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City Band Finally Back On Disc
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It’s been four years since Pat Deighan and The Orb Weavers released their debut album.
There have...It’s been four years since Pat Deighan and The Orb Weavers released their debut album.
There have been tracks on some compilation CDs since then, but other than that, if you wanted to hear something new you had to catch the popular Charlottetown band live at a local club.
That scenario has now been remedied, and in good measure, by the release of the band’s much anticipated second album, In A Fever In A Dream. Recorded at Paul Milner’s highly touted Shell Lane Studio in Malpeque, In A Fever In A Dream features 10 new Deighan originals and a great re-working of Marigold, which Deighan first recorded in 2001 with his previous band, Eyes For Telescopes.
In the four years since Night Light was recorded, Deighan and his bandmates Shayne Coady (drums/vocals), Dan Wagner (bass/vocals) and John Mullins (guitar) have evolved into a very tight, very cohesive unit with a shared vision that propels the band ever forward, which is good, because that’s the direction In A Fever In A Dream is going to take this band.
The new material is well conceived, well crafted and well executed. Deighan is a good lyricist and has a knack for coming up with strong melody lines and plenty of little hooks. Having a band that can take your music anywhere you want it to go doesn’t hurt you either.
In terms of where the music sits stylistically, In A Fever In A Dream draws on many of the same alt country, rock, folk and pop influences that inspired the music on Night Light.
Those influences include such diverse artists as Neil Young, The Velvet Underground, The Byrds’ Gene Clark, Drive By Truckers and Talking Heads.
Deighan and company were in fine form in the studio for these sessions. Everybody brought their ‘A’ game. So, too, did special guests like Catherine MacLellan and Liam Corcoran, both of whom added some backup vocals, and Andrew MacDonald, who played bass on nine of the album’s 11 tracks.
Prime tracks on this Sandbar Music release include Musical Chairs, Goodnight Charlie, So Tell Me, Anna Marie and the re-worked Marigold.
Rating: 3 3/4 stars out of 5.
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In A Fever,In A Dream Review
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> I've had the album In A Fever In A Dream for a few weeks, and a couple of the songs brought moment...> I've had the album In A Fever In A Dream for a few weeks, and a couple of the songs brought moments from the last Matt Mays album to mind, so like any lazy reviewer a made a mental note to use this comparison when writing about the album. Well, before I could get to my review, The Coast ran an article on the band and called them "spiritual cousins" of Mays & Co. Even though that's taking the comparison farther than I would've, using it in my review would look like I was biting the Coast's steez, so I won't. Even if it's kind of true.
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> Although he was new to me, and likely to you as well, Deighan is a vet of the music scene in our smallest province. He's been playing in bands since the late 90's, having been part of Strawberry, The Tuesdays and Eyes for Telescopes before recruiting the Orb Weavers for his first album Night Light and now they help him crank out his latest batch of songs. The songs may be Deighan's, but the three other members (John Mullins, Shane Coady, and Dan Wagner) certainly have a role to play in creating the album's full sound, which is heavy on rock-out moments but features a definite alt-country influence on some songs.
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> In A Fever, In A Dream wakes the listener out of their slumber from the get go with the rocking confusion of Anna Marie, which features backing vocals from fellow islander Catherine Maclellan, and the drive of the blues-inspired riff of Burn, Burn, Burn. Say What You Want lightens the mood a bit and reminds me of some of the Plaskett's more playful songs (Extraordinary maybe?) Nice, I've got Mays and Joel mentioned thus far, if I could just find some way to work in Sloan I'd have all my obvious east coast references covered.
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> >From what I've read, Marigold was first done by Eyes for Telescopes a few years ago, but the new version is quite striking, with somber, marching band drums and what sounds like a baritone sax on the chorus. Los Diablos and So Tell Me really crank the tempo back up, and the band seems to find their groove on these kinds of songs. Pat finds inspiration in the work of PEI poet John MacKenzie to craft the narrative for the engrossing Goodnight Charlie.
