Andrea England

Wistfulness comes to mind describing the album Hope and Other Sins. Wistfulness and melancholia. The world requires England’s messages. The world filled with so many mixed messages, it requires self – effectiveness more than ever….Fool’s Gold’ will be the favorite of any fan of Rickie Lee Jones. If England spent any time with Jones it must have been like long lost twins meeting for the first time in years…. - Rick Keene, Rick Keene’s Music Scene

Canadian folk/pop singer Andrea England released her sophomore album “Hope & Other Sins” in 2012, and has had some great success, for example, the album hit #1 on Galaxie’s FolkRoots chart in September. Take a listen to the song "The Thought of You", which is my personal favorite from her record. England is off to a great start with this album, proving herself as a very crafty songwriter indeed, one who can reach straight to the heart. - LadyIndie.com

This album is notable for its impeccable rhythm section and harmonic melodic guitar riffs paired with reeling organ wails. Vocally Andrea delivers soft breathy arias expounding on lyrically charged frames of reference. The depth of songwriting is monumental and is augmented by Linden’s cohesive production. Hope & Other Sins is a body of work worthy of the many accolades it has garnished to date.... - www.makedataylor.com

Andrea England’s sophomore Hope & Other Sins promises to be a breakthrough album for the Nova Scotia-raised singer/songwriter. Produced by Colin Linden, the rootsy pop album features a Who’s Who of musicians including drummer Gary Craig, bassist John Dymond, keyboardist John Whynot, guitarist Gordie Sampson and pedal steel guitarist Dan Dugmore, along with vocalists Damhnait Doyle and Carolyn Dawn Johnson, among others. That England holds her own in such impressive company speaks to the strengths of Hope & Other Sins. - The Record

Hope & Other Sins is Andrea England’s sophomore release. Produced in Nashville by Colin Linden (Bruce Cockburn, Colin James, Stephen Fearing), and featuring such special guest musicians as Carolyn Dawn Johnson, Liz Rodrigues, Gordie Sampson and Damhnait Doyle. This album is notable for its impeccable rhythm section and harmonic melodic guitar riffs paired with reeling organ wails. Vocally Andrea delivers soft breathy arias expounding on lyrically charged frames of reference. The depth of songwriting is monumental and is augmented by Linden’s cohesive production. Hope & Other Sins is a body of work worthy of the many accolades it has garnished to date. In my interview with Andrea she shared the importance of being an authentic artist. She stated, “I don’t have to rehearse being honest”. When prodded why she is not more revealing about herself in a social media climate that demands more private confessions? Andrea conveyed she wants the attention to be directed at her songs. Writing songs that are truthful is her number one priority. Read full interview here: http://www.makedataylor.com/site/hopeandothersins/ - Makeda Tayor

When I was a young guy, hopeful about breaking into the singer/songwriter market I wanted to call my first record Love and Other Delights. It seemed to capture the essence of what my songs were about. Andrea England has topped that by choosing Hope & Other Sins as the title for her new release. It’s definitely more thought-provoking, and when combined with A Man Called Wrycraft’s startling and gorgeous cover art it sets an expectation for England’s third CD to dig far deeper into the listener’s subconscious and really tug at your heart and head. The production, by Blackie & the Rodeo Kings’ Colin Linden, helps fulfil those expectations.

Andrea England hails from Nova Scotia, but is now based in Toronto. She’s a prize-winning songwriter, having gathered a prize in the John Lennon USA International Songwriting Competition, among others. Her songs have been played in TV series (Dawson’s Creek and Party of Five) and feature films. Her first album Lemonade received three Nova Scotia Music Award nominations and won the Pop Rock Award at the Toronto Independent Music Awards in 2005. Way back in 1999, she was delivering her CDs to a local record shop in Ottawa when she was involved in a serious car accident. It brought her career to a sudden stop, but not her creativity. She has almost 150 compositions in her songbook, and has collaborated with people like Dan Hill, Suzie Vinnick and a host of professionals including Bruce Brody (Rickie Lee Jones) and Bryan Allen (Heart).


