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You say it's all a big lie
And the clouds are made of flowers.
| After neglecting this page for close to a year, I will finally be making some updates. I appreciate the response I have received from visitors and the band members themselves, and hope to use people's suggestions to make this page better. In the coming weeks I will be adding some pictures from the October Sackville show, lyrics from the album, and some song clips. Thanks for visting! |
| A year has past since the release of Sol's stunning debut album, Lucinda. In the months that followed, the band toured extensively--venturing as far west as Ontario--and released a video for the song Lucinda (which can be found at the official Sol site). |
| The Album |
| Stacy Ricker's voice courses through the album like a winter Moncton breeze: sometimes chilling to the bone, other times carrying comforting warmth off the Bay of Fundy. Any female Canadian vocalist is inevitably
compared to Sarah McLaughlin, and in this case it is not without some validity,
but she is much more than that. The best comparison is likely with Ani DiFranco, but she also flawlessly combines the unpredictability of
Tori Amos and the power of Holly McNarland. |
| Ricker is backed by the unique and gifted guitar playing of Robin Anne
Ettles. Robin's performance boldly answers the question: "What if
Neil Young took guitar lessons?" Her nearly-percussive acoustic work
reveals a hint of classical training, while her wah pedal laced electric
playing is reminiscent of early Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam). Robin
wrote eleven of the twelve songs on Lucinda, and her songs not only
incorporate a substantial amount of versatility, but also tremendously
thought-provoking lyrics. |
| The rhythm section, which sometimes includes the bass-playing of Ricker,
is headed by Chris Mersereau. To call Chris a "drummer" would be
seriously inadequate. He rarely relies on the traditional five-piece,
often resorting instead to bongo drums. His playing is distinctive
and original--especially for a rock ensemble--and brings to mind Ben Harper's Fight for Your Mind and Paul Simon's Rhythm of the Saints album. |
| The Tour |
| SOL began the year with a tour of the maritimes with Holly McNarland and Weeping
Tile, hitting most Atlantic coast universities as well as their native
Moncton. McNarland, who turned down an offer to appear in last summer's
Lilith Fair tour, assembled what turned out to be her own celebration of
women in music. Although none of the bands were entirely female,
all three vocalists were, and together they demonstrated the musical integrity
that seems almost non-existent in that former
pop singer from Ottawa and those girls from England. |
| January 28th was the official CD release party for Lucinda. Advertised
as a "coctail party", the event included a dance routine, a magician, and
a cross-dressing host. Non of this detracted from the main event,
however, as the threesome performed brilliantly in front of the enormous
Moncton crowd. |
| Sol recently toured the martitimes, as well as major centres in Quebec and Ontario, in promotion of their newly-released video for the song Lucinda. Fans in attendance were treated to a great live show, as well as a preview of the incredibly peripatetic video. |
| The Future |
| The best place to look for tour information is the official Sol site (see the "Links" section). For those who wondered where the name "SOL" came from, Stacy informed me that it means "left" in Austrian (or some Eurpean language...) which reflects the band's political stance, and also that the ambiguity of the name reflects the diversity of the band members themselves (a statement which is, ironically, subject to interpretation itself.) And Chris, if you're reading this, I'm still waiting for my t-shirt! |
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