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> In the end, Pat & crew have a solid album on their hands, and we're happy to do a very small part in getting it heard. The lyrics show a mature songwriters touch, they are quite vivid and pretty much devoid of throwaway lines, and musically the album has enough pace and variety to keep the listener engaged. No need to take my word for it though, check it for yourself.
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Communal rock-out for Pat Deighan and the Orb Weavers’ launch
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It seems like I’ve been watching Pat Deighan rock out on stages both large and small for a while.
...
It seems like I’ve been watching Pat Deighan rock out on stages both large and small for a while.
I can distinctly remember seeing Strawberry play The Gene MacLellan Festival on Victoria Row for example, and thinking, “Man, these guys are kicking it,” as I dweebishly sat there on the Confederation Centre wall watching Pat Deighan rock it.
Now, years later, I find myself sitting at a table at the Mack (perhaps just slightly less dweebish), and still thinking, “Man, these guys are really kicking it,” as I watched Deighan and the Orb Weavers play one killer set on that big stage to launch their new CD, In a Fever in a Dream.
It was a night that saw four awesome bands rock the stage in a sold-out show that rang out with an amazing sense of Charlottetown music scene camaraderie. Some of the best indie musicians around came out in guest appearances to show their props to Pat, a man who has royally paid his dues over more than a decade of rocking this scene. It was all just very appropriate. And yes, it was also one sweet party.
It began around 10 p.m., with a relatively new, yet already much-loved band on the scene: Boxer the Horse.
Through a half-hour set, featuring numerous songs from their new EP, The Late Show, the four-piece swooned the audience, luring them into the catchy melodies and lyrics of their brand of P.E.I. punktry (yes, I did just make up that word, in order to depict their endearing punky, indie alt-country ménage).Check out www.myspace.com/boxerthehorse to listen to some tunes that you’ll never be able to get outta’ your head.
Next up was Charlottetown’s Fugato, who just laid it down in a flat-out funk marathon of reggae/rock blasts, starting with A Game of Shiv and Take and finishing it up with its sister tune, Shiv and Let Die. Watch for a new recording within the next year and get your Fugato fix at www.myspace.com/fugatorock.
And last of the opening acts was Halifax’s Gloryhound and the Skyhawks, who raised the volume level about five notches, in an intense Crazy Horse/Matt Mays/Tom Petty sort of vibe. Many dug it.
It was about 12:45 a.m. by the time the band of the night took the stage, and by then the audience was well-heated up and just plain pumped to see them.
And as Deighan (lead vocals and guitar), John Mullins (guitar), Dan Wagner (bass and vocals) and Shane Coady (drums and vocals) paraded into their first tunes, the crowd gathered around the front of the stage and grooved it up solidly. In their hour-plus-long set, they played many of the fantastic cuts from the Paul Milner-recorded In a Fever in a Dream and a good number of older songs and covers.
And scattered throughout the set were many guest appearances from various musicians Deighan has played with over the years and others who just wanted to be a part of the on-stage blast.
Musicians like Belinda Doyle, Chris Copeland, Andrew Murray, Roger Carter, Liam Corcoran, Andy MacDonald, Alec O’Hanley, Eli Richards, Ryan Crane, Mike MacDougall, Tamara Gough (and even yours truly) all got to rock out, as temporary honorary Orb Weavers as the show neared its end.
As I stood up there and played sax in the last song of the night, Glass Woman Glass Man, Deighan suddenly gave me the nod to kick out a solo. For a split second, I thought, “No, way—this is your hour man, don’t let me steal any thunder with a sax solo in the very last song.” But, then, this is just how he is, even at his own CD launch, he wants to share the spotlight. So, then I gave in, and I friggin’ went to town.
For a dweeb who’s long been looking up to him as a musician (and I’m sure this would go for anyone who played with the band that night), it was both a privilege and an honour to rock out with the man and his Weavers.
