Toronto's primo blues rockers Catl. feel the spirit on Catl's Country Gospel Hour

Catl. kicks off a series of digital singles with updates of heavenly gems from The Louvin Brothers and Carter Family. 

In advance of Catl's upcoming European tour, Toronto's favourite blues bashers are sharing a digital single of their Catl-ized versions of two country gospel tunes "Satan's Jeweled Crown" by the Louvin Brothers and "No Telephone In Heaven" popularized by the Carter Family. Have a listen to Catl's update of "Satan's Jeweled Crown" right here and "No Telephone In Heaven" right here. 

 

Before any nasty rumours start spreading, it should be made clear that Catl's dynamic duo of Jamie & Sarah didn't "get religion" during the pandemic. Although their time away from the stage did present the opportunity to listen to more vintage country and blues recordings which they found inspiring. And just as many of their favourite purveyors of "the devil's music" – namely Charley Patton, Son House, Mississippi Fred McDowell, and Washington Phillips – also dabbled in the spiritual realm, Catl like to keep all the bases covered. In fact, they've previously recorded a version of Phillips' "Keys to The Kingdom" for their 2018 album Bide My Time Until I Die (available here) and they also did "He'll Make A Way" by Robert Johnson (the other one, documented by George Mitchell) for 2012's Soon This Will All Be Gone (get it here). 

Explains Jamie: "During the Covid lockdown, Sarah and I were buying and listening to a lot of country music. I've always loved gospel music and how it's structured to 'uplift' people out of their troubles and embrace the 'spirit' (which can be interpreted differently from person to person). Also, how it balances with blues music.

"Since we haven't had a practice space in years,  playing drums loudly was not an option. Sarah switched back to her original instrument, the organ, and we started working on a gospel/country set. A handful of songs were recorded over a three-day session during June of 2023 in the French countryside near Rennes, where our label Beast Records resides. More tracks were cut with Franck Thareault at his home studio called Fly House Records. 

"Initially our plan was to make this a series of singles, with future releases would share the same theme. Not sure if we would ever play these songs live, but it's been a nice side distraction learning songs from the old country catalogue.  

"If we get an album's worth of material covered we're gonna consider a physical release, but for now we're sharing the first two songs, "Satan's Jeweled Crown" by the Louvin Brothers and "No Telephone in Heaven" by The Carter Family."

Check out Catl's versions of "Satan's Jeweled Crown" and "No Telephone in Heaven" on Bandcamp (right here) or via your streaming platform of choice.

You can catch Catl. on their European barnstorming tour of Finland, France Germany and Belgium this June (see dates following the clips). Those interested can check out the Louvin Brothers' 1958 recording of "Satan's Jeweled Crown" and the Carter Family's 1929 recording of "No Telephone In Heaven" back-to-back with Catl's versions below. 

Happy Birthday A.P. Carter

Remembering A.P. Carter on his day with his song "Hello Stranger" by the Carter Family and The Flatlanders. 

Pining for real country music in Toronto

An authentic sounding traditional country song was the last thing I expected to hear on a label survey put out by Toronto-based indie operation Blocks Recording Club, let alone one as neatly written and brilliantly arranged as She's Gone by The Pining. Of course, not sounding remotely like anything by Final Fantasy, PDF Format, The Blanket, Shadow Self or The Torrent is exactly what made the all-female ensemble's jarring contribution to Building Blocks Singles Club, Volume 1 so memorable. You can check it out right here and have a look at the video for She's Gone below. 

As I later discovered, the tunes She's Gone and Life Ain't Fair were just two of a number of great original songs the Pining had written since coming together two years earlier out of a shared appreciation for the Carter Family, Hazel Dickens, Patsy Cline, Freakwater and Jameson's Irish Whiskey – not necessarily in that order. Those two and three more Pining faves have since been posted on CBC's Radio 3 site (which you can visit right here) which prove that She's Gone wasn't a fluke.

I'm pleased to report that The Pining have maintained the same high standard of quality control for their fantastic Adam Bell-produced debut album for Blocks which you can pick up at their record release party with tonight (Friday, June 24) at the El Mocambo. The Pining plan to take the stage at 11:30 pm but be sure to arrive in time to catch opening sets by Coole & Downes, the engaging partnership of primo picker Chris Coole and singer/songwriter Simone Downes at 9:30 pm followed by a rare acoustic set from catl at 10:30 pm. Tickets are $10 at the door or $7 in advance if there are any left at Soundscapes or Rotate This.  
NOTE: Those who prefer their country music on vinyl should grab a copy of The Pining album on the double – there were only 300 copies pressed of the LP which was superbly mastered by Harris Newman at Grey Market.

She's Gone by The Pining



LINKS
The Pining http://www.myspace.com/thepining
Blocks Recording Club http://www.blocksblocksblocks.com/