Saint John trio drop debut EP and plot first live performances.
Sheik is one of the latest groups to surface amidst the hugely inspiring musical resurgence taking place in Saint John these days. It seems like every other month there is another impressive new Saint John band sharing solid new music. Go Away From Yourself, the band’s debut four song EP, is a dreamy mix of lo-fi noise pop that on occasion, dips shamelessly into psych and indie rock territory. That said, it fits perfectly with the plethora of new music coming out of the foggy city.
“There isn’t always a lot happening around here,” said guitarist/vocalist Colin Ferris speaking about the city’s current musical output. “You can focus on a goal very well when there’s little distractions around you, and when you can work with people as determined and dedicated as you, good things come out of it.”
The band’s lineup of Ferris on guitar and vocals, Lorne Kirkpatrick on drums and William Savage on bass grew out of a number of other projects Ferris and Kirkpatrick where both involved in including the bands DFO and Adam Washburn & the Excellent Fellas.
“Lorne and I had been jamming some different sounds together for almost a year now,” said Ferris. “We wrote these four songs together and recorded demos in my basement, which we then sent to William who fit right into place with the sound. We recorded the EP for a second time after that and sent it to get properly mixed and mastered by Corey Bonnevie.”
Go Away From Yourself was released on September 11 as a digital download and limited edition cassette with a vinyl release scheduled for early 2017. All of this before ever performing live.
“We couldn’t be more excited to hit the stage,” said Ferris. “We’ll be doing a few shows around the East Coast in late October with a band called Mundy’s Bay from Montreal, and we’ll do a proper vinyl release around the East Coast and Quebec/Ontario once we have them with us. Until then, September 17th will be our debut opening for Mazord and Along With Ghosts as they play their final show at Pepper’s Pub.”
