ECMA E-News - SpinCount Featured Artist of the Week - Ian Sherwood

SPINCOUNT ARTIST OF THE WEEK: IAN SHERWOOD

2011 is promising to be quite a year for Ian Sherwood,a singer-songwriter with a lot to celebrate. The release of his third CD, And Now The Fun Begins, is generating a lot of buzz, including an ECMA nomination for Konica Minolta Male Solo Recording of the Year. Sherwood’s unique blend of roots, R and B and a kind of lyrical folk rock, coloured with his incredible storytelling skills, create a sound and style that simply can’t be pigeonholed.

Much like the artist. His heart is in the stories he creates through his writing, but his versatility means he’s in demand as a session musician playing sax, guitar and providing background vocals, as well as arranging and creating for other musicians. All these contributed to his win, for the second time, as Music Nova Scotia’s Musician of the Year

Adding to the eventful potential for 2011: his recent engagement to Halifax based actress Genevieve Steele, who is expecting the couple’s first child in April. That lucky baby is already showing signs of enjoying the musical life: at a house concert recently Genevieve is reported as saying he/she ...”didn’t stop dancing all night!”

ECMA / SpinCount Presents: Members Night Andy Brown Video!

Dear ECMA Members: On October 2nd, 2010, ECMA & SpinCount held a member's night at the Seahorse Tavern in Halifax, Nova Scotia to showcase our first round of four acts from across the regions of Atlantic Canada. Andy Brown, Tim Chaisson & Morning Fold, Telfer, and Alert the Medic all put on an incredible show for a packed house - and we had a great team filming each set! The team @ Said Productions set out to develop a profile video for the event in its entirety, as well as separate instalments for each performing artist. First up, and delivered right to you is Andy Brown. On January 15th, February 15th, and March 15th, we'll release another video from the show. Click the link below to be directed to our YouTube Page - and check out what we've been scheming! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tt9sO34mW10

ECMA E-News - September 3, 2010, SPINCOUNT FEATURED ARTIST OF THE WEEK: ASELIN DEBISON

SPINCOUNT FEATURED ARTIST OF THE WEEK: ASELIN DEBISON

Flash back to 2002. Aselin Debison was signed to Sony Classics world wide. She was the youngest signing in the companyʼs history. The next four years brought a whirlwind that saw young Aselin visit Japan twice, where she had several charting singles, release two CDʼs, which garnered extensive radio and video play and multiple award nominations. She also had her own PBS/CBC network television special, ʻAselin Debison: Sweet is the Melodyʼ. Her touring and media appearances brought her to some of the most prestigious stages and events including: Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto, Carnegie Hall, Parliament Hill, performances for the Queen of England, the Prime Minister of Canada and many theatre and festival performances abroad.

Widespread corporate restructuring at Sony Music globally throughout 2006 saw many of the key people involved in Aselinʼs youthful industry ascent suddenly out of work and an extensive corporate merger between Song Music and BMG Music brought only more layoffs and artist rosters slashed domestically and internationally. What many young people might take as a serious blow was taken in mature and a proactive stride by the still teenaged Aselin Debison. While not completely abandoning her love of music, writing and performing; she shifted her focus to a university education for the next few years. During this time, she continued to write, co-write and record demos, all pointed toward a day when a new fresh independent recording would be released.

That time has come. ʻHomeward Boundʼ is that release.

Aselin reflects, ʻThis new album brings me back to where I want to be. Itʼs back to my roots, what I was brought up on. The writing process was long and drawn out, but totally worth it. Five years was worth the wait to have my favorite album yet. My cowriters were amazing. They understood where I came from and what I was aiming for. They helped me achieve my goal. Iʼm very proud of this project and all the songs on it.ʼ Summer 2010 will mark the return of Aselin Debison with ʻHomeward Boundʼ; starting with the undeniable hooks of ʻClose to Youʼ.

http://aselindebison.com/

ECMA E-News - SPINCOUNT FEATURED ARTIST OF THE WEEK: TIM CHAISSON & MORNING FOLD

SPINCOUNT FEATURED ARTIST OF THE WEEK: TIM CHAISSON & MORNING FOLD

Tim Chaisson is no stranger to the spotlight. With three solo albums under his belt, and now the release of Tim Chaisson and Morning Fold’s independent musical gem Broken Hearted Beat, Chaisson has more than 17 industry awards or nominations and currently has no less than five P.E.I. Music Awards nominations for Songwriter of the Year, Group of the Year, Recording of the Year, Pop Recording of the Year and Entertainer of the Year, and an East Coast Music Award nomination for Best Pop Recording.

While much of the album is spawned from his own seeds of creativity as primary songwriter, Chaisson notes that renowned Canadian-bred musicians Joel Plaskett (Thrush Hermit, Joel Plaskett Emergency) and Gordie Johnson (Grady, Big Sugar) were crucial in realizing Broken Hearted Beat’s wide scope and boldness.

Co-penning material as a team and utilizing Johnson’s invaluable experience as a musician and producer for Broken Hearted Beat, Chaisson, Johnson and crew captured the live essence of the band at Plaskett’s studio before heading down to Willie Nelson’s Austin-based Pedernales Studios in order apply finishing touches.