Andrea England
Colin Linden knows how to create a sound. He takes the essentials and builds from the ground up. On Hope & Other Sins he brought along B.A.R.K. rhythm section Gray Craig (drums), John Dymond (bass) and John Whynot (piano, organ), and with Linden himself on guitars and mandolin, he has a solid foundation. There are plenty of guests too, including Dan Dugmore on pedal steel, Gordie Sampson on guitar and mandolin, and harmony vocals from Carolyn Dawn Johnson, Damhnait Doyle (her first name is pronounced DAV-net), and Liz Rodrigues. But the best band in the world doesn’t make a difference if the songs aren’t there. Fortunately, England can write a melody and a lyric.

She also had confidence in Linden’s abilities. “I knew that he would understand the aesthetic, the sound that I wanted,” says Andrea. “What I wanted to do was have a band play very organically in the style that I was first exposed to, which was old-school country music, and I knew he would do that. The authenticity and the musicianship, I knew he could bring to the music.” There is an old-time feel about the piece; one hears echoes of country music for sure, but also the clarity of Beatles’ guitars and the richness of the vocals. This is a timeless record.

“My hope was to make an artistic piece that was a reflective piece of art,” she says. “The sin? Well sometimes hope is sin to people who are cynical. And I am definitely not cynical.” Andrea England can’t be cynical; she has witnessed the healing power of music in her own life, and in the world at large. “Picture of You” is inspired by a visit to Ground Zero a few years after 9/11, seeing the impact the site has on visitors. I recall my own visit to the site, a year before England’s, the photographs stuck in a frost fence and the sense of loss I felt just being next to the hole in the ground.

The songs are autobiographical, personal, honest and universal. The performances are potent as you might expect; England’s vocals are delicate yet strong, powerfully supported by the band’s precision. The album is filled with hope … the sin would be that nobody hears it.

– David Kidney has reviewed for Green Man Review and Sleeping Hedgehog. He published the Rylander Quarterly (a Ry Cooder-based newsletter) for 8 years before turning it into a blog, athttp://rylander-rylander.blogspot.com. He works at McMaster University as Director of Learning Space Development and lives in Dundas with his wife. - Criticsatlarge.ca

An accomplished songwriter in her own right, having penned tunes for The Pussycat Dolls’ Nicole Scherzinger, and the French Idol finalist Miss Dominique, Andrea England is debuting a brand new album of original material, Hope & Other Sins. It’s clear how she’s a songwriter through and through; the record easily sounds like something Kathleen Edwards or Tina Dico would release. This record has great folk moments that reveal themselves in top-notch pop production. Listen to the memorable “Laundry” over on her Soundcloud and be sure to purchase a physical copy at MapleMusic.com - http://www.newcanadianmusic.ca

“It’s clear how Andrea’s a songwriter through and through; the record easily sounds like something Kathleen Edwards or Tina Dico would release. This record has great folk moments that reveal themselves in top-notch pop production. Listen to the memorable “Laundry” and be sure to get a copy.” - Noah Siegel - New Canadian Music

“It’s clear how Andrea’s a songwriter through and through; the record easily sounds like something Kathleen Edwards or Tina Dico would release. This record has great folk moments that reveal themselves in top-notch pop production. Listen to the memorable “Laundry” and be sure to get a copy.” - Noah Siegel - New Canadian Music

“…[Hope & Other Sins] makes the world a better place. If there’s a Juno for unaffected innocence it should go to this second release by Sand Point, Nova Scotian born singer/songwriter, coming off a seven year hiatus since the 2005 debut release of her debut, Lemonade. Hope & Other Sins 10 neatly crafted country leaning-songs are tunefully melodic and believable in their straightforward narratives. The now-Toronto based artist has the enviable quality of sounding exactly like the characters she’s created…” - Peter Goddard, The Toronto Star - The Toronto Star Newspaper

“…[Hope & Other Sins] makes the world a better place. If there’s a Juno for unaffected innocence it should go to this second release by Sand Point, Nova Scotian born singer/songwriter, coming off a seven year hiatus since the 2005 debut release of her debut, Lemonade. Hope & Other Sins 10 neatly crafted country leaning-songs are tunefully melodic and believable in their straightforward narratives. The now-Toronto based artist has the enviable quality of sounding exactly like the characters she’s created…” - Peter Goddard, The Toronto Star - The Toronto Star Newspaper

