Some early evening rain on Saturday night in no way deterred fans from coming out to CityFolk to see the return of Canada’s beloved band, The Sheepdogs. In fact, the crowd only grew as the show progressed, with an enthusiastic display of appreciation and love for these five hard-working boys from Saskatchewan.
Shamus Currie on keys, trombone, tambourine, and backing vocals.
The Sheepdogs, formed in 2004, released their first full length, self-produced album, Trying To Grow in 2007. Although they had already achieved a strong following, it was their third album, Learn And Burn (2010, re-released 2011), and subsequent EP, Five Easy Pieces, that began to bring about some heavy recognition. The whirlwind continued when they were chosen as winners of the Rolling Stone cover contest in 2011, made appearances on Jimmy Fallon, and took home three Juno awards in 2012, which cast them into the national musical forefront. Their fourth, self-titled effort, brought them continued success with multiple single hits, heavy airplay, and platinum sales.
Their fifth studio album, Future Nostalgia, also self-produced, hits the shelves on Oct. 2nd, and is 18 tracks of pure, classic rock ear candy. The album is under 50 minutes long, each song is distinctly different from the next, and it features a 6-song medley at the end. All of the tracks are marked with some kind of memorable hook, whether it be a guitar lick, a familiar vibe, or an infectious vocal melody.
Their music is a refreshing time warp back to the essential classic rock goodness of memorable guitar riffs, infectious rhythms, great bass lines, well-written vocal melodies with plenty of harmonies, and a melange of keyboard work ranging from raw piano backbone to the growl of the Hammond organ. Their songs run the gamut from sixties psychedelic, to the seventies rock spectrum including boogie rock, jazz, pop/rock, and fusion elements. The voice of lead singer/songwriter/producer, Ewan Currie, also bears a strong nostalgic tone, bringing to mind the crisp, mid-range, and pure vocals of singers in bands of the time like, Chuck Negron of Three Dog Night, Robert Lamm of Chicago, and Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad. I chatted with Ewan earlier in the day about the essence and influences of the band:
“Obviously I love the rock music from the 60’s and 70’s. To me, that was the greatest era and one where the most popular bands were ones that wrote, sang, and recorded their own music…there wasn’t a big team of people writing songs, or a big marketing thing. It was about real artists and real stories from their lives. So we’ve always tried to emulate those types of people. If you listen to our album, it’s us playin’ it, it’s us writing, it’s stories about us…it’s our lives.”
Fans in the crowd tonight ranged from the diehard classic rock lovers of the baby boomer generation, to the wealth of young appreciators that have become the new keepers of the music’s flame.
Ewan Currie of The Sheepdogs, performing in the rain.
The band gave the crowd an energetic dose of their past hits and favourites, as well as a handful of goodies from their current release. One called, “Bad Lieutenant”, had a great early sixties Mersey beat flavour, garnished with sharp guitar accents over the gentle hum of the organ, held down by Shamus Currie, and featured Ewan’s wonderful long vocal sustains. They also delivered their hot new single, “Downtown”, which featured contrasting textures of relaxed verses into resounding choruses and more of those great 3-part harmonies. “Gonna Be Myself”, hit the crowd with it’s driving rock melody, and signature dual-guitar harmonies by Ewan Currie and lead guitarist, Rusty Matyas, which were also prevalent during the great walking pace of, “Take A Trip”.
Hits and favourites played from their fourth self-titled album included, “How Late, How Long”, “The Way It Is”, “Feeling Good”, and their very CSN-flavoured, “Ewan’s Blues”, which showcased the Currie brothers’ multi-instrumental talents as Ewan assumed keyboard duty while Shamus took to centre stage on trombone. I loved the song’s changing rhythms, laid down by Sam Corbett on drums, enhanced by the great bass grooves of Ryan Gullen, and more impressive guitar work by Matyas. This one has always been a crowd favourite at their live shows, with no exception here, as the audience roared with delight. The performance ended with “I Don’t Know”, the song that garnered them a Juno for Single Of The Year in 2012. People danced in the rain, as the band played through its catchy swaying beat, which later escalated in a lingering, frenzied finish. The great lawn transformed into a little bit of Woodstock during that short hour, built from the nostalgic tones of the music of The Sheepdogs, and the multitude of happy, rain-kissed faces.
The Sheepdogs continue on their busy tour through the US and Europe, in support of their new album, “Future Nostalgia”. For more information on The Sheepdogs, visit www.thesheepdogs.com.
