Preview
MOCKING SHADOWS
Friday, February 25
Wyckham House (Mount Royal College)
Cutline: A continued evolution – with an ever growing lineup, Calgary’s Mocking Shadows move from their blues period to a new funky R and B sound
Any band that approaches the one-decade milestone will inevitably experience some growing pains. Mocking Shadows have evolved from their bluesy roots into a modern funk tour de force replete with Hammond B3 organ, Rhodes piano and a full-on horn section.
Drawing new blood from Edmonton’s Hi-Phonics (Arun Bhaumik, guitar) and former Calgary favourites Interstellar Root Cellar (Darren Bourne, keys and lead vocals), they have a new record of their new sound and are ready to tell the world.
Co-lead vocalist-bassist Jory Kinjo joined up in ’99 and has seen the band through this transitional phase. "I think it’s just kind of stretching out and growing," he says. "I didn’t want to play the blues forever and we didn’t want to be pigeonholed as that kind of band. It was a place where we all came from and I really respect that, but there were also styles of music that some of the guys in the band, myself included, were being so influenced by that we wanted to bring that into our professional life."
Unlike folk or punk, where earnestness, three chords and the right attitude can get the point across, playing funk requires a level of proficiency and musical savvy that’s impossible to fake. Funk played badly can make your teeth hurt. But when it’s performed passionately by skilled journeymen players and singers, R and B is one of the most universally appealing musical genres going. Fortunately, Mocking Shadows have the chops and experience to deliver the goods.
This experience comes from years of hard work and hard play. During their "blues period" they opened for the legendary BB King and backed up Long John Baldry at the Jubilee Auditorium with no rehearsal. Their rigorous touring schedule keeps them busy playing clubs and corporate gigs virtually every weekend throughout the year. To date they’ve released four CDs and a live DVD recorded at the infamous National Hotel.
The newest disc, Check One, features seven original compositions from Darren Bourne that could make a room full of stuffed-shirt accountants tap their feet and bob their collective heads in unison (or at least their pencils). Ambitiously, this is the first of three CDs planned for release in 2005.
"We wanted to get our new material out as quickly as possible," says Kinjo. "We didn’t want to take the time to do a full-length album because we wanted our fans to be aware of the changes that were going on in the band and we wanted to get a new product out with the new sound."
Songs like "Swear" and "Damn Girl" feature tight, catchy melodic grooves that one can imagine standing shoulder to shoulder with classic covers of Rick James, Sly and the Family Stone, Prince and Fishbone in their live show.
"It’s the most original (material) it’s ever been right now," says Kinjo. "I’d say 50, maybe 60, per cent, but we want to have 80 per cent original." As proud as they are of the new record, it’s the live shows where the band really stakes its reputation. "We are a live band and the energy comes from that, that’s why people keep coming back to the shows."
Kinjo’s enthusiasm is infectious and he’s fully aware of the sacrifices and hard work needed for sustained success. "It takes time and dedication, and if you want to take time off to do this and this and this, that’s fine, but in the meantime we just feel like we should be doing more and more. This is what we love to do and we can’t really bear the thought of sitting at home on a Friday night when we know that there’s a crowd we should be playing to." |
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