It seems Canada is fast becoming a Mecca of undiscovered talent – for new artists previously unheard of on this side of the pond at least. This was certainly the case for me when I got my copy of More Electric. Shane Simpson and his band come from Ottawa, Ontario. This is a studio recording with some nice guitar work from Shane, who not only wrote all the material but also plays some mean guitar riffs. The rest of the band are: Lynne Hanson on guitar/vocals, Tom McMahon on bass, and Lorenzo Cotroneo on drums, with guest musician Ross Murray taking percussion on track 11. Together they provide a solid backing for the mixture of country jazzy blues based acoustic rock – not to be confused with folk rock.
Whereas the lyrics left me a little less than enthused, this is only because they are overshadowed by some really excellent guitar work. Don’t let this put you off buying the album because the songs are more than made up for by the rhythm and musicianship.
Shane is very much a guitarist’s guitarist. His style and ability carry his songs. I found myself admiring and listening to the guitar work more than the actual song content. On this side of the water, if you are a fan of Albert Lee you are sure to pick up on Shane Simpson.
The album gets off to a bit of a slow gentle start with songs “Nowhere Near” and “Not On,” performed on acoustic guitars. “Nice solos with some words wrapped around them,” is how one of my friends described them. As with all of Shane’s songs, the lyrics will mean lots of different things to different people, you can read into the words what you will – but I wouldn’t worry about it, because at track three (“Walking Wrong”) the album really kicks to life and commands your attention right up to the end. My only small criticism of the whole album is on “Walking Wrong” – try as I might I just couldn’t understand the words of the chorus! I had to resort to the sleeve notes for the lyrics. Having said that I still think it is probably my favourite track on the album.
Other tracks well worth a mention are “I’d Find My Own Way” has a nice acoustic back riff with an overlay of an electric guitar on distortion. The title track “More Electric,” a jazzy-blues instrumental, is well into the class of Eric Clapton and Albert Lee – brilliant. This is followed by a shuffle “My Own Company.” After “Tendency” and “G to C” the penultimate song “Everything the Same” shows off Shane’s ability to hold his own with simple root jazz chords. This is another track I liked and I found myself hitting the repeat button again.
I would file this album in the country-rock section of my library. My wife said it makes a pleasant change from just listening to folk music day-in and day-out, and I can also see it making its way to my son’s music system as well. The lyrics are young, it’s tasteful, and it’s damn good. Lend it an ear – see what I mean.
(Segment Multimedia, 2003)
