Why would the enjoyably bent cracker soul man Johnny Dowd pick Toronto of all places to premiere his creepy concept album No Regrets, a typically off-kilter personal document of his fave female obsessions?
It could be the unseasonably balmy weather we're enjoying this week but something tells me that our man Johnny doesn't have much use for sunshine. No, I'm guessing it has more to do with Silver Dollar booker Dan Burke who sees in Dowd's troubling revelations the good and evil that once made rock 'n' roll a dangerously exciting proposition.
Well that, and Burke also needed at least one marquee act with a decent draw for the 12 midnight slot of his Canadian Music Week showcase on Friday at the Comfort Zone. Considering the rest of the line-up – Nick Doubleyou & the B Squad (1 am), Brave Little Toaster (11 pm), Cowgirl Choir (10 pm), Attagirl (9 pm) – you can understand Burke's desire to have Dowd serve as the anchor with Catl bashing away relentlessly between sets to further bolster the entertainment package. So Burke can now rest easier knowing that whatever happens the rest of the night, Dowd will deliver the goods at midnight with a preview of his scary good No Regrets (out April 2).
"The album is about girls and women I have know, imagined or seen on TV." explains Dowd. "I love them all. I used a couple of old 60s drum machines on the album because my long-time drummer, Willie B, was unavailable at the time we were tracking. I intended to replace the machines with live drumming, but instead, I blended the two. Man versus machine. Man versus woman. Me in an endless, maddening conversation with myself.
"I used some great female vocalists to sweeten the album. Tracking with them was hilarious. I’m particularly proud of the sounds and feel we got on this record. I’m always trying to take the music I grew up with (blues and R&B) and filter them through my own experiences. Otis Redding as imagined by Sartre. Of all my records, this one is by far the leanest. But probably not the meanest. I don’t think anyone was murdered in these songs.”
No Regrets (Mother Jinx)
2. Emily / Meryl
3. Billie
4. Sherry
5. Miranda
6. Susan
7. Rita
8. Juanita / Rita
9. Nancy
10. Ella
11. Abigail
12. Linda
13. Candy
Betty by Johnny Dowd
Tour Dates
* 03/23 The Comfort Zone (Canadian Music Festival), Toronto
* 04/21 Lot 10 - CD and vinyl release party, Ithaca, NY (w/ Teardrops)
* 05/03 Altstadt, Eindhoven, The Netherlands
* 05/04 Paard, The Hague, The Netherlands
* 05/07 Patronaat, Haarlem, The Netherlands
* 05/08 Q-Bus, Leiden, The Netherlands
* 05/09 DB's, Utrecht, The Netherlands
* 05/10 Cactus Muziekcentrum, Brugge, Belgium (Kamarama Festival)
* 05/11 Winston Kingdom, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
* 05/14 El Lokal, Zurich Switzerland
* 05/15 Chelsea, Vienna, Austria
* 05/16 K4, Nurnberg, Germany
* 05/18 Bassy Club, Berlin, Germany
* 05/20 Harksheide, Norderstedt, Germany
* 05/21 Cafe Video, Ghent, BE
* 05/22 Kulturrampe, Krefeld, Germany
* 05/23 Portland Arms, Cambridge, UK/li>
* 05/24 Cluny, Newcastle, UK
* 05/25 King Tuts, Glasgow, UK
* 05/26 The Greystones, Sheffield, UK
* 05/27 The Windmill, Brixton, UK (afternoon and evening shows)
* 05/28 The Ruby Lounge, Manchester, UK
* 05/29 The Basement, York, UK
Sherry by Johnny Dowd
LINKS
Johnny Dowd http://www.johnnydowd.com/
Canadian Music Week http://www.cmw.net/
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