Tom Landa - vocals, guitars, jarana, piano
Geoffrey Kelly - flute, percussion, vocals
Brad Gillard - banjo, bass, vocals
Sam Esecson - drums, percussion
Kalissa Hernandez - fiddle, vocals
Kareem Kandi - saxophone
Miguelito Valdes - trumpet
Kendel Carson - fiddle, vocals
Influences
Family, pets, taco trucks, German beer, dark rum, friends, Seattle, Vancouver, scrabble, iPods, Easy Street Records, Ellenside, crossword puzzles, coffee, Palermo, hats, people, music.
Sounds Like
Mexican Son Jarocho mixed in with Irish Jigs and Reels and a good dose of Country and Bluegrass. It has healthy servings of Ska, Soca and African Highlife and we've been known to throw in a little White Boy Reggae. Of course it also has strains of Soul, Pop and Funk although we are by no means a funk band. It is mostly Acoustic although we also like Electric guitars. It is Singer-Songwriter based but not the coffee house variety. It is definitely FOLK music, but not in the Kumbaya style. It has a deep respect and appreciation for tradition (Bluegrass, Old Time, Celtic, Son) but it's by no means Traditional. It Rocks incredibly hard and is extremely danceable, but that is not to say it can't be mellow and slow and beautiful. It can be heart breaking, but also joyous. It is never dark or angst ridden, and always full of hope - but not in the 'Up With People' kind of way. It's not Jazz, although we like Jazz a lot. It's not heavy metal or punk or grunge, although we love Rush and AC/DC. It is World Roots Music. It's POP music. It is GOOD music. It has a tendency to connect people and means a lot to many folks the world over, and for that we are very grateful. It is the only multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-generational, multi-lingual, multi-instrumental, genre bending, co-ed band you will hear today!!
Fall Down With You - The Paperboys (The Road To Ellenside)
....
Fragile- The Paperboys from The Road to Ellenside
This a review written by Johnny Black who writes for MOJO among many other publications.
Astonishingly eclectic folk-rock from acclaimed Canadian quintet
We say :
So there I am, filling my battered old Peugeot up with unleaded at the local petrol station when I overhear a bunch of interesting-looking young people talking about the gig theyre heading towards. We fall to chatting and they turn out to be The Paperboys, an acclaimed folk-rock combo from Vancouver, Canada, on a short UK tour. Before I leave the station theyve pressed their newly-released CD into my hands and I slip it into the car CD player as I head for home.
The Road To Ellenside, recorded in the heart of Englands Lake District, is their fifth album (if you include their greatest hits set) and Im embarrassed to have to admit that Id never even heard of them before. As soon as track one offered up its winning blend of eclectic country-folk-rock enlivened with all kinds of unlikely influences, I knew I was going to like this disc. By the time Id got home I knew I was going to review it.
That first track, the sparky, sprightly instrumental String Of Horses, blends a light funky guitar rhythm with Celtic flute and fiddle, which is immediately usurped by the Mexican flavours of La Primavera, briefly introducing me to the delights of Tom Landas richly expressive vocals before unexpectedly transforming itself into an Irish jig for the instrumental section.
Given their playing abilities, this is a band that I can imagine being quite marvellous live, and theres a decidedly live feel to the CD that animates soaring road ballads like California, the kind of thing that wouldnt have sounded out of place on an early Eagles album.
The bands only female member, Kendel Carson, plays some tasty fiddle licks throughout, but shes also a fine singer, contributing much to a lovely duet with Landa on Fall Down With You. Their latin version of Stings classic Fragile, set to the rhythm of a lightly-strummed jarana (eight stringed Mexican guitar) and pepped up with another of Geoffrey Kelleys unexpectedly Irish flute solos, is worth the price of the CD in itself, but then so are the punk-jazz jig Sheeps Ass, the sturdy South American flavoured instrumental El Baile del Puma and the Mexico meets South Africa groove of Waiting.
Just when you think they cant blindside you with any more surprises, they let Geoffrey Kelly loose on the vocals of Water Dreams, a semi-psychedelic sea shanty, which he delivers in tones that might belong to Tom Waits younger brother, until the track ends with two trumpet solos, one a smoky dive bar jazz improvisation and the other sounding almost like a long lost baroque composition.
Bands capable of bringing this much conviction to such a diverse range of styles are rare indeed so investing in The Paperboys would be a wise move for anybody who enjoys artists like Paul Simon, Loudon Wainwright or Great Big Sea.
* * * * *
They Say :
Dirty Linen : The Paperboys know how to grab melody hooks in pop friendly songs...while fast and flashy banjo and whistles pace the trad and trad-sounding jigs and reels.
Seattle Rocket : If you don't believe a jig can shred, listen to The Paperboys.
Folk Roots : The most exuberant record I've heard in ages...breathtaking.
Hi Tom & band! Phantastic Show tonight in Pforzheim! Hope the beer is tasty & you dont get too late back 'on the road' tonight ;-) Are you already know, where you'll tour in December? Maybe LA or NY? I'll be there for a couple of days (26.12.-10.01.10) - might be great fun to see you in the US ;-) Cheers, Martin
Love what I'm hearing of the new CD and can't wait to get my hands on it. BTW tomorrow marks EXACTLY ten years, a decade, since I first saw The Paperboys here in NJ, July 6, 1999 thanks to a recommendation of Alan Doyle of Great Big Sea.
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