CANADIAN BLUES ROCKER TO RELEASE DEBUT SOLO ALBUM DID WE COME HERE TO DANCE, OUT 4TH OCTOBER 2024 VIA TONIC RECORDS
With his upcoming debut solo album on the way, The Harpoonist (aka Shawn Hall) is set to release the scuzzy bluesy new single ‘Show Me The Green’ on 5th July.
Following the hazy psychedelic electronica of previous single ‘Good People’, harmonica virtuoso The Harpoonist continues on the journey towards his debut LP Did We Come Here to Dance by unveiling the down-and-dirty groove of “Show Me The Green” (out via Tonic Records). With founding member Gordie Johnson of Canada’s Big Sugar on production duties for the album, the band’s influence snakes its way in through the single’s stinging guitar and gospel-inflected vocals.
At the same time, Shawn Hall acknowledges the influence of his previous band (The Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer) on this track. With these worlds colliding, he describes the track as thus in his own unique way: “A lust with the utmost respect for feminine power and grace, all embedded in jade stone.”
After 17 years as part of acclaimed duo The Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer, Canadian vocalist and harmonica virtuoso Shawn Hall aka – The Harpoonist now goes it alone and has confirmed details of his first solo record, Did We Come Here to Dance, out on 4th October 2024 via Tonic Records.Â
As one-half of his former band, Shawn has toured far and wide across his home nation, and been praised by Canadian institutions like The Globe and Mail newspaper, and CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). Under the guise of The Harpoonist (inspired by the line “I pulled a harpoon out of my dirty red bandana,” from the beloved song “Me and Bobby McGee”), he has already released a string of singles etched in blues and psychedelia. His first full-length solo album turns this sound up to eleven, bringing swampy grooves and heavy soul into the mix thanks to his collaborative efforts with the founder of one of Canada’s biggest selling band Big Sugar – Gordie Johnson here on production duties.
Recorded within a 10-day whirl at Gordie Johnson’s ranch in Austin, Texas, Shawn describes this time as one of the most enjoyable experiences of his creative life.
“He has these three shacks he calls the Sugar Shacksdown the hill from his house that overlook Dripping Springs, Texas… One for drumming, the other for his guitars, the other for singing and mixing. We would bounce back and forth between shacks and write lyrics on the deck.’ While journeying between these shacks, Shawn also explains that ideas came together from all over, such as a graffiti line spotted in a bathroom stall married with a piano line he’d had in his head, and looking through scribbled notes and listening to phone memos to see what would stick. The result is an album he describes as joyful, and one that showcases ‘a version of me that’s always existed but just not quite captured on record before.’
Upcoming Shows:
August 3rd – Mosaic Music Festival, Pender Island, BC
August 10th – Nanaimo Blues Festival, Nanaimo, BC