>>PREVIEW
ALANA LEVANDOSKI
Saturday, October 15
Things are looking pretty good for Alana Levandoski, the new it girl of Canadian roots music. Her first CD, Unsettled Down finally got released on Rounder after she was unceremoniously dumped by another record label and she’s currently in the middle of a Canadian tour with Corb Lund.
Still, all of the media attention she’s receiving has left her feeling a little perplexed. Appreciative, yes, but surprised. She attempts to shrug it off by saying that she doesn’t worry about trying to live up to honorifics and the accompanying expectations. "I just do what I do," she says.
Mostly, Levandoski sings wonderfully, and writes great songs about life in rural Manitoba. Writing autobiographical (at least partly) songs could be a dangerous thing for someone from Kenwood (population 300). After all, there is no place to hide – people know you and the people that you write about in your songs. But Levandoski insists that nobody’s feelings got hurt. Reaction to the album has all been positive, she says, citing her mom (the subject of "Red-Headed Girl") as an example. Levandoski says her mom could not believe how dead on it was. "Songwriting is a misunderstood craft," she says. "When you try to write a song there is sometimes so much to say and so many restrictions – of words and time – imposed upon you. That can be a challenge." The fact that she has generated such a buzz amongst insiders in the roots music community just shows that she has mastered her craft.
Like many singers, Levandoski got her start at the local church and by age nine she was performing in a gospel-styled band called Family & Friends. You can hear this influence in some of the song arrangements and the lyrics, but Levandoski says she has no agenda when it comes to writing songs.
"As long as I can relate to it on some level – not necessarily lyrical – and find something in it, then it is a good song. My songs deal with the natural questions and struggles that I was facing in my early 20s,² Levandoski says, admitting she may have been a bit too open. You can blame her literary heroes for that. Levandoski was influenced by Jo March (Little Women) and Anne (Green Gables), two characters who started writing in their early teens in order to connect with their feelings.
You might also want to credit some of her musical heroes and the musicians who helped her develop her craft. Evocative lyrics don¢ t come out of nowhere. The vibrant Brandon and Winnipeg roots and folk community, which she was a part of for several years, is home to many of the other musicians on the album. You could also look farther afield to singers like Sylvia Tyson and George Canyon. All had a hand in helping Levandoski become such a captivating songwriter. What you don¢ t want to do is show up late for the show and miss her set. She¢ s that good.
JAZZ & BLUES
Artists with new releases on the way
October
Susie Arioli Band featuring Jordan Officer
Blues Company
Chris Botti
Bob Brozman
Jamie Cullum
Bela Fleck
Carl Henry
Smokin’ Joe Kubek Band
Richie Pollack
Hubert Sumlin
Johnny Watson
Kirk Whalum
John Zorn
November and December
Darol & Marshall Anger
Stephane Grappelli
Harry Manx
Montreal Jubilation Gospel Choir
Tony Wilson |
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