‘A UNIVERSAL THEME’
Alberta singer inspired by love
Love. It’s the starting inspiration for most songwriters and just about everyone enjoys hearing about it in song, whether you’re in or out of it.
For Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, it’s “a universal theme” that can be approached from different angles.
“Often they come from personal experience but there’s a certain amount of storytelling that goes into it, too, because you’re always hoping to relate. I definitely strive for something universal but there are so many stories and so many pictures you can paint.
“Even a song about love lost can relate to so many people. Since the album came out I’ve found more and more people coming up to me to explain how it relates to their own personal story or struggle and I’m extremely thankful for that.”
That’s the Calgary singer’s last album I Wanna Make It With You (2016), no less than 18 tracks. When I mention that number he notes he cut a few songs out, too. The impressive part is how well how many of the songs work, ranging from a couple quieter acoustic tunes to full-blown, multi-layered studio productions with good hooks, catchy grooves and an almost epic breadth of sounds.
One publicity handle has it that he makes “soul-infused folk-pop” but he’s happy to simplify that.
“Sometimes we dress them up with bass and drums or extra guitar but at the core of it I think they’re pop songs.”
It’s been about six years since Fitzgerald was named Emerging Artist of the Year in the Alberta Music Awards, and by all counts, he has emerged. Local audiences might have witnessed him opening for Michael Franti at the Winspear, for Ben Harper at the Jubilee Auditorium, or in numerous shows at the Starlight Room.
He brings his five-member touring unit to St. Albert’s Arden Theatre Friday.
Two years after that last album, you might guess that new songs are coming down the pike. You would be right. Over the past year Fitzgerald has been dropping down to Los Angeles and out to the rural setting of OCL Studios just outside Calgary near Langdon, working with notable past collaborators such as producers Jon Levine and Brian West (Philosopher Kings). He also continues to work with songwriter friends like Dominic Jossiah in cowriting tunes.
The singer says he’s “knee-deep into the next album” and while it doesn’t have a name yet, he hopes to have it out early next year. In the meantime, he’s road-testing a few numbers live on stage.
At 31, Fitzgerald allows that he’s a “good traveller” who enjoys connecting with audiences all over. He crosses the country about twice a year, visits the U.S. frequently, and played his first dates in Europe this past summer, including opening for Bryan Adams in the U.K.
“The first trip was playing at a singer-songwriter festival in Holland. The second trip to the U.K. was outside with a band of incredible Canadian players and it was fantastic.”
At home, Fitzgerald has led some big concert encounters, performing with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra or with backing choirs and more musicians, with up to 250 musicians on stage.
“I always like to voice songs in different ways and for those shows I thought that having a huge epic visual with all that sound would make for something neat so we pursued that idea. But I still play solo or small shows all the time, and I like every configuration.”
Growing up in Calgary, Fitzgerald was lucky enough to have a professional drummer as a stepfather, a man who encouraged him to pursue musical endeavours. He took up guitar in his teens and was playing in bands by high school. After graduation he took off to Australia on a whim and says that’s when his urge to write songs really kicked in.
The singer credits Bruce Springsteen, Bob Seger, Feist and others as inspirations, but watching Paul Simon’s Concert in Central Park was a big early inspiration and some of his songs echo Simon’s deceptively casual delivery style. These days he admits he can be found listening to A Tribe Called Quest or a country song. Everything comes into his playlist.
Back in Canada, he made his fist solo performances around Calgary in 2005, putting out an album and E.P. But it was the tune Brand New Spaces that really won Fitzgerald wider attention, leading to a deal with Load Music (distributed via EMI Canada) which also marked the start of his association with musician-producer Russell Broom. He put out two albums with label support, MBF Love (2009) and Yes (2015). I Wanna Make It With You is on his own Treasure Island imprint.
Fitzgerald is happy with the way his career is developing.
“I think there’s been a fairly natural progression. I’m starting to feel as if I really have a grasp on songwriting. I’m starting to understand what I really like and what I want to embody in recordings or on the live shows. I was lucky enough to get some support from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts this year which was great. There haven’t been a lot of big spikes but it’s been a nice, gentle curve.”
Michael Bernard Fitzgerald and band hit St. Albert’s Arden Theatre 7:30 p.m. Friday. Tickets are $34 from the box office (780-4591542), or online from Ticketmaster at ticketmaster.ca.
BLUES FROM DOWN UNDER
Edmonton sees a surprising number of blues performers from Australia thanks to venues like Blues on Whyte. That same venue presents another accomplished Australian artist from Sydney this week, Kara Grainger.
The soul-blues singer-guitarist started her professional musical apprenticeship at 16 when she started touring Australia with her older brother’s band, a group that received national airplay.
It’s nearly a decade now since Grainger signed with a label there to make her solo debut. She has recorded two other albums since, working out of Los Angeles, but she’s taking her music around the globe, too, most recently to festivals in India, Indonesia, Japan and Western Europe.
Kara Grainger plays Blues on Whyte Wednesday through Sunday around 9 p.m. Nightly.