Photo courtesy of Shayne Kaye
January 16th, 2009 – So since everyone else is reporting on NAMM, and I couldn’t make it out, it would feel a little fake if I just regurgitated what other sites were posting. So instead, I’ve decided to create a new segment here on Key Of Grey named “Artists You May Not Know” (AYMNN).
I will attempt to bring to your attention artists, local to me or international, that may be outside your radar. They may be bands, they may be hip hop artists, they may be electronic-based duos; you’ll find that I have pretty eclectic tastes.
Today’s artists are a band that hails from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, a prairie province here in Canada. As such, you’d expect them to have a rootsy, earthy sound, and you’d be right. Consisting of vocalist and guitarist Shaun Verreault, bassist Earl Pereira (both pictured), and percussionist Safwan Javed, Wide Mouth Mason blends modern rock with heavy blues influences. Shaun is a mind-blowing guitarist, and Safwan and Earl form a tight and funky rhythm section.
They formed in 1995, and I first heard of them in early 1998. They (along with Steve Vai, Tak Matsumoto, Colin James and SRV) were part of the reason that I started learning guitar; I wanted to play their infectious, and bluesy tunes. In 1997, right before they were discovered by mainstream media, they played the Montreux Jazz Festival where they were declared the discovery of the festival by the organizer. That’s a pretty strong endorsement considering the amazing people (cough Quincy Jones cough) that have played there before. I’ve linked a video for what was considered the performance that made their Montreux appearance.
Their first CD major label release hit Gold in Canada, anchored by quite a few hit singles including my personal favorite “This Mourning”, also attached to this page. A few years ago when the studio I worked for hired an outside mix engineer at a fancy pants studio, it turned out that engineer was producing 2004′s “Shot Down Satellites” album. After finding out I was a big fan, he attempted to set up a meeting between WMM and I. Unfortunately, that producer fell off a porch and was seriously injured, and the album was completed by someone else. I never did get to meet the band and tell them what a huge influence they had been on me.
As I was typing that little anecdote, I just realized that perhaps I am a curse to famous producers. When I was 18 or 19, I was supposed to meet up with Bruce Fairburn, producer of huge multi-platinum albums by artists such as Bon Jovi (“Slippery When Wet” was produced right here in a studio that has since been turned into a practice space; I filmed a music video there, it was pretty cool), Aerosmith, and tonnes more. He is widely considered one of the most prolific producers of that period. The week before I was supposed to visit him in the studio he died of an overdose. Yikes.
Alright, off that downer subject; Wide Mouth Mason rocks. These days they aren’t nearly as big, and their audience is pretty much only connoiseurs or people that remember their first album. Still, they’ve put out some more modern material but I’ll always remember the original stuff. Check them out, and if you live in Canada, they’re having a mini-tour right now. Definitely go check them out!
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