimmerman with its layering of guitars and movement.

WATCH / SHARE “LIGHT IT SLANT” HERE
BUY / STREAM “LIGHT IT SLANT” HERE

The album was recorded over several sleepy winter days at the Sugar Shack in London, Ontario; the sparseness of the songs reflects the new quiet imposed by the pandemic while also allowing the poetry of Berkel’s collaborators to be at the forefront. Recorded with only the engineer (Simon Larochette) and Ryan Boldt present, the songs feature Berkel and Boldt with additional flourishes by Misha Bower, Simon Larochette, and Kelly Larochette. From poem to song to recording, The Quiet Between relies heavily upon and emphasizes the significance of one’s local community.

Whether you’re reading Berkel’s poetry—in her debut chapbook Grease Dogs with Baseline Press—or listening to her recordings, Pale Moon Kid (2016), These Are the Sounds Left From Leaving (2022), and now The Quiet Between, you’ll experience her drawing layers of far-reaching concern into particular moments, like concentric waves rippling inward toward a lone cast stone. A songwriter immersed in poetry, a poet immersed in music—her work in all its forms is an invitation into a world of relatable introspection, in which even absences can be sculpted into vividly memorable verse.

PRE-SAVE THE QUIET BETWEEN HERE

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THE QUIET BETWEEN TRACKLIST
01 Light It Slant
02 Speak To Me
03 Blush On (ft. Ryan Boldt)
04 Not Enough Of You
05 Westbound

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JEAN-MICHEL BLAIS REVEALS NEW VIDEO FOR “AMOUR” AND “OUESSANT”

WATCH / SHARE “AMOUR” / “OUESSANT” HERE

AUBADES, THE POST-CLASSICAL ICON’S FIRST ENSEMBLE RECORD, OUT NOW VIA ARTS & CRAFTS

BUY / STREAM AUBADES HERE

CANADIAN TOUR DATES CONTINUE THIS WEEK

“From its opening notes, it whisks listeners away. On the new album from the esteemed post-classical pianist, Blais is in perpetual bloom, moved by life's beauty and nature's song.” - Exclaim!

“...aubades finds Blais conducting a 12-person ensemble, filling in his beautiful piano melodies with lush instrumentation that brings his music to new heights.” - CBC MUSIC ‘Albums we can’t wait to hear in 2022’

Photo Credit : William Arcand // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES

Today, celebrated composer and pianist Jean-Michel Blais is revealing the latest visual piece for two tracks, “amour” and “ouessant”, from his album aubades. Continuing the story of the ballet instructor from his previous release “passepied” this offering, created by collaborator Adrian Villagomez, spotlights Russian ballerina Larissa Belova in a melancholic and inspiring dance as a middle-aged woman in the grand empty Théâtre Outremont in Montréal. In docufilm style, it switches between VHS footage of Larissa’s past performance as a young ballerina and behind-the-scenes footage and her choreographed performance today exploring memory, loss and love of dance.

“When approached to dance for 'amour', Larissa responded with an additional choreography for 'ouessant'!” says Blais. “This only merely shows that woman's singularity. We then had no choice but to write this docu-fiction, interpolating her glorious past as a Soviet ballerina with her current grace as a woman, a loving mother, a generous, sensitive and explosive artist. 'amour / ouessant' is therefore both a process and a product, a testimony and a continuity, a creation and an inspiration for those who forgot their dreams along the way ..."

Director Adrian Villagomez explains, “It's while working on ‘passepied’ that we got to know Larissa, Vlad's mother, who turned out to be a very interesting character, and that's when we realized that she alone could have been the protagonist of a feature film.”

“I always wanted to mix the documentary style with music videos. Larissa is a strong and endearing character, she certainly has 100 stories to tell and is 'extremely generous with her person. We felt privileged to have this closeness with her and give her the chance to perform with all the greatness she deserves.”

“What's cool about Jean-Michel is that when we start with a strong concept, we allow ourselves to let it evolve along the way. I think that's why we can say we have a true documentary approach by letting ourselves rewrite the story during the filming as well as during post-production. “

WATCH / SHARE “AMOUR” / “OUESSANT” HERE

BUY / STREAM AUBADES HERE

MORE ABOUT AUBADES
aubades marks the Montreal-born musician’s transition from pianist to composer, as he writes for an ensemble for the first time in his career. Written during the pandemic and following a breakup, Blais has used his distinctive musical voice to create a defiantly uplifting record with glistening instrumental textures and warm major tonalities. The album’s title refers to the “aubade”, a Middle Ages morning love song about lovers separating at daybreak, a dawn serenade. 

