
the Blue Raincoats
One guitar, one amazing voice. Like the Cardigans if Elliot Smith wrote their songs or the Eels if Aimee Mann was their lead vocalist
Biography
The Blue Raincoats is the new creative outlet for Keri Steele of Hush Hush. One guitar, one amazing voice. It all started in a living room in downtown Toronto with Steele and Hush Hush bassist Nina Martinez playing guitars and writing new songs for a projected third Hush Hush album. Steele soon realized that they were creating something new, something more stripped down than the band and with a greater emphasis on her voice. After spending many years working in a band setting, it was time for me to branch out and work more independently with a different musical template; more open and vulnerable, and working with Nina offered that possibility. Reinvention is a word that may be overused, but is definitely not a cliché when applied to singer/songwriter Keri Steele. As a teenager in Vankleek Hill, Ontario, she was a founding member of ambient folk group Imaginary Heaven. After recording three albums with that line-up, Steele felt the need to stretch artistically and explore more contemporary forms of music. Forming Hush Hush enabled her to combine an identifiable band sound with the flexibility of working with a variety of musicians. Both Hush Hush albums, Cinematheque and Fake, were critically acclaimed and charted at Canadian college radio. The Blue Raincoats debut album was produced by Thomas Ryder Payne (ex-Joydrop) and features guest performances by Michael Mez Dilauro (Beautiful 2000), Josh Hicks (Wild Strawberries/K-OS) and Sarah McElcheran (Damhnait Doyle/Sarah Slean). As well as some great original songs ranging from the garage-band-with-horns of Backfire to the acoustic thoughtfulness of Nice Holidays, the album includes a bare bones version of the Nancy Sinatra classic How Does That Grab You, Darling? There was really no question in my mind whether or not to record these songs, but I was very nervous when we began the process. Im so proud of this music and I really wanted to capture the simplicity and rawness of our live shows while enhancing the songs with more instruments and layers. It was a very emotional process for me more so than any other recording experience Ive had. Im more attached to the music and this is both a good and bad thing when recording it. But at the end of it all I feel we have an honest, dynamic and candid album and Im very happy about that. The Blue Raincoats self-titled debut album is set for release in Canada on September 27th through Popguru Sound & Vision and distributed by Outside Music.
Lyrics
Backfire
Written By: Keri Steele
It’s a perfect Saturday
Turn the radio on
Do your dirty work then
Leave the cash at the bar
I was careless but I couldn’t make it backfire
When the work is done, you’re not the only one
When the work is done, you’re not the only one for me
You’ve got your hair pulled back
With your tonic and gin
Groomed and separated
It’s a beautiful thing
I was careless but I couldn’t make it backfire
When the work is done, you’re not the only one
When the work is done, you’re not the only one for me
With your hair pulled back
And your tonic and gin
It’s a perfect Saturday
Turn the radio on
When the work is done, you’re not the only one
When the work is done, you’re not the only one
When the work is done, you’re not the only one for me
Middleman
Written By: Keri Steele
You were hiding
In the bedroom
Didn’t know what that meant
But you made it very clear
I was so wrong
But I was breaking new ground
Cadillacs and your show girls
They were scaring you to death
And all I wanted was a simple life
And what you gave me I could not replace
You’re my middleman
I could give you
Anything you wanted
I can take your tacky
I can take your over kill
You were so wrong
But I was breaking new ground
I didn’t know that that meant
But they made it very clear
And all I wanted was a simple life
And what gave me I could not replace
You’re my middleman
And if you want I could be very nice
I couldn’t keep a secret if I tried
You’re my middleman
You are so polite with me x 4
And all I wanted was a simple life
And what gave me I could not replace
You’re my middleman
And if you want I could be very nice
I couldn’t keep a secret if I tried
You’re my middleman
Shocked
Written By: K. Steele/N. Martinez/T. Payne
Gun-shy
They say you’re overrated
Close your windows let the world go up in flames
Write down
All the things you hated,
All the things that kept us wide awake at night
It wasn’t so bad
But I can’t stand it and I’m not making this up
Out on the sidewalk shocked
It was cold
And you’ll be the last to know
And I’ll be rested
Sun-down
You left me in LA
Waiting for your counterpart to pick my brain
Slow start
Even slower finish
It took me almost half the day to say your name
It wasn’t so bad
And I’m not crazy; I’m not making this up
Out on the sidewalk shocked
It was cold
And you’ll be the last to know
And I’ll be rested
It was you, out on the sidewalk shocked
We were cold and I was the last to know
Discography
The Blue Raincoats - The Blue Raincoats (Sept. 05)
Set List
Middleman
Shocked
In Love With The Band
Red Suitcase
I'm Not Calm
Backfire
Childhood
Nice Holidays
Apple of My Eye
How Does That Grab You, Darling?
Girls In Uniform
Wasting Time