Music
Press
August 23, 2005
Graham Rockingham
"Scott Orr, Three Songs: Orr has crafted a three-song demo at Hamilton's Angelcave Studios produced by Trevor Titian that leaves you aching for more. It's not just the masterful playing of Bill Dillon (pedal steel, lead guitar and bass) or the backing vocals of Lisa Winn. It's the songs. Orr has a writing gift that should bring Nashville knocking at his door. Watch for a CD in the next year."
See Article Here - The Hamilton Spectator, Hamilton, Ontario
Aaron Wrixon
Lonesometown, the debut full-length from local boy Scott Orr, could have easily been just another paint-by-numbers alt.country CD. (“Let's see: vocals are #7, which is… Smokey blue.”) Instead, it’s a pleasant surprise.
Orr’s arrangements lift the music above the mundane — a trumpet here and a violin there go a long way in a genre full of pedal steel and chicken pickin’. And then there's his gift for melody. It’s rare enough to listen to a song once and spend the rest of the day humming it, but it’s rarer still to hum the songs of someone you can find down the street playing in a Hamilton cafe.
In fact, there aren’t enough of those songs — a couple of superfluous covers of “Your Cheatin’ Heart” and “Keep on The Sunny Side” do little more than take up space that could have been, and should have been, occupied by more of Orr’s gems. - Steel City Music, Hamilton, ON.
"This guy is good!"
- Ray Randell - Americana Roots (San Anotonio, TX)
Kristin Fischer
Scott Orr: 3 Songs: "In the vein of Alexi Murdoch, Josh Ritter and even Josh Kelley, Scott Orr comes to the scene. His only problem is that he only brought three songs, literally. I wanted to hear more, especially after hearing the bluesy "The Slightest View," which features female background vocals. His style is tender and sweet, moving songs on the country and folk border. And as Marc Broussard has done, he gets soulful as well. In many ways I feel like this guy could have done for "Dawson's Creek" what Mary Beth Mariarz did with her many songs that were in the show -- provide soothing, heartfelt songs -- but from the male perspective. There is a full-length on the way, and I'm looking forward to hearing it."
Favorite Tracks: The Slightest View, Next Year or Next Week
Rating: 4.5 stars - DiscoveringArtists.com, Manasquan, New Jersey
October 13, 2005
Terry Holdershaw
"I really enjoyed having Scott Orr back at the monthly showcase, his live performance is intense and intimate... getting your attention you can't help but appreciate the exceptional talent of this up and coming roots / folk singer songwriter. " - Scotia Entertainment, Ontario
November 29, 2006:
Scott Orr's Lonesometown wins Country Album of the year award at the Hamilton Music Awards. - Hamilton Music Awards
Discography
3 SONG (EP, 2005)
LONESOMETOWN (LP, 2006)
MILES FROM TODAY (LP, 2007)
Photos
Bio
This self-produced, folk-rock album displays both ambition and obsession from the Canadian singer/songwriter. “The do-it-yourself method of making records is the only way that makes sense to me. No one else can capture the vision I have for a specific sound. There are something’s in art you just can’t communicate”, Scott explains. After months of juggling recording options with various producers and studios, Orr ended up taking the wheel himself. “People who work in the music industry make it out to be a dangerous proposition for an artist to 'go it alone' and write, produce and market a recording by oneself”, he says. However, Orr’s personal ambition, however, has willed him to new heights with this project.
The twelve-song, Miles From Today builds on the foundation of the organic, acoustic melodies and unassuming vocals of Orr’s previous efforts. While the new album retains Scott’s award-winning songwriting, it features more risk taking than the previously explored. The light-hearted, love-won-love-lost themes are still present on songs like, “Love Is A Dream” and “Wondergirl.” But Orr surveys the landscape of social justice and pain, as well, in moments like, “Don’t Want To See That Again,” a track inspired by the experiences of Orr’s post-Katrina visit to New Orleans ("I see the wife holding her children and holding to life like it’s not holding to them / Don’t want to see that again.”).
The forthcoming release boasts a host of wonderfully unique songs that reveal maturity and growth in Orr’s writing. “That’s how the record took over a year to make," Orr explains. "It was really important to me not to just settle with a song if I wasn’t one hundred percent happy with it.” A testament to his obsession of perfection was evident when the album's last song, “I’ll Wait for You” was written and recorded just three days before the album was sent off to Nashville to be mastered.
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