Teacher, guitarist, composer, author, performer, Mike O’Brien has served as sideman to Adam Cohen, Lisa LeBlanc and Elisapie, in addition to working with the country tandem Sin and Swoon, and the band El Coyote. For this solo project, the anglo Montrealer signed in to Hotel2Tango and worked with one of its eminent co-owners, Howard Bilerman, accompanied by double bassist Andrew Horton and singer Michelle Tompkins. This simple and fun album illuminates enlightened reflections on intimate life and its immediate periphery. The opus also reveals mantras of hope, tragicomic testimonies or even cartoonish winks recalling the Disney songs concocted by the Sherman brothers. The folk, country, and bluegrass references are undeniably mastered, digested, and… until the eighth track, these songs in O’Brien’s baritone voice might seem to come from anywhere. But a nice French song, “Le prix”, rectifies the impression. That’s when you realize that the Montreal region is the only one where bilingual Canada works in practice… and still not in theory.
Latest 360 Content
Concert review Hip Hop/Moyen-Orient / Levant / Maghreb/rap
Arab World Festival of Montreal | Narcy and Omar Offendum: Two Decades of Friendship in Artistry
By Sandra Gasana
Interview Electronic/Classical/classique
Örjan Sandred and the Stenhammar Quartet Reinvent Live Electronics
By Alexandre Villemaire
Album review Classical/classique 2024
James Ehnes/Orchestre philharmonique de Bergen, dir.: Edward Gardner – Sibelius : Violin Concerto, Serenades, Humoresques
By Frédéric Cardin
Album review Modern music 2024
India Gailey – Butterfly Lightning Shakes the Earth
By Frédéric Cardin
Album review Western European/Jazz/Eastern European/Modern music/Traditional 2024
Calgaréal – Vanishing Points
By Frédéric Cardin
Concert review Classical/classique
Violons du Roy | Richness and Vocal Splendor of the Divine Handel
By Mona Boulay
Interview expérimental / contemporain/Classical/classique
Le Vivier | Flashback: Immersive Exploration of the Narcissus Myth for Violin and Electronics
By Alain Brunet
Interview
Arab World Festival of Montreal | New Diva Uprooted From Her Native Palestine
By Alain Brunet
Concert review
Quatuor Molinari | Guido Molinari’s Major Inspiration, 20 Years After His Death
By Alain Brunet
Concert review expérimental / contemporain/Pop/Rock
I can’t stop thinking about the Xiu Xiu show in Montreal
By Vanessa Barron
Interview Hip Hop/Moyen-Orient / Levant / Maghreb
Arab World Festival of Montreal | Narcy and Hakawati Omar Offendum meet in the present tense
By Sandra Gasana
Album review Modern music 2024
Nathan Hudson and Ben Loory – Music for Falling and Flying
By Frédéric Cardin
Album review Experimental / Contemporary/expérimental / contemporain/Jazz/Modern music 2024
The Noonan Trio – Inherit a Memory
By Frédéric Cardin
Interview classique/Classical/Jazz/Indigenous peoples