FFWD Weekly
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Music by Aubrey McInnis CAROLYN MARK AND THE ROOMMATES with Forbidden Dimension October 27 Night Gallery Meet the West Coast's coolest gal, Carolyn Mark. The husky-voiced sprite from Victoria – well-known for charming the socks off audiences with her infectious giggle and delightful wink-and-a-song delivery – has an endearing way about her. Her Sets are marked by fantastic rootsy music, the kicked-up heels of her cowgirl boots and the blinking of a cheeky "solo" stage light (like an applause light) before she or one of The Roommates (Tolan McNeil and Garth Johnson – her actual roommates) launch into a quick spotlight performance. As a former member of The Vinaigrettes and other bands, she may be the acoustic darling of the West Coast, but you can't hold her there for long. Her solo debut – auspiciously titled Party Girl – was recorded all over Canada. Her sparkling sense of humour and itchy feet already peeked through on her 1999 demo, At Home On Tour. While the demo was coyly recorded in different rooms of her and The Roommates' house, Party Girl was recorded in clubs and (farm)houses in her hometown, Vancouver, Edmonton, Kendall, Regina and Toronto. Like the solo albums by her pal and Corn Sisters bandmate, Neko Case, Carolyn’s record hosts a bevy of great guest musicians from across the country such as Ray Condo, Oh! Susannah, Elevator's Tara and Rick White, and Brian Connelly (Shadowy Men...). This summer, she scouted out future recording towns as she was invited to perform at the Dawson City Music Fest (Yukon) and Lady Fest (Olympia, Washington). "I'd like to keep recording in different places. I've been really inspired lately because I heard Frank Sinatra at the Sands – the double live album – him live in Vegas with an orchestra and a whole band. He told jokes and (brought) people up from the audience." You can hear her swooning over the phone. "Then I heard the Sammy Davis Jr. Live at the Sahara. Oh, someone bought me this Patsy Cline live concert in Tulsa. I'd really like to make a fancy live album with strings and horns and jokes. I'd like that. I like a little show with my rock. Some people don't. I used to get really mad at those Halifax bands that never looked up, but some people are really into them. It's all a matter of taste." Carolyn is one of those musicians that could easily be tagged as a consummate performer. She's been hamming it up since her father propped her up in front of a piano as a youngster and made her play duets with him in front of houseguests. During one of her last visits to Calgary, while trying to record a song for Party Girl, she had the entire Ship & Anchor crowd (including luminaries like Billy Cowsill, Ronnie Hayward, Ford Pier and the Royal Grand Prix) clapping and cheering along. Five takes later, everybody still loved Carolyn, but the band drove home to discover that the Calgary DAT didn't record one note. Since then, she's tried again and included her old bandmates from The Metronome Cowboys, Cowboy Tim and Dave Lang. With a new tour scheduled for the Corn Sisters (in support of their sassy new release, The Other Women), life on the road isn't likely to stop anytime soon for the party girl. Is it the kitschy allure of the Edison squirrel, the Maytag Man in Inglewood, the Vegreville egg, the cowboy boot in Edmonton or the moose in Clearwater that keeps her truckin'? "When you tour, it's holiday time for your brain because you know when you're having everyday life, you're like, 'Omigod, time is creeping by – you're not doing anything, get off your ass!' And then when you're on tour, you could actually do a lot of other stuff. But your brain's like, 'Well, I'm on tour.' You could do a lot but you don't actually want to. "I usually go for long walks whenever we arrive anywhere, 'cause I mean, fuck, all that sittin' and eatin' (grilled) cheese (sandwiches) – woo," she exhales. "Today, I, uhh, inspired by seeing my ass in a changing room mirror yesterday, went for a bike ride. Hey, I'm gonna be showing this soon." "For a Fast Forward photo shoot?" I laugh. "I'd better put my best ass forward – Ass Forward magazine."Clench, clench, clench!"

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