Incredibly, Ross plays each of the 20+ instruments himself and also designed and created the beautiful artwork. Each tile on the cover holds a paper-cut image of one of sixteen Canadian animals, and along with the songs, Ross intends for them to “represent the ten provinces, three territories and three oceans that reside within these fragile Canadian habitats.” Ross says that his aim was to marry “art, music and design for the greater social good.”

If you visit the Peirson Soundcloud page, you can see each tile in more detail. What’s really cool about this is that each tile has some information on the species of animal it depicts, including its common name, its binomial name and its conservation status in Canada. All of the information was obtained from COSEWIC (Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada) so it’s all legit and scientifically accurate. So why not listen to the album and learn a little about each animal as you go? Did you know that the burrowing owl, Atlantic salmon and beluga whale are all classified as endangered? Or that species such as the harlequin duck and polar bear are now classed as requiring special concern?

You can even play the fun game of trying to match the tile to the song. For example, there is a repeated line in the track ‘The Year That Winter Never Came’ which goes, “Like the sun shining through the rain, a message from the lonesome whooping crane“, and if you look up the track on the , the art for the track features (you guessed it) a whooping crane.

Musically, Wild Ones sounds pretty much as you’d expect one man’s love letter to the natural world to sound. You could define it using the umbrella phrase “folk”, but with the 20+ instruments on show that doesn’t really do it justice. Fans of JBM (or Jesse Marchant as we’re calling him now) will like it, as will fans of more straightforward singer-songwriters (online biographies mention Nick Drake and Ray LaMontagne a lot). Let’s just say that it is as diverse and beautiful as the landscapes and habitats which inspired it.

Ross puts it best himself when he says, “Wild Ones is a dedication album not only for endangered species and their natural habitats at risk but also for the independent thinkers who have fought to preserve their wild sub-culture, rituals, values and essential spirit that was born out of our natural world. This is for the wild ones.”

You can buy the album right now via the Peirson Bandcamp page.

The post Peirson – Wild Ones appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Tracklist:

1. Kids Will Be Kids – Praything
2. Do You Have Romantic Courage – Hallelujah The Hills
3. The Shore And The Coastline – Now Wakes The Sea
4. The Corrections – Alphabetical Order Orchestra
5. Give Me Time – Roo & The Howl
6. To Remember – City States
7. Vow – Sales
8. In The Rain – Cut Ribbons
9. Feel What – Jacques Greene
10. Down On My Luck – Vic Mensa
11. Greater Than – Sharpless
12. Tennis Court (Flume Remix) – Lorde
13. Warehouses – Kane Ikin
14. Wild Geese – Small Sur
15. Youth – Best Wishes
16. Early Morning – Eagle Lake Owls
17. Dust To Settle – Rough River
18. Slow Down – Scott Orr
19. Gray Lodge Wisdom – Will Stratton
20. Brother, Do You Know The Road? – Hiss Golden Messenger
21. Something Like That – Wolf Collage
22. Muscle and Bone – John Joseph Brill
23. All Your Promises – Jesse Marchant
24. Echo Tropism – Inventions
25. Veiled Grey – Christian Löffler
26. All I Want – Dawn Golden

If you missed them, we have such mixes for January, February, March and April too.

May Mix from Wake The Deaf on 8tracks Radio.

The post May 2014 Roundup – A Mixtape appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Jesse Marchant (the artist formerly known as JBM) is readying a new album. This track, ‘All Your Promise’, is the first release and is available for free over at Marchant’s website. Fans will be pleased to know that Marchant is nothing if not consistent.

The post Jesse Marchant releases video for All Your Promise appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Also, if you’re lucky enough to be in Alberta this weekend, you have three chances to see Paul play live; one in Edmonton tonight (Friday 22nd Feb) courtesy of Cabin Songs, with Matthew A. Wilkinson, Jom Comyn and The Royal Iguana Fur (who cover Louie Louie here), then twice in Calgary on Saturday and Sunday (23rd and 24th of Feb). Check   Facebook for more info.

P.S. The slightly bizarre cover art was taken by Warren Humeny, check out a blog of his photography here.

The post Paul Stewart – Some Good It Will Come appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Stray Ashes is available from Western Vinyl and we can’t recommend it enough.

The post JBM – Stray Ashes @ Isokon appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Stray Ashes follows similar threads and is the sound of a man very much in his element. Again the vocals are stark, echoing to the listener as if across an empty room. I heard ‘Only Now’ a few weeks back and at first I thought there was some departure from the norm with the inclusion of beats but it takes seconds to be reassured. Desperate piano kicks in and builds up to a climatic line which is belted out: ’Mother, is this how we lie? Alone in our frozen beds//I am only now, and a long way out//Don’t you feel it now more than ever?’ This song perfectly sums up one of my favourite things about this album – the juxtaposition of barren, ghost-filled landscapes with the charged deliverance of certain lyrics give a feel of intense introspection, of sitting alone in silence, head awash with anger and sadness and hope.

Obviously all of this is subjective and open to any interpretation (Sorry Jesse if I have it all wrong!) so don’t take my word for it. Stray Ashes can be streamed in full over at The AV Club so head on over and see if you agree. The album will be released next week on Western Vinyl.

The post JBM – Stray Ashes appeared first on Various Small Flames.

If you haven’t heard ’Not Even In July’ then check it out, it’s a real belter of an album. It’s been out for a while on Partisan Records.

The post JBM – In a Different Time appeared first on Various Small Flames.

EDIT – Also check out the video for Morana here.

The post Tyler Butler – Winter King appeared first on Various Small Flames.