There’s
no stopping anyone with the right attitude and some ambition and, for
Canadian powerhouse blues band Durham County Poets, the drive to get
“Back at the Groove Shack” after our pandemic pause is creatively
evident with this, their soulful new single and album, Out of the Woods —
both available now!
While
we all hunkered down for the long haul of COVID, DCP lead vocalist and
songwriter Kevin Harvey knew that the time was right to get working on
new music that could have the power to uplift and inspire just when we
all perhaps need it the most.
“The idea was for it to be a positive, uplifting experience for all involved — creators and listeners,” notes Harvey.
The
result of this experience? The band’s fifth album, Out of the Woods,
produced by Bill Garrett; the smooth, funky, and smile-worthy title
track is the lead single that introduces the new collection in both
style and substance.
From
the one-word vocal intro of “alright”, the album’s title track, “Out of
the Woods,” takes us down a path heading straight for the light at the
end of the tunnel. Along the way, there’s continuous, rhythmic
reassurance that everything is indeed going to be alright.
“The
number one inspiration for the single ‘Out of the Woods’ was my
mother,” says Harvey. “She has always been a rock and the kind of mom
that has the ability to set you straight! Get me off my high horse and
or kick my behind if I start feeling sorry for myself, and always with
love.”
We ain’t home yet but we’re out of the woods
Come on now, take a look at this world and start acting like we know we should
DCP
has a lot to live up to and surpass after scoring a 2020 JUNO
nomination for Best Blues Album of the Year for their fourth record,
Hand Me Down Blues, and watching it stay on Roots Music Report’s Top 50
chart in Canada for more than 12 months. The album also received two
Maple Blues Awards nominations and a Canadian Folk Music Awards
nomination for Kevin Harvey.
While Harvey is the voice out front, Durham County Poets are a “band in the truest sense of the word,” they share.
“Every
member writes and arranges and brings something unique to the table,”
says Harvey. “You’ll hear a variety of genres and a broad range of
styles.” Those DCP members are David Whyte on guitar and backing vocals,
Neil Elsmore on guitar and backing vocals, Carl Rufh on bass and
backing vocals, and Rob Couture on drums.
“The
guys in the band wrote songs that bolster that positive uplifting vibe,
it’s peppered all over the album,” he continues. “Even when the content
is somewhat sobering and can be a tad weighty, the end result is
relevance and beauty, and a bit of humour never hurt nobody either.”
Positivity,
forward-thinking, and passion are the key drivers for bandleader Kevin
Harvey, who has been in a wheelchair since 1981 after what he calls a
“stupid accident.“ He sees it as just one experience among many in his
life and will not allow it to define or confine him. With the grace of
God, the collective power of the band, and the slowly changing views of
society towards the disabled, DCP has been able to realize some of the
hopes and aspirations they all have as musicians. Harvey sums it up with
his personal motto, “Music is a precious gift too important not to be
shared.”
The
belief in and celebration of that precious gift has been palpable when
the band has fired up at key festivals such as Ottawa Blues, Rochester
Jazz, Montréal Folk, Deep Roots Nova Scotia, Wintergrass Seattle, Port
Credit, Ontario’s Southside Blues Shuffle, and the Pop-up “Superfolk” in
Morin Heights, QC.
The
positive power that a DCP show can have was observed by Bill Hurley of
Extended Play Sessions when he wrote, "There's something about the
Durham County Poets that leaves you feeling that everything might be OK
in the world after all. There's a human spirit that lives in these
people and their music is the medium that allows that spirit to roam
free."
In
the coming months, the Durham County Poets will be sharing that spirit
with enthralling performances increasing their usual five members to
seven with a horn section. They’ll be hitting stages throughout Québec
and Ontario and in the U.S. in New England and New York State in support
of their fifth album Out of the Woods. Visit durhamcountypoets.com for dates.
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