Choosing to make music for the moment, Jean-Étienne Sheehy replaces his entire back catalog with a few new singles.
Matt Carter
It finally happened. Jean-Étienne Sheehy may have hit his peak creative capacity. And that’s actually a good thing.
Over the past couple of years, the Fredericton-based musician has been rolling out a steady stream of releases across several of his own projects as well as those he’s a part of. I’m talking about Beard Springsteen, Starving Ghosts, Saint Jack, Off Season, The Trick, Young Satan in Love and Deep Fryer. That’s not all of them but that’s enough to melt the average brain. And if that wasn’t enough to keep him busy, he was also trying to get a label off the ground – Bored Coast Records.
But earlier this year, everything changed. Following an exhausting run of performances this past spring (some of which where documented in his Grid City Magazine blog – Summer Olympics of JE: Reach for Gold, Settle for Gas Money), Sheehy decided to take a well-deserved break. A break from touring, from writing and recording, from plotting and planning and spawning new creative projects. He needed a rest, and to be completely honest, I needed a rest from trying to keep up with everything he had on the go.
Now you’ll no longer find a Bored Coast Facebook page or accompanying releases via Bandcamp. No more Starving Ghost albums or anything else really.
A few weeks back he posted an entire album of new Saint Jack material and then pulled it all down a few days later.
“I’m playing with the idea of music being ephemeral again,” he told me. “I’m not leaving much online for more than 24 or 48 hours.”
He also told me he wrote three albums over the summer but gave no indication as to whether or not they would ever see the light of day. But that’s OK isn’t it? I mean, just because he’s writing music doesn’t mean he has to share it with us. Afterall, creating art is one of the most personal things any of us can do and there’s no rule stating all art must be shared. Although I’ll admit, when it comes to the work of Jean-Étienne (JE) Sheehy, each new track is a gift to my ears and I know I’m not alone.
As I write this there are a few Saint Jack tracks sitting on Bandcamp. I don’t know how long they’ll be there. You should probably have a listen before they’re gone.
