SPILL NEW MUSIC: ELIZABETH SHEPHERD – “TIME”

ELIZABETH SHEPHERD – “TIME”

PINWHEEL MUSIC

A classical pianist who came to jazz through her love of old-school hip-hop, velvety-voiced Elizabeth Shepherd is among the new wave of jazz-influenced musicians bringing the art form to a younger generation of music fans. The six-time Juno nominee and two-time Polaris Prize nominee has released seven widely acclaimed records, featuring collaborations with such musicians as Lionel Loueke and UK producer Nostalgia 77

At heart, Elizabeth is an improviser, playing off of whatever is around her. During the pandemic, she suddenly found herself stuck at home with nobody to create with. Having to find another way to ride her creative wave, she improvised. Elizabeth took inspiration from sounds around her – typewriters, garbage cans, records skipping, birds, people talking. She then wove them into snippets from old recordings of jams with friends, turned stuff upside down, added layers and synth parts, and came up with the new full-length album, Thee Things. Frenetic focus track, “Time,” uses a skip from Elizabeth’s copy of a Rickie Lee Jones record to backdrop a song about the controlling construct that runs our lives. “Time is the unit of our transformation, the end of presence where we stop and take stock…”

ARTIST QUOTE

“At heart, I’m an improviser; I love playing off of whatever is around me. But during the pandemic, we were all suddenly stuck at home with nobody to create with. In Quebec, we couldn’t even leave our homes after dark, let alone travel to meet up with other musicians. So I had to find another way to ride my creative wave – I improvised. 

I took inspiration from sounds around me – a typewriter, garbage cans, a record skipping, birds, people talking, laughter – you name it. The world is so full of sounds. I wove them into snippets from old recordings I had of jams with friends, turned stuff upside down, added layers and synth parts, and came up with these songs. Then I sent them off to musician friends (who were also stuck at home, and had suddenly invested in decent recording gear) and asked them to add their parts. I ended up with this Frankenstein album that doesn’t sound like anything I’ve done before, which I absolutely love.”

Elizabeth Shepherd
Three Things
(Pinwheel Music)
Release Date: February 17, 2023

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