With all of the visual stimulation constantly bombarding us, it can be hard to get away... to shut our eyes and let the other senses take over for a while.
But once we do, once we shut our eyes to the busy, visual world around us, it becomes easier to sit down, relax and take it easy. To chill.
That's what Saint John's Andy Stevens -the White Rabbit himself- likes best. Stevens is currently an active member of the Prog-Rock band ‘Born Under Satellites', also based out of Saint John.
White Rabbit's debut solo CD, "The Glorious Blindfold", is a much different offering than Stevens' work with Born Under Satellites. Released in the winter of 2007, it is a much softer sound, based mainly around the acoustic guitar and vocals.
You will find no drums here; it's up to you to supply your own rhythm. Your toes will tap. Your fingers will follow. You'll find yourself bopping along to songs that would sound at home on albums by Radiohead and Pearl Jam, both sources of inspiration for Stevens. You'll even find hints of Pink Floyd mixed in amongst the catchy harmonies and softly-spoken vocals.
"The Glorious Blindfold" is made of many layers; Stevens was quite liberal with overdubs, adding scores of backing vocals, extra guitar tracks, and additional instruments -played by a few local performers- to the project.
The effect is such that, like the fabric of a real blindfold, the songs on this albu …
With all of the visual stimulation constantly bombarding us, it can be hard to get away... to shut our eyes and let the other senses take over for a while.
But once we do, once we shut our eyes to the busy, visual world around us, it becomes easier to sit down, relax and take it easy. To chill.
That's what Saint John's Andy Stevens -the White Rabbit himself- likes best. Stevens is currently an active member of the Prog-Rock band ‘Born Under Satellites', also based out of Saint John.
White Rabbit's debut solo CD, "The Glorious Blindfold", is a much different offering than Stevens' work with Born Under Satellites. Released in the winter of 2007, it is a much softer sound, based mainly around the acoustic guitar and vocals.
You will find no drums here; it's up to you to supply your own rhythm. Your toes will tap. Your fingers will follow. You'll find yourself bopping along to songs that would sound at home on albums by Radiohead and Pearl Jam, both sources of inspiration for Stevens. You'll even find hints of Pink Floyd mixed in amongst the catchy harmonies and softly-spoken vocals.
"The Glorious Blindfold" is made of many layers; Stevens was quite liberal with overdubs, adding scores of backing vocals, extra guitar tracks, and additional instruments -played by a few local performers- to the project.
The effect is such that, like the fabric of a real blindfold, the songs on this album are woven together into a tight mesh that will allow the listener to leave the "real world" behind for a while and enter a land of dream-like audio textures that serve as candy for the ears.
White Rabbit's first release from "The Glorious Blindfold" is the opening track off the album, a song called Animosity.
The song has gotten a good deal of air-play on Saint John's Outlaw Radio, 103.5 The Pirate. Marc Henwood, the program director for the Pirate -and himself a member of Saint John's music scene- had this to say about Animosity:
"This song is one of the best damn things I have heard in a long time. The songwriting is superb, and natural. The lyrics, and wordplay are breezy, but with a desperate overtone of 'what have we done here?' If it were 1967, this song would be #1 on charts across the board."
Such a strong, positive response has gotten the Rabbit in high gear for getting out and playing some shows, the thing he likes to do most. He'll be doing extensive touring around the maritimes throughout 2008 in support of his debut release.
Stevens says his live performances will add a whole other dimension to his work for White Rabbit fans to enjoy.
"Recording the songs is like painting an elaborate picture, whereas performing them live exposes that tiny little spark that started it all."
http://www.thegloriousblindfold.com/
http://www.myspace.com/whiterabbitsongs
