Canby

Canby, the side-project of Scott Yoshimura from the Envy Corps, is set to release its first album, Rat, through Aqui Estamos Records on July 20. (It is also the Des Moines, Iowa, label’s debut release.) Yoshimura writes, sings and plays guitar, drums and most of the other instruments on the album, which makes it difficult to call Canby just a side project. The title track flows with Yoshimura’s intimate-yet-somber baritone voice, which enfolds the frustration in the song through his delicate melodies. - Magnet

Scott Yoshimura. You know him. You’ve heard him provide additional drum kit induced background noise for The Envy Corps for a while now. And for all practical purposes, Canby is his “side” project. But really, that’s not a fair statement. This is HIS project. And Rat is the excellent debut of Scott’s own personal expressions. He does it all on the record, and he does it damn well.

The 90’s style lo-fi pop single “Rat”, is a prime example of Yoshimura’s ingenuity at its best. It has its moments of darkness that the rest of the album doesn’t have, but it remains a strangely uplifting ditty that can make you feel nothing but good. But, you cannot go through a listen of Rat, without going back to the super catchy and absolutely captivating track, “Being Awake”. There is very little sign of Envy Corps in Canby. Pretty much nonexistent, really. And that’s absolutely perfect. When an artist branches of from the norm, it can be upsetting when they go off and make the same music they were already doing as an act. Agreed?

Canby is definitely a solid project for Scott. And now with a solid release under his own studded belt, it should be interesting to see where our hero decides to go with his new found form of musical exploration. The effort that he put into this record shines through with indie rock heavy guitar riffs with a brilliant sense of what it takes to make a pop melody. And, once again, the drummer sings! This seems to be quite the hidden gem in the indie world. And amongst them, Canby should be a “solo” project that reigns supreme. - FensePost

Most people think of drummers merely as sidemen because drum kits are rarely located at center stage and therefore they assume that a drummer’s musicality is limited. But that’s not always the case as Scott Yoshimura, who plays drums for the Des Moines-based indie-rock band The Envy Corps, proves on the debut album from his side project Canby. “Rat,” which was recently issued by the local independent label Aqui Estamos Records, not only features Yoshimura playing drums (of course), but playing guitar, and writing and singing the album’s 10 original songs. Yoshimura’s baritone singing voice (sometimes he speaks his lyrics) is smooth and effortless and lends gravity to his smart, indie-rock songs like the pensive, yet hopeful “Reassurance,” and introverted frustration of the title track. Fortunately for Yoshimura, if his main gig doesn’t pan out, he has something to fall back on. - Cityview