Jean-Michel Blais has been a celebrated figure in the post-classical piano world since the release of his critically-acclaimed debut album II in 2016. He attended Quebec’s prestigious Trois-Rivières Music Conservatory but left after two years of study, exhausted by the restraints of the traditional music curriculum. Blais then travelled widely before retraining as a special education teacher. Whilst working as a teacher, he returned to music on his own terms, rediscovering his passion through improvising on the piano. These improvisations formed the basis of a recording career that has earned him two Polaris Music Prize nominations, a #1 on the Billboard Classical chart and a Time Magazine top ten album of the year. 

WATCH / SHARE “PASSEPIED” HERE

Despite the difficult global and personal backdrop, Blais described the time writing this album as a “fruitful moment of creativity for me. We started having hares in the park, beautiful butterflies flying everywhere. It was a time of lots of blossoming, and also a moment when I blossomed from being a pianist into a composer.” Musical ideas captured in over 500 recorded piano improvisations were transformed by Blais into 11 compositions performed by a 12-person ensemble. During the composition process, Blais collaborated with Alex Weston, former music assistant to Philip Glass. The musicians were recorded with close-up microphones, creating a richly intimate atmosphere that captures the human behind each instrument, from the mechanics of the woodwind keys to the snap of a double bass string. 

Blais also consciously found himself leaning towards major tonalities, which he believes are surprisingly rare in modern classical piano music. “With this album, I was definitely responding to certain trends,” Blais reckons. “For example, the fact that the solo piano tends to sound melancholic. That’s good, but I’ve done that already, I wanted to go beyond that.”

WATCH / SHARE ‘MAKING OF AUBADES’ DOCUMENTARY HERE

In aubades, every instrument is given moments of expression to an extent that took the players by surprise. Blais says, “there’s often been this dominant idea in classical music that one instrument is the chief, the king of all the instruments, and the others are in the background merely supporting.” He was inspired by more democratic musical textures from the Renaissance and Middle Ages, as well as the social democratic artistic ethos of the English 19th century poet, designer and activist William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. 

Jean-Michel Blais will be taking aubades on the road in 2022. Full tour dates can be found below.

BUY / STREAM AUBADES HERE

2022 TOUR DATES
02/09/22 L’assomption, QC - Théâtre Hector-Charland
03/09/22 Laval, QC - Salle André-Mathieu
08/09/22 Gaspé, QC - Salle de spectacles de Gaspé
09/09/22 Carleton-sur-Mer, QC - Studio Hydro-Québec du Quai des arts
10/09/22 Rimouski, QC - Salle Desjardins-Telus
12/09/22 Sept-Îles, QC - Salle Jean-Marc Dion
13/09/22 Baie-Comeau, QC - Centre des arts de Baie-Comeau
15/09/22 Saguenay, QC - Théâtre Banque Nationale
16/09/22 Dolbeau-Mistassini, QC - Salle Desjardins Maria-Chapdelaine
17/09/22 Alma, QC - Salle Michel-Côté
22/09/22 Rivière-du-Loup, QC - Centre culturel Berger - Salle Alphonse Desjardins
23/09/22 Lévis, QC - L’anglicane
24/09/22 Terrebonne, QC - Théâtre du Vieux-Terrebonne
26/09/22 Amos, QC - Théâtre des Eskers
27/09/22 La Sarre, QC - Salle de spectacles Desjardins
28/09/22 Rouyn-Noranda, QC - Théâtre du Cuivre
30/09/22 Val-d’Or, QC - Théâtre Télébec
02/10/22 Shawinigan, QC - Centre des arts de Shawinigan - Salle Philippe-Filion
04/10/22 Brossard, QC - L’Étoile Banque Nationale
05/10/22 Longueuil, QC - Théâtre de la Ville - Salle Pratt & Whitney
07/10/22 Beloeil, QC - Centre culturel de Beloeil
08/10/22 Baie-du-Febvre, QC - Théâtre Belcourt
13/10/22 Saint-Irénée, QC - Domaine forget de Charlevoix
14/10/22 St-Eustache, QC - Le Zénith Promutuel Assurance
20/10/22 Ottawa, ON - National Arts Centre
20/01/23 Toronto, ON - Koerner Hall

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