There's no secret that Newfoundland is has an abundance of music history. But the difference from 20 years ago and today is that its not just traditional Newfoundland with a mix of country music anymore. Yesterday it was the Harry Hibbs, Dick Nolans, Great Big Seas, just to name a few. Today artists around Newfoundland have taken a more modern twist to their music. Its not a bad thing at all. Bands like Hey Rosetta and The Gramercy Riffs are touring Canada and the States, while astounding listeners all the way from sea to shining sea. Today St. John's is crawling with live acts, you can go any night of the week on george st or water st and catch a live show of some of the best sounding Canadian artists today. Us Newfies have the pleasure and luck to see such bands as The Novaks, Pathalogical Lovers, Navigators, Monday Nights, the list can just go on forever.
But one of the best known and respected artists around St. John's is a character by the name of Mark Bragg. He has done everything from produce and session play for just about everyone around town. Hes also one of the quirkiest songwriters in Newfoundland, sounding much like a mix between Bruce Springsteen, Captain Beefheart and Tom Waits. His music has a true mixture that just about anyone can enjoy. Mark has just released a new album by the name of Your Kiss and I honestly can't say enough good things about this album. It has everything from rocking songs like Your Boys Home to sour sweet ballads such as The Cutter to Texan style fast beat songs like Carl Ray. One of the standout songs has got to be the fun loving sing along song Roll Baby Roll, the catchy rhyming scheme of the lyrics makes ya just want to listen to it again and again. Bragg has a way with lyrics but also with the arrangement of songs which is seen in the song You Be The Boy. I just fell in love with this album as soon as I wraped my headphones around my head and sat back to listen. The horn section is second to none and fits extremely well with the heavy bass lines and drum beat. Well done to Bragg on Making Your Kiss a huge success. I honestly don't think that I'll be listening to anything else this week. The album just takes a hold of you and there is no way of getting sick of songs. Each song has a distinct sound that is different than each other. Theres a wide variety of sound on this album and I would suggest this album to any music lover out there. Bragg is king just as his album cover shows.
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