Tomorrow night, the band takes the stage at The Seahorse for its Halifax launch. When he gets back, be sure to do yourself a favour and pay Deighan a visit at Back Alley Music and get a copy of In a Fever in a Dream.
At a glance
n What: Pat Deighan and the Orb Weavers CD Launch.
n Where: The Mack.
n When: Saturday April 26.
n Who: Pat, the Weavers and a whole lotta’ friends.
n Why: Because he’s The Dude.
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Quotes
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"An Enigmatic talent who remains a tantalizing mystery."
Americana UK
"Night Light is a simple ..."An Enigmatic talent who remains a tantalizing mystery."
Americana UK
"Night Light is a simple pleasure,superbly executed by a musician with a natural gift for songwriting and a laid back approach to the playing of his songs."
Whisperin' & Hollerin'
"Deighan's hooky guitars and vulnerability burrow their way into your soul."
Americana UK
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Sleep Country
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Sleep Country
PEI country-rockers and the Orb Weavers wake up In a Fever, In a Dream.
by Ian Gor...Sleep Country
PEI country-rockers and the Orb Weavers wake up In a Fever, In a Dream.
by Ian Gormley
"I wish I'd had this CD out a year ago," says Pat Deighan, on the phone from Charlottetown, PEI. He's referring to his new record, In a Fever, In a Dream , which he debuted in his home province last Saturday. He's bringing it to The Seahorse Tavern on Saturday night.
In a Fever, In a Dream is the Charlottetown native's first release since his 2005 solo album, Night Light. Deighan chalks up the lengthy break between that album and this new one he recorded with his band, the Orb Weavers, to money and bass-player problems. But, he says, time outside the recording studio has allowed him to grow as an artist. Deighan describes the 2005 record as more of a singer-songwriter record than his latest creation. "There's more of a rock element to this one," he says, the product of playing with a three-piece band night after night.
Pat Deighan and the Orb Weavers are the spiritual cousins of Dartmouth's Matt Mays and El Torpedo---hard-travelled rockers, with a hint of country crooner mixed in for good measure. But where Mays' lyrics look outwards seeking universality, Deighan focuses on the here and now. Like the name suggests, he's the band's primary songwriter, but that doesn't mean the other three don't have opportunities to provide input.
Pat Deighan and the Orb Weavers w/Battery Point and Annapilla, Saturday, May 3 The Seahorse Tavern 1665 Argyle, 10:30pm, $5.
"I bring the songs to the band," he says, then guitarist John Mullins, drummer Shane Coady and new bass-player Dan Wagner put their stamp on them. Given the long lead-time to recording, 95 percent of the album's 12 songs were completely written before the quartet set foot in a studio. Only two songs---"Musical Chairs" and "Say What You Want," which was trimmed from a sluggish seven minutes down to a more sprightly four---had any proper gestation time in the studio.
In a Fever, In a Dream grabs your attention, even before you've cracked the case open. The album's cover is mesmerizing, to the point where you could literally stare at it for hours and still not have a full grasp on what's going on. The artwork is spawned from the mind of a talented Brazilian graphic designer João Faissal, who attended Holland College this past year with Deighan's girlfriend, photographer Katelyn Fraser.
It looks like an ecstasy-fuelled nightmare---a massive grizzly bear opening up its own stomach to reveal a surreal scene---stars and a crescent moon illuminate an airplane pulling a water skier, which soar over a squadron of hot air balloons launching off a cragged mountain peak. "He wanted to go with some different imagery," says Deighan who remains mum on any insight into what it all might mean.
Of course, Deighan knows it takes more than clever album covers to build a band's reputation. The musician is far from new to the east coast music scene. "It's something I've been doing since I was 16," he says. In the late 1990s, Deighan was a member of Strawberry and played guitar and traded vocals with Belinda Doyle in Eyes for Telescopes, which released a handful of albums in the early 2000s. "I didn't find it intimidating," he says, looking back at his early shows. A decade of performing took care of any major bouts of stage fright. "But I always had complaints that no one could hear what I was singing."
