In contrast to the laid-back, charming nature of his most recent record Turn Time Off, the life of Fredericton native David Myles is anything but laid back these days.
He has a lot on his plate these days but in speaking with the charismatic Myles, it doesn’t sound as though he would want things any different. Released last April, Turn Time Off was critically hailed for Myles’ seamless melding of folk, blues, jazz and pop into an irresistible aural delight.
You may have seen Myles’ name in the news lately thanks to his five East Coast Music Award nominations, the most nominations of any artist this year. The latter fact is not lost on the chatty Myles.
“Getting five nominations was pretty cool,” he says. “I was just really amazed at the news when I heard it. It really is an honour for me. We worked like crazy on Turn Time Off and had hoped that people would respond to it the way that they have.”
A prior ECMA winner for Folk Recording Of The Year two years ago, Myles is quick to point out that he is in amazing company in virtually all of the categories he is nominated in.
“There are such great records and artists that I am nominated alongside. Especially in the heavyweight categories like Entertainer Of The year and Album Of The Year, you’ve got artists like Wintersleep that are going to help make for a tough competition. Regardless of the outcome of the categories I am nominated in, it is going to be an amazing weekend of music.”
Having just started his run of 14 shows with Stuart McLean and the Vinyl Café, Myles says the crowds who have come to see the show have exceeded his expectations so far.
“We started the tour with shows in Portland and Bangor, Maine and the crowds were amazing,” Myles says. “I’m not necessarily surprised at the reception that we are receiving here in Canada but as for the U.S. dates, Stuart is definitely a big deal. It was really heartening to see.”
Asked when fans should anticipate Myles hitting the studio to begin the process of making a new record, Myles gleefully discloses that he has the bulk of a new record already completed.
“I was so inspired around the time that we finished Turn Time Off that I started making this new record right away. Initially, it had started as an experimental thing, trying a different approach to recording. But then virtually all of my downtime was then consumed with this new record.”
Though his new record is still untitled and has no firm release date, the excitement in Myles’ voice when discussing his next offering is palpable. He says that fans can expect his next record to be a bit worldlier in sound when compared to the smooth feel of Turn Time Off.
“It is a really exciting time for me. This next record is a bit more modern in the way that we approached making it. Charles Austin and I initially got together and wrote a couple of songs which then turned into us recording those songs with the two of us playing as many instruments as we could to fill out the sound.”
Until the day his new record is released, Myles seems to have no lack of tour dates to keep him occupied. He does not anticipate having anything significant in the way of time off until just prior to the East Coast Music Awards weekend in April.
“I’m doing almost three weeks with the Vinyl Café tour here in the Maritimes which is just amazing,” he says. “Next month, I am doing a run of dates with Joel Plaskett through Ontario and once that concludes, I have a series of shows with my trio through Western Canada.”
The month of May will see David return to the UK for a series of shows but before he crosses the pond, he is looking forward to a little rest and relaxation with his wife:
“We have a trip to Cuba booked for April. That is really what is driving me at this point,” he laughs.
Article published in March 4, 2011 edition of the Times & Transcript