welkin
'This Is Your Blood All Over Me', the title of welkin's 3rd record--a double-album epic opus steeped in the wilderness--evokes provocative images and importantly hints at the experiential process Geoff Birch uses to write welkin songs. Retreating to the backwoods of British Columbia and getting away from the city has certainly given Birch a richer connection with the wonders of the natural elements and you can really feel it grow out at you through the music. In the aptly named song ‘Pride From The City Pried From My Heart’, the trapdoor is flung wide open and you are let in on this mystical rite:
"So I went out one night
Guitar in my hand
Feeling a song welling up in me
And I laid it down at the feet of the stars
In mountain arms I sang it loud
In the eagle’s cathedral
The bats in the belfry
The bear's baritone
The blue grouse beats on the kettle drum
So I headed for home free and alive"
Produced by Jonathan Anderson and Geoff Birch, 'This Is Your Blood All Over Me' was recorded and mixed in just 12 days. As a result of this intense focus, the album contains sonically brilliant broad brush strokes and has no shortage of bold shoot-from-the-hip moments. The collision of hundreds of days of artistic refinement with less than two weeks of studio time is part of this 83-minute record’s magic and charm.
On 'This Is Your Blood All Over Me' Geoff Birch (vocals, electric/accoustic guitars, glockenspiel, sounds+treatments) is joined by Jeff Powell (bass), Darren Birch (drums & percussion), Sam Masterton (lap slide), Jonathan Anderson (banjo, lap steel, organ, keys, bowed glockenspiel, percussion & additional electric guitar on Smoke And Mirrors, accoustic guitar on Seasons In The Wilds, omnichord), and Brett Ziegler(piano, Wurlitzer, Rhodes).
"This Is Your Blood All Over Me is nothing short of epic. Birch’s lyrics ponder the natural and spiritual worlds and his place in each, but it’s the music that’s the real revelation here. The best word for numbers such as “Raven Falls” and “Seasons in the Wilds” might be expansive. Produced in collaboration with Jonathan Anderson (who is a past master at this sort of thing), these songs unwind slowly, melding down-in-the-canyon country-rock with ethereal space-prog in a way that brings to mind Neil Young fronting Pink Floyd. That’s a mighty nice thing to bring to mind, too."
-The Georgia Straight, VANCOUVER
Formed in Vancouver in 2001, welkin's music--which roams from psychedelic folk through alt-country to art rock--has received many accolades for boldly exploring artistic wilderness. The band's discography includes the critically acclaimed debut 'No Ordinary Elephant' and their '3-Song 2004 EP' received excellent reviews. In 2005 welkin toured Canada in support of their sophomore record 'Strangers and Exiles' which was hailed by critics as an art rock triumph. With 2010’s ‘This Is Your Blood All Over Me’, welkin sets its sights on releasing the beast from its cage with live shows, free downloads and of course--with a nod and a middle finger to Mammon--record sales with all eyes on giving 100% of profits to charitable causes.
Welkin is the brainchild of singer, songwriter, producer, and musician Geoff Birch. He occasionally performs solo but most often with his band. He lives with his family in a cabin in the Cascade Mountains of Canada. To get closer to the music while in the recording studio, he secludes himself in darkness behind shrouds of curtains where he lays down all his vocal tracks in the nude.
For best listening results use headphones and secure yourself a beautiful view OR lug your speakers into your backyard and aim them at the 'welkin'.
Let the music do the rest.