AWmusic

There is something uniquely seductive about retreating to the country with a guitar, ample helpings of sadness, and an active imagination: the artist removed from society, on the outside looking in. Fraser Teeple has done just that on his debut album, with the poetic yet familiar narrative of a rural Canadian lifestyle. Growing up in agricultural Ontario, Fraser spent summers cutting down trees and winters studying English Lit in the city, details that help to explain the introverted quality of his songs.

Fraser has spent the last few years honing his craft at pubs, bars and cafes all over France, England, Switzerland and Eastern Canada, and it shows. The songs on House on a Hill are well-worn and as comfortable as a pair of scuffed-up cowboy boots.

With a title and sound which bring to mind Elliott Smith’s From A Basement on the Hill , Fraser’s full-length debut is a collection of originals recorded at The Music Room last autumn with Brad Marsh (drums) and Adam Cake (bass). House on a Hill sounds like “3 a.m. in small-town Ontario”, like an insomniac’s lullaby or the result of self-induced solitude.

“He was charming enough,” Fraser sings knowingly on the undulating “Dusklight”, warmed by the hum of accordion and beautiful acoustic guitar. His voice is simultaneously vibrant as a sober Ryan Adams and as rich and haunting as a resurrected Jeff Buckley.

A doubled vocal and harmonica on “Fire Elegy” make for straightforward coffee shop music (think Jack Johnson), and the lyrics tend to be predictable, even for this genre. “Man Playing the Guitar in the Subway”, with its slow and tentative beginning, doesn’t blaze any new trails, and sounds like it was recorded in your bathroom.

However, the guitar accompaniment in “A Story” could easily be mistaken for an Iron and Wine composition, with its lilting cadence, mournful harmonica and Christian compass. “His heart burns cold, bitter flames for her,” he sings over eerie piano measures.

“Love Song” is a genuinely pretty number composed for his wife, boosted by saloon-era piano subtleties and a cracking-with-feeling vocal. The simplicity of the arrangement in this song, as well as “Tonight”, are generous showcases of Fraser’s instruments (voice, piano and guitar), with uncomplicated lyrics and melodies.

The truth is, as lovely as his voice sounds with those basic arrangements, Fraser’s songwriting shines when he gets loud. The bigger sound and quicker tempo of “Rules”, with lyrics touching on forgiveness and doing the right thing, has him “stumbling on words” accompanied by tambourine and a Roy Orbison-style chorus. “Let You Down”, another up-tempo number, has Fraser promising his audience he “won’t let you down tonight”, his voice rising and falling over a country bassline. “Even suburbia is breaking down our fences,” he wails.

The bluesy “Lead Me” is by far the sturdiest track on the record, shuffling along like a slow-moving train bound for North Carolina. On this boot-stomping groove, coloured by dirty harmonica and memorable lyrics, Fraser sings about laying down “in the arms of the sea”. For this seemingly die-hard minimalist, a back-up band may be the best investment he ever makes.

Fraser plays Toronto on Thursday, April 23 at C’est What (with Josh Gabriel and the Rough Sea) and Hamilton on Friday, April 24 at The Freeway Coffee House.

MP3:
Fraser – Dusklight
Fraser – Lead Me

Video:
Fraser playing live at the London Music Club in 2007.

Buy at:
CD Baby

More info:
Myspace

Tags: album