My connection with Winnipeg's Ozconscious was a submission for the Listening To This Week Playlist from the Singer, Songwriter and Guitarists of the band, Tate Hiebert. That song is Gaze and it closes the current Playlist. It fits what the Playlist tries to do and the song itself is very much I am about musically, in and out of I Don't Hear A Single.
I'm always concerned about the track order of LTTW, with approaching 30 songs each week, there is a worry that listens drop off as it progresses and so I try to temper that by varying the songs throughout the whole thing and by also making the closer, one of the most interesting things on it.
Gaze fitted the bill perfectly. A cracking mix of melodic Prog and Psych, the type of song that I listen to a lot away from IDHAS and introduce here when I think it fits. There's been great success with this approach, but never have I had so much praise back for one particular song.
I had to listen to the album and I have, a lot! No surprise that they are Canadian, because that country has been one of the bigger providers here, normally Power Pop. The six piece's album is largely different to Gaze, more beautifully produced Pop Rock.
There is variety and Be Real is a cracking slab of Classic Rock. Hiebert's vocal is very close to Ricky Ross and the production even bigger than Deacon Blue. Indeed Dead End Dollar sounds like a rocked up version of Deacon Blue, although throughout the emphasis is more on Rock.
After a couple of EPs, the last in 2015, the band return with a refreshed line up and a much more vigorous sound. Cryptomnesia is a great jaunty Pop song, the type that great Indie bands of the second half of the 80s broke through with.
Be Real is anthemic with a slight eastern feel that rocks out into a massive chorus. The Intro build on Powder Rock is splendid, building into a melodic Pop Rock chorus. My Eyes Are Wide Open is much smoother, a little funky, a great joint vocal with a Red Hot Chilli Peppers like intro.
I Love Myself (I Hate Myself) is again great pacy Pop and catchy as catchy can be with a hypnotic riff. Nostalgia For The Moment is a top notch listen, wonderfully produced and arranged, it is not only about Gaze. 10 songs that make you forget about the outside world as you sing along.
You can listen to and buy the album here. It cries out for and deserves a physical release.
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