Veteran Vancouver singer/songwriter’s new collection is a dynamic and diverse blend of roots music styles
The original concept of field recordings dates back to the early 20th century with the work of folklorists John and Alan Lomax, and its time may have come again in this age when the authenticity of nearly everything is questioned.
Vancouver singer/songwriter and roots music scene veteran Mark Branscombe has adopted that concept for his new album, a 10-song collection that contains the full musical gumbo of distinctive sounds he developed with his previous groups The Gravel-Aires and the Mud Bay Blues Band.
As the title Field Recordings suggests, Branscombe completed the album over a two-year period in various locations, after writing several songs during a 2023 trip to Turkey and Greece.
He says,
“Every morning I would try to come up with some riffs or chord structures, record them on my phone or make a voice memo, and try to write lyrics by the time I had my second cup of coffee. It was all about capturing the moment, and if the ideas were strong enough, I would come back and assemble them into a song.”
Branscombe shared the first taste of Field Recordings last fall with “Blind Leading The Blind,” a plaintive folk song that’s certainly the album’s outlier, but one whose message resonates in our current turbulent age. Among its key lyrics, “Things have changed in the land of the free, they locked the door and can’t find the key, lost the handle on democracy.”
With the album’s release, the focus is now on “Leave This World,” a soulful rocker in the spirit of The Band that Branscombe wrote for his wife Colleen.
“That song is essentially about celebrating everyday moments unique to a relationship—the ups, downs, happy days and hard nights, along with the love, joy, beauty and imperfections that couples and families experience. Colleen had kidded me once about never writing her a love song; this one seemed to write itself.”
“Leave This World” is one of three songs on the album recorded by Juno Award-winning producer and musician Steve Dawson at Vancouver’s Warehouse Studios, and features him on guitar. With the rest of the album completed over the course of other sessions, one of Branscombe’s challenges was to maintain a consistent vibe throughout. This, he says, was accomplished by sticking to his vision, and putting his trust in a group of Vancouver musicians he’s forged strong ties with over the past few years.
“Since leaving Mud Bay Blues Band in 2022 I have met a few different Vancouver artists that I could collaborate with, which led to The Gravel-Aires making our third album Westerly in 2024. But I’ve found that writing as a solo act provides more room to move stylistically and to express what is in my heart, mind and soul.”
Those feelings come out in different ways as the album plays out, from the most overtly blues-based tracks such as “Cheque To Cheque,” to the classic rocker “Hard Way To Do Anything” and the ‘70s-styled ballad “Cold To The Touch.” In short, Mark Branscombe’s Field Recordings has something to appeal to every roots music fan.
First off, what have you been up to since we last chatted?
I’ve been busy keeping afloat, Jason; I work 5 days a week still at a day-job and keep up my music-making with whatever is left of me. I had a few live performances in the summer and fall to test fly some of the new songs from this album. Anticipating a release show on February 22 in Vancouver here, have rehearsed with Jordana Delgado on piano and together we played a small venue. Currently, coaxing a few other friends to join us on the release show, arranging rehearsals for that. Also brainstorming with Jordana some video for Les Deplaces, the spoken word track on the album.
Personally, I’ve been doing a lot of recovery time to get over a concussion that I received in a car crash this August. Our vehicle was written off so we were hit good and hard. I have been through some interesting sessions with a neurologist and learning lots about cognitive function. Dealing also with a few soft tissue issues; aging apparently comes with limited mercies, but we press on.
You’ve mentioned trying to finish lyrics by your second cup of coffee while traveling. Did that “time-box” approach force you to be more honest or less self-critical than your usual writing process?
Finish “writing” for the day by the second cup yes; but the songs don’t get finished for months. The morning sessions are a few ideas jotted down uncensored, loose and seldom free of spelling errors. I think that these bits are more unfiltered and a closer connect to the original thought than they are after I have too long to agonize over them. It’s rare that a whole song ever shows up in one writing session, but parts for 2 or three might.
Did any of those original phone recordings/memos actually make it onto the final tracks (as background noise or texture), or were they all strictly blueprints for the studio?
Not this time, the phone is more akin to a serviette or matchbook with a scribbled note or a rhyming couplet scratched onto it, tossed into a drawer and recovered when something triggers its rediscovery; more often the panic of knowing there’s a better line or riff needed for some music that I’m working on.
After 44 years as the rhythm guitarist for the Mud Bay Blues Band, your role has shifted from being part of a “gumbo” to being the chef. What was the most uncomfortable part of stepping into the center of the stage?
Not being able to get out of the way and let someone else command the middle of the stage for a few songs is demanding. Being “the guy” for the duration of the performances is a bit of a tight suit that I’m still learning to have a bit of fun with.
The business of being an emerging and independent solo artist has all it’s freedoms and an amount of insecurity too. Developing material on my own and making the right decisions in the studio without the democracy of a band to guide things along can make for some anxious nights of rumination.
Working with Steve Dawson at Warehouse Studios is a major collaboration. How did Steve’s guitar style or production ear push “Leave This World” or “Blind Leading the Blind” in a direction you hadn’t originally envisioned?
Yes, I was very lucky to have had Steve’s help on 3 of the tunes, he’s got that mojo in his playing style that leans towards the South. I wanted that feel for Leave This World. When the opportunity arose to record the song with Steve, I wasn’t sure how the band might interpret the feel. The fellows picked up the relaxed Memphis groove I was feeling and I was really pleased with how well it all moved. I think that Steve and Sheldon Zaharko were great for keeping the space and organic tone of the tune intact.
Blind Leading The Blind was recorded with Paul Wohlstetter at another studio, Wohl of Sound. The happy accident with that one was Paul’s lead parts on a nylon string guitar. For me it was representing the sound made by people from abroad who brought their music and their hopes and dreams to a new country.
You joked that your wife kidded you about never writing her a love song. Now that “Leave This World” is out, does it feel like a “one-and-done” for that subject, or did it open a new door for you to write more personal, relationship-driven material?
Well now aren’t you a homewrecker! Actually, 2 other songs on this album are relationship songs, with the names changed to protect the guilty. “Cold To The Touch” and “Combat Blues” but a valid question. As an older person, my relationships present and past are very significant. There is a complexity and a fragility to relationships that can certainly present a lot of avenues to explore. I was speaking with a colleague recently about the vulnerability that some artists can bring to their music and how that leaves the door open a bit wider for folks who might be inclined to have a look inside.
After finding success with this “moments-based” writing style, do you think you’ll stick to the “voice memo and coffee” method for the next record, or are you craving a more traditional studio-first approach?
Funny you ask, I have been thinking more about some music that gets created from loose jams, rockier stuff that is music first and more about the feel and rhythm than the lyrical content. I can’t really afford the luxury of writing in the studio but maybe a garage-first approach is in the cards. Artists are somewhat prone to deviate from what had worked in the past and push off into some new direction and as an unsigned indie, there’s free reign to toss it at the wall and see what sticks.