Ottawa Born-Toronto Based Psychedelic Folk Rocker Gary Edward Allen Muses On Life In “Final Surprise”
One thing about rock music that some people forget is that it is an amalgamation of different genres, including country and blues. For music artists who know this, they have the potential to bridge the past and present by bringing the roots of rock music to a contemporary sound. This is the case with psychedelic folk and classic rock singer Gary Edward Allen and his new single “Final Surprise.”
A steady drum beat, chill guitar riffs, and Allen’s equally relaxing vocals open the song. Both have a contemplative rock vibe that is strongly reminiscent of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers. This is further enhanced by the song’s introspective lyrics, which considers how things have changed since the singer last saw someone,
“Left me empty as a shell With nothing left to give… Broken yet unburied
….but I’m sure it’s good to be home again
Funny how things always change
On a nickel or a dime
Took your turn at being weak To be the one with only time …
…left to pay”
Of the song’s inspirations, Allen states,
“I wrote ‘Final Surprise’ in the spring of 2019. The opening line ‘left me empty as a shell, with nothing left to give, broken yet unburied, but I’m sure it’s good to be home again….’ is almost being a bit cheeky in the face of a funeral. It’s about standing with someone and feeling helpless while they fall into the abyss.”
The song’s theme of helplessness in the face of someone struggling with their personal pain is another similarity that Allen and Tom Petty share. Yet a notable difference is that Allen’s song hopes the person struggling with their pain will eventually overcome it. The guitar solo just before the song’s last verse heightens this newfound hope.
Production-wise, Allen says that the guitar solo was very intentional.
“The guitar solo I’m very proud of. It’s not like I’m a shredder, I keep it as melodic as possible, but I doubled each lick so it has a nice stereo feel. Lead guitar is my favorite thing to be doing, so it’s just fun for me.”
Watch the lyric video for “Final Suprise” below and learn more about Gary Edward Allen via our mini-interview.
Care to introduce yourself?
Gary Edward Allen, Im a singer-songwriter based in Toronto, Ontario.
I grew up in Ottawa, did a quick little stint, like 3 months, in Halifax when I was 23, and then back to Ottawa for a few more years until I moved to Vancouver in 1996.
I’ve been singing and playing guitar for almost my entire life.
Hearing KISS and Queen as a kid was what hooked me and guitar was my way into it, just trying to find the sounds I could hear on those albums and in my head.
It’s been a lifelong pursuit.
I like mixing different styles together, but I’m not interested in smoothing the edges, so to speak; I like it when it sounds a bit jarring.
Choppy aggressive rhythms switching to melodic classical fingerstlye, some kind of art rock and whatever comes between.
I always joke, “If you come to hear me sing and don’t like the first song, don’t worry. The second one will be completely different. I get bored quickly.”
I’m just trying to perfect what I’m hearing in my head, I’m constantly thinking about music and how to improve.
Tell us about the writing of “Final Surprise”?
“Final Surprise” was my first song with Tim Bovaconti producing.
I’d been playing solo acoustic in Toronto for four years or so at that point
I’d moved here in the summer of 2015 with my old band, Ottaway Broder Allen but I quit that winter; we weren’t moving fast enough, I wanted to be working harder than other people. That’s how I felt anyways.
I didn’t want to play in a band where I’m on bass for 80% of the show because one of the other guys wouldn’t learn my songs hahaha, no hard feeling, but I wanted to play more guitar and move faster.
So the first few years after that I went completely acoustic; just nice mellow singer-songwriter stuff, chill music.
After a few years and 7 or 8 songs recorded with AJ Ottaway producing I wanted to get back into electric music, I wanted to at least be recording with someone who could play drums and bass, etc…
I mentioned this to John Stephen at his bar Sauce on Danforth and he said, “You need to work with Tim, he’ll get you exactly the sound you want…”
And he did, absolutely.
Tim is a legend. He’s played with amazing people, from Kim Stockwood to Ron Sexsmith, Andy Kim, some of the guys from Barenaked Ladies, Burton Cummings…….. and he’s just a kind, nice man.
He lets you see the song through exactly as you see it.
It was quick, only 2 three hour sessions in the summer of 2019.
Something I enjoy as a songwriter is writing in a certain key, A major in this case, doing a few tracks like that, then a few tracks with the capo at the 2nd fret and playing it as a G chord progression…
It’s very simple but effective.
Different strings and notes ring out, you couldn’t get it to sound like that with just one or the other guitar track.
Tim plays that beautiful 12-string guitar part; he said, “Hey do you like this ?” And, of course, I did. He laid it down in one take.
He’s a pro.
For the guitar solo, I doubled each lick to give it a nice stereo sound.
Some people would’ve maybe just copied and pasted it, but I like that it’s two separate tracks playing the same licks, but it’s not identical.
I’m not a shredder by any means, but I do love playing lead guitar.
My songs are not straight autobiographical; there’s a lot of wishful thinking, maybe conversations I wish I had with people.
“Final Surprise” is 100% about losing people to their demons, be it alcohol, drugs, or mental illness.
The line “broken yet unburied, but I’m sure it’s good to be home again…” is almost meant to be cheeky in the face of losing a loved one, like “I wished better things for you than this, but at least now you’re at peace, at home.”
I was a bit inspired by the song “Because of the Shame” by Against Me, which moves me every time.
But “Final Surprise” is designed to be a bit joyous in the face of despair, hoping people will find a way out and maybe stop running without their demons catching them first.
It’s a strange paradox, but I like writing in that space.
A chirpy happy melody but with dark subject matter.
What’s it like being a musician in Toronto, ON?
I love it.
I loved Toronto immediately.
You can find a jam or somewhere to sing probably every night of the week, multiple bars, in fact.
I’ve played on some amazing bills with great acts, from Jerome Tucker to Fraz Milne, Paris Black, and Ruby’s Revenge.
People love music here, and it’s a great place to live.
And I met the love of my life here, Tara.
We met at a coffee shop close to where we lived; once we started dating, we realized it was strange we only met in Toronto; we lived a block away from each other in Ottawa in the early 90s, had mutual friends, she even ate at the Diner beneath my apartment.
Then we both moved to Vancouver within a month of each other in 1996 and lived in the same neighborhood there and still had never met until we were both in Toronto.
So yes, I love Toronto.
Who was the first Canadian artist to blow you away?
Obviously, there’s no end to amazing Canadian artists, from Lee Aaron to Rush, Liona Boyd, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, and on and on.
But the first one I saw on TV as a kid that floored me was Triumph.
They are one of the greatest bands ever to exist.
I would tape everything I could on the VCR, haha I was a kid. It was the 80s, and I watched it endlessly.
With Triumph, you had world-class musicianship with a stunning stage show.
I saw the Thunder Seven tour in 1984, I believe, and Rik Emmett solo in 1989; still two of the best shows I’ve ever seen.
You’ve been making music for a while now. What’s one piece of advice you can offer to those starting out?
Simply this: Do not compare yourself to anyone.
Never look at someone else’s progress or career and measure your own worth against it.
Comparison is the death of happiness.
Make your own art as true to yourself as you can.
Good art is never made by a committee: it’s made by someone with a vision.
Set your vision and work towards it.