With the help of some music industry heavy weights, Sand Point, Guysborough County native and former St. F.X. student, Andrea England, has released her second CD.
England, based out of Toronto, is following up 2005’s Lemonade with Hope and Other Sins which was released in June.
She credits the late Richard Bell, a key board player who was a member of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings and played with such legendary musicians as Janis Joplin and the Band, with introducing her to noted Canadian musician and record producer Colin Linden.
The meeting took place in Woodstock, New York where Linden was performing in the Levon Helm and the Midnight Ramble Show.
“At the time he [Linden] asked me about making another album which sparked my interest,” England told the Casket during a telephone interview last week.
“That was like five years ago and I was so busy writing for other people at the time, the timing just wasn’t right for me,” she said. “That was until about a year and a half ago. In the fall [2010] I contacted Colin and asked him if he was still interested. I sent him some demos and he said he was in. So we started recording in March of last year in Nashville and we finished the recording process probably mid-June [2011] and mixed over the summer.”
England added the finishing up details, due to prior work commitments of different people working on the record as well as varied locations, took some time but that she “wasn’t in any great hurry.”
“I had waited seven years so a few more months didn’t hurt,” England said.
She said early feedback has been “fantastic’ with positive reviews and good early sale numbers.
In talking about a few of the songs on the CD, England noted The Thought of You, the first selection on the CD, is the first release. England described the song as an up-tempo tune fitting for the summer months.
She said Laundry is another song receiving a strong reception.
“It’s a ballad that is getting a lot of attention,” she said.
Trying is a song described as being semi-autobiographical. England talked about writing and performing personal pieces.
“Nothing is ever 100 percent autobiographical but I definitely drew upon my Maritime roots, things that have happened to friends and family there and to me personally,” she said about the song.
“I’m emphatic and sensitive to others’ feelings so I hope I get it right and characterize the situation in an empathetic way,” she added. “It’s not telling stories for the sake of telling them, it’s more healing through story telling… bringing life to issues and so forth. That song means a lot to me and the reaction has been really good. I think if you handle something with care, it can be received with care.”
Overall the CD is described as an eclectic collection of styles with the term “roots meet pop” used in one review.
England, who has written songs for former Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger and popular TV shows such as Dawson’s Creek and Party of Five, talked about her different writing styles.
“When I record for myself, I try to make my songs as honest as possible,” she said. “That’s the only reason I do it, to try and be honest and that is translated into a musical journey.
“When I write the pop stuff, and I love pop music too, if I’m writing a song I’m going to pitch to some big pop star, that writing process doesn’t have to be as organic. You’re not making their record you’re just putting across the song itself.”
England said she grew up in Sand Point listening to “old school” country music like Hank Williams and Patsy Cline as well as Nova Scotians Carroll Baker and Anne Murray. She enjoyed listening to local radio stations and noted how CJFX (now XFM), in particular, influenced her varied musical styles with their wide ranging play list.
“They had a real combination of pop music and roots,” she said. “You could be listening to Madonna one minute and to John Allan Cameron the next. That was the primary radio station I grew up with, it and CIGO (now the Hawk), and they always had a real combination of pop, roots, folk, country and traditional Celtic music which you can kind of hear in my music a bit. So I definitely would attribute my varied musical roots to listening to that radio station.”
More on England and her new CD, Hope and Other Sins, can be found on her website www.andreaengland.com.

