Tag: Paul Banwatt

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Vinyl

Vinyl love: The Rural Alberta Advantage “The wild”

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.)

Artist: The Rural Alberta Advantage
Album Title: The wild
Year released: 2017
Details: Yellow vinyl, limited to 200, signed by the band, OBI strip

The skinny: So this impromptu mini-series showcasing the vinyl releases of Toronto-based indie folk rock trio, The Rural Alberta Advantage, comes to an end at four posts (so far). In 2016, it was announced that founding member Amy Cole was replaced by Robin Hatch and the group immediately went on the road to tour new material. “The wild” is the result of these road-tested tunes and though you can hear more polish, with Nils Edenloff’s raucous strumming and hollering and Paul Banwatt’s ever present drum-pounding, these ten tracks are no less ‘wild’ than the band’s previous work. I admit that I was a bit apprehensive at the personnel change but found that Hatch was a worthy replacement when I heard advance singles on YouTube so I jumped all over this second pressing by Paper Bag Records. As usual, the Canadian label’s packaging is fun, complete with an OBI strip, a signed cover, and a pretty yellow disc. (As a post-script: It’s been four years since this album was released, Amy Cole has returned to the group, and given the activity on social media, I expect I’ll have to add a fifth instalment to this series at some date in the not-too-distant future.)

Standout track: “White lights”

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Vinyl

Vinyl love: The Rural Alberta Advantage “Mended with gold”

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.)

Artist: The Rural Alberta Advantage
Album Title: Mended with gold
Year released: 2014
Details: Black vinyl with gold flecked splatter, limited to 300

The skinny: Without planning it, I kind of started a mini-series on one of my favourite Canadian indie rock bands, The Rural Alberta Advantage. Over the last two weekends, I have given their first two records, “Hometowns” and “Departing”, the Vinyl Love treatment, mostly because I was in a mood to listen to them, but now that I’ve started, I might as well go the whole way. The Toronto-based trio released their third record on Paper Bag Records in 2011. I somehow missed out on pre-ordering the first pressing in black and gold striped vinyl that was limited to 300 units. Yeah, that one sold out super quick but I managed to get in on the second run, this one also limited to 300 and pressed to what looks at first glance as plain black vinyl, but if you look real close, you catch the glints of flecked gold streaks. And much like the first two, I fell for music on “Mended with gold”, pretty much on first listen. The production on this one is amped right up, giving the trio a real rocking sound, especially showcasing the spellbinding drumming of Paul Banwatt, whose work has always put this band in a class of its own in the indie folk realm.

Standout track: “Terrified”

Categories
Vinyl

Vinyl love: The Rural Alberta Advantage “Departing”

(Vinyl Love is a series of posts that quite simply lists, describes, and displays the pieces in my growing vinyl collection. You can bet that each record was given a spin during the drafting of each corresponding post.)

Artist: The Rural Alberta Advantage
Album Title: Departing
Year released: 2011
Details: Black vinyl, 180 gram

The skinny: The sophomore record by Toronto-based indie folk-rock trio, The Rural Alberta Advantage, was released the year after I discovered them at Ottawa’s Bluesfest and then, fell in love with their debut. “Departing” is the logical next step in the band’s progression so it wasn’t a big leap for me to fall for it as well. The production is crisper and cleaner but it doesn’t take away from the raw energy and crazed percussion that made their first effort so hard to pull away from. Nils Edenloff’s rough hewn sneer is set against Amy Cole’s gentle backing echo, lyrics that paint love stories and memories of home. I only got this 180 gram, original pressing of the record recently, completing my collection of the band’s work (for now). The packaging is very similar aesthetically to the debut (which I featured in last weekend’s post), but the album cover is one of my favourites, a very Canadian image indeed.

Standout track: “Tornado 87”