Moreover, Chaisson concludes that with the influence of his mentors, the abilities of Morning Fold and his penchant for entwining the plethora of influences a large family has bestowed up on him into a distinct sound, Broken Hearted Beat is easily his most cultivated, proficient effort to date. But, he alludes, there are still many more to come.

“My East Coast roots are elemental to making this album unique,” he waxes philosophically. “I was lucky to have such a large family that introduced me to so many diverse forms of music. I think they all come out on this album. The same thing applies with the rest of the band. They have that in- flux of inspiration from their families and they’re fantastic multi-instrumentalists. As for me, well, I’ve been doing this since I can remember ... I’m gonna be in it for the long haul.”

http://timchaisson.com/

ECMA E-News - SPINCOUNT FEATURED ARTIST OF THE WEEK: SLOWCOASTER

SpinCount's ECMA Featured Artist of the Week is SLOWCOASTER!

With infectious and captivating lyrics, reinforced by a commanding groove, Slowcoaster takes you on a ride to the heart of the party with no apologies. Throwing down their high-energy danceable tunes, the Cape Breton trio fuses reggae, hip hop, and classic house influences with their unique brand of funky rock and roll. Having spent the past ten years infiltrating the Canadian live music scene, Slowcoaster has firmly established themselves as one of the country’s most popular jam rock bands. 



Slowcoaster’s energetic live show is now infamous in Canada for causing crowd frenzies and instantaneous dance parties. From the moment they step on stage, their one and only goal is to entertain their ever-growing fanbase to the maximum – making ‘em sweat, dance, laugh, sing, scream, and pump their fists. Fan favourites like “Patio” and “F*ck Last Night” take the party to the next level, reaping full crowd participation and simultaneous body bouncing. 

 Inspired by life’s ironic twists of fate, singer/guitarist Steven MacDougall’s lyrics play hope against desperation and love against anguish while preserving an aura of tongue in cheek humour. Intertwining MacDougall’s stellar guitar skills with bassist Mike LeLievre’s feisty grooves, the two feed off each other, creating a solid dynamic and initiating brilliant improvisations and transitions. Drummer Brian Talbot keeps the pulse pounding, rounding out a secure foundation to the full spectrum Slowcoaster sound. 



The Darkest of Discos marks Slowcoaster’s fifth studio album, to be released in September 2010. Highly anticipated by fans and industry alike, Slowcoaster will take Discos on the road, hitting Canadian cities coast to coast this fall. Their polished, addictive recorded sound and their highly potent live performance have secured Slowcoaster as one of Canada’s most paramount independent bands on the scene today.

http://www.reverbnation.com/slowcoaster

ECMA E-News - SPINCOUNT FEATURED ARTIST OF THE WEEK: The Grass Mountain Hobos

THE GRASS MOUNTAIN HOBOS

The Hobos are of another time. A time when pleasure usurped profession; when live music provided the soundtrack for excess; this period they bring to life on stages across Canada. With a stage show that harkens back to the days of the travelling salesman, The Hobos are the cure-all elixir for those requiring entertainment. Their brand of music is authentic and complex, mixing equal parts of the carnival, farm, tavern and circus. Two acoustic guitars, a banjo, mandolin, doghouse bass and a fiddle create the unique backdrop over which the 6 vocalists paint malevolent yet harmonious works of art. Their music drives and swings while they stomp - the crowd smiles and joins in.

This past month started off with the Grass Mountain Hobos driving home from playing a number of shows at Mariposa Folk Festival, in Ontario followed by an appearance on Live! with Regis and Kelly as the house band on Tuesday, July 13th. The same day that they played on Live! with Regis and Kelly the Hobos hopped on a plane and crossed the ocean. A swing, bluegrass, blues, and folk infusion The Grass Mountain Hobos will be playing at a number of clubs and festivals across the UK from July 15th to August 2nd. Following the UK dates upcoming touring highlights for the Grass Mountain Hobos include performances at 25th anniversary of Lunenburg Folk Festival and a tour of the US Eastern Seaboard.

http://grassmountainhobos.com/

New ECMA Member Partner - SpinCount

New ECMA Member Partner - SpinCount
via ECMA/SpinCount
ECMA is thrilled to announce that SpinCount is now an official ECMA Member Partner. Included in this partnership is a discount of services by SpinCount to all ECMA Members (10%).

A brief description of SpinCount:

"SpinCount is a full service radio Promotions Company based in Nova Scotia, Canada - we digitally release music via DMDS and then follow up and promote to radio. We use Mediabase (Music Information Systems) to monitor our client's progress at radio. Services include local, regional and nationwide radio campaigns, radio promotions for tour support, and many other innovative products developed and offered only by SpinCount. Each radio campaign is unique, beginning with the selection of radio stations handpicked to maximize results. We work very closely with our clients to customize each campaign for each release. By combining electronic distribution and promotions under one roof, SpinCount can tailor services to the specific song and to the specific goals of the artist. This approach recognizes the individual voice of each artist and makes radio promotions available to every budget."

For more information, please visit http://spincount.ca!