- Richard MacKenzie, richardmac@thecasket.ca - The Antigonish Casket

With the help of some music industry heavy weights, Sand Point, Guysborough County native and former St. F.X. student, Andrea England, has released her second CD.
England, based out of Toronto, is following up 2005’s Lemonade with Hope and Other Sins which was released in June.
She credits the late Richard Bell, a key board player who was a member of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings and played with such legendary musicians as Janis Joplin and the Band, with introducing her to noted Canadian musician and record producer Colin Linden.
The meeting took place in Woodstock, New York where Linden was performing in the Levon Helm and the Midnight Ramble Show.
“At the time he [Linden] asked me about making another album which sparked my interest,” England told the Casket during a telephone interview last week.
“That was like five years ago and I was so busy writing for other people at the time, the timing just wasn’t right for me,” she said. “That was until about a year and a half ago. In the fall [2010] I contacted Colin and asked him if he was still interested. I sent him some demos and he said he was in. So we started recording in March of last year in Nashville and we finished the recording process probably mid-June [2011] and mixed over the summer.”
England added the finishing up details, due to prior work commitments of different people working on the record as well as varied locations, took some time but that she “wasn’t in any great hurry.”
“I had waited seven years so a few more months didn’t hurt,” England said.
She said early feedback has been “fantastic’ with positive reviews and good early sale numbers.
In talking about a few of the songs on the CD, England noted The Thought of You, the first selection on the CD, is the first release. England described the song as an up-tempo tune fitting for the summer months.
She said Laundry is another song receiving a strong reception.
“It’s a ballad that is getting a lot of attention,” she said.
Trying is a song described as being semi-autobiographical. England talked about writing and performing personal pieces.
“Nothing is ever 100 percent autobiographical but I definitely drew upon my Maritime roots, things that have happened to friends and family there and to me personally,” she said about the song.
“I’m emphatic and sensitive to others’ feelings so I hope I get it right and characterize the situation in an empathetic way,” she added. “It’s not telling stories for the sake of telling them, it’s more healing through story telling… bringing life to issues and so forth. That song means a lot to me and the reaction has been really good. I think if you handle something with care, it can be received with care.”
Overall the CD is described as an eclectic collection of styles with the term “roots meet pop” used in one review.
England, who has written songs for former Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger and popular TV shows such as Dawson’s Creek and Party of Five, talked about her different writing styles.
“When I record for myself, I try to make my songs as honest as possible,” she said. “That’s the only reason I do it, to try and be honest and that is translated into a musical journey.
“When I write the pop stuff, and I love pop music too, if I’m writing a song I’m going to pitch to some big pop star, that writing process doesn’t have to be as organic. You’re not making their record you’re just putting across the song itself.”
England said she grew up in Sand Point listening to “old school” country music like Hank Williams and Patsy Cline as well as Nova Scotians Carroll Baker and Anne Murray. She enjoyed listening to local radio stations and noted how CJFX (now XFM), in particular, influenced her varied musical styles with their wide ranging play list.
“They had a real combination of pop music and roots,” she said. “You could be listening to Madonna one minute and to John Allan Cameron the next. That was the primary radio station I grew up with, it and CIGO (now the Hawk), and they always had a real combination of pop, roots, folk, country and traditional Celtic music which you can kind of hear in my music a bit. So I definitely would attribute my varied musical roots to listening to that radio station.”
More on England and her new CD, Hope and Other Sins, can be found on her website www.andreaengland.com.

- Richard MacKenzie, richardmac@thecasket.ca - The Antigonish Casket

Our Folk Playlist pick is the airy upbeat love song, 'Laundry'. A poignant telling with universal appeal with it's clever lyrics, nice hook, lovely vocals, and an ending that caught me off guard. The kind of ending that begs the replay. - It's Not Opera (A Spotify Companion)

"One of the hidden gems of Toronto's music scene...England has also proved her commercial value. The track Another Day was used as background in a scene from the TV series Joan of Arcadia earlier this year. Her song Sometimes made it to the Dawson's Creek Season Four DVD, and will be the album's first video, directed by Sundance Film Festival 2005 contributor Annie Bradley. " - Toronto 24 Hours/Sun

Lemonade raises the proverbial bar for other debut albums while placing established artists on notice...Andrea England will be a serious contender on the charts!
- Jim MacDonald
- Halifax Chronicle Herald

If the radio station programmers are smart (an oxymoron?) they’ll start playing England’s ‘Lemonade’ as soon as it becomes available.
- Dan MacDonald - The Cape Breton Post

"[England sings] straightforward pop-folk songs about resilience & identity" - Stephen Cooke - Halifax Chronicle Herald

"The latest offering from Andrea England looks to be promising.... "Lemonade" is a great catchy song, reminesant of Jewel in its sincerity and approach. Expect big things in the coming months from Ms. England! -Sean Harley - Canadian-Music.com

[Lemonade has] sweet pop vocals and strong songwriting.... - Canadian Music Network

“Andrea England has created the perfect record for summertime. Appropriately titled Lemonade, her music has a bit of sugar to make it fun and catchy, and the perfect amount of lemony punch in the lyrics and arrangements to lend serious substance.” - Maplemusic.com - Maplemusic.com

On Live At 5 feature (aired on ATV 8/18/04), The Scene's MariAnna Bachinsky declared Lemonade a "great record"!
- ATV/Live at 5

On Live At 5 feature (aired on ATV 8/18/04), The Scene's MariAnna Bachinsky declared Lemonade a "great record"!
- ATV/Live at 5