In a Fever, In a Dream is technically Deighan's first official outing with the Orb Weavers, but Mullins and Coady actually came together during the recording sessions for Deighan's debut solo album Night Light. "We've all been friends for a long time," he says. Wagner joined the Orb Weavers in late 2007.
Even though the band has its sights set on a fall tour through Ontario and Quebec, Deighan is still very much a part of the tight-knit PEI music scene. "You need people in the scene making things happen," he says, be it organizing shows or running locally focused record labels. Deighan remembers early in his career playing shows with Summerside-based band Merge, which knocked down many of the doors Deighan's walked through over his decade-plus career. It's this kind of mentor role that Deighan hopes he can contribute to the scene these days.
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Album Review
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Despite its(and mine) best efforts, Night Light remains firmly an enigma. Much of the blame lies at ...Despite its(and mine) best efforts, Night Light remains firmly an enigma. Much of the blame lies at the feet of Pat deighan himself, his mean, moody and melodic vocals hint at things that he never quite gets around to fully explaining. night Light kind of sums up pretty well because much of the album lives in the shadows. Deighan from Charlottetown PEI is described as a guitarist, vocalist and songwriter with a musical vision and thankfully Night Light pretty much bears them all out. With such dense melodies at work, it would be easy to skim across the surface of Night Light without ever really breaking the surface of songs like All The Streets Are Dark and while that would make Night Light intriguing it would be ultimately an unfulfilling collection of pop/rock songs in the Talking Heads/Lou Reed mode. far better to take some time and find that slowly but surely very slowly in the case of Lonesome Too the songs open up just a little to reveal Deighan as an immensely clever slightly intense musician. Mind you don't be fooled into thinking that effort alone will bring you any closer to the core of his music. However amidst all this dark lushness Night Light does have its sparkier moments, Stone's Throw Away flirts dagerously with rock mainstream before the poet in deighan rises up and casts out the barbaric invader and reclaims Night Light in the name of art. But, like anything of substance it becomes increasingly difficult to leave Night Light alone for long. deighan's hooky guitars and vulnerability burrow thir way into your soul. All the while the perpetrator seems to be completely unhurried and relaxed about it all. Deighan takes laid back to new heights. Quite what Night Light is remains largely with Pat Deighan but his talent will be easily and universally recognized.
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Album Review
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The aptly titled Night Light is a slow burner of an album loathe to reveal its quality too quickly ;...The aptly titled Night Light is a slow burner of an album loathe to reveal its quality too quickly ; even after repeated plays, it still remains something of an enigma. So well ahs deighan absorbed his many influences that he manages to stamp an authority and an indentity on all the styles he employs while still managing to keep the album coherent and distictive in its own right.
Similiarly no one song jumps out at you such is the variety and quality contained within. There are snatches of Paul westerberg, warren Zevon, REM, the Stones, Dylan as well as current favourites like Jesse Malin and Ryan Adams etc. Vocally he has the cracked bar stool resignation of Howe Gelb/J Mascis but his music ranges from bar blues through alt country to rock 'n roll and folk; all tackled with arawness and freshness that can only have come from plying his trade in his early days fronting post punk rock bands.
One of the album's subtle pleasures are the guitar arrangements that Deighan creates ranging from killer hooks on tracks like "Ants In The Surgar" or "Lost At Sea" to propellant instrumental breaks on "All The Streets"; all undertaken without excess or fuss just skilfully applied.
Overall this is an album of scrapbook images and observations that seem to draw their inspiration from the people encountered and the places visited long after the sun has set. The moods range from the high expectations of the early evening through drink-fuelled aggression and maudlin and onto the repercussions and concussions of the morning after; all with the world weary eye that Deighan casts.
Night Light is a simple pleasure superbly executed by a musician with a natural gift for songwriting and a laid back approach to the playing of his songs, an album to return to time and time again, preferably in a quiet place with a large whiskey.
