Just over a week after Ruth Moody and the Good Lovelies
shared a gig in Oxford, the summer of Canadian touring artists took a gender
switch as this time the guys had the limelight for what was effectively a
double billed Leicester show. From either side of the vast Canadian nation,
Dennis Ellsworth, a Prince Edward Island native, represented the Atlantic Provinces
with Leeroy Stagger hailing from over 4000 miles further west in British Columbia. While the contrast continued
in their method of onstage delivery, you couldn’t split the exceptional quality
that emanated from both artists.
 |
| Dennis Ellsworth |
Alluding to differences between the London area of the same
name and the PEI neighbourhood which served as the song’s origin, ‘Park Royal’ re-confirmed its status as
one of the album’s best tracks with the live version. A similar line could be adapted
to the John Smith co-write ‘Perfect Storm’
with all the elegance of the studio version crossing over to Dennis delivering
it with the aid of just an acoustic guitar. ‘Electric Stars’, ‘Clear Your Mind’ and ‘Messed up Kind of Way’ completed the current album offering with
the mood changing ‘Happiness’ giving
a brief glimpse of what will be available in the not too distant future, Perhaps the most poignant moment from Dennis’s set was his
tribute to a late friend ‘It’s Gonna Be Strange’
showing the depth of sincerity that exists amongst his dry humour. The good
news is that this is likely to be just the start of Dennis Ellsworth
entertaining UK audiences and with the next record being on the brink of
release, the wait for a follow up visit shouldn’t be too long.
This wasn’t the last we saw of Dennis as Leeroy Stagger
invited him back on stage to help with the evening’s final song, a cover of ‘Cinnamon Girl’ by fellow Canadian Neil Young. This brought to a close a
storming set by Leeroy and his band, consisting of Nick Stecz on
drums/percussion, Jon Lent on bass and Evan Uschenko on guitar/mandola. While
there were quite a few rocking numbers from the excellent new album TRUTH BE
SOLD, it was interesting to note that Evan switched to the more roots
orientated instrument for a couple of new yet to be released songs, ‘Carolina’ and ‘Ten Long Years’. These have been put together in co-ordination with
their UK release label Clubhouse Records in between dates on this UK tour to
promote the latest album.
 |
| Leeroy Stagger |
Leeroy informed the crowd of his previous Leicester visit
when supporting a heavy metal band and at times was frank to reveal the
importance of conquering his demons, best exemplified in the encore request
song ‘A Long Way Home’. The two most
recent albums which form the bulk of Leeroy’s live shows highlight the stellar
form he is in at the moment and the proof on offer tonight will only add to the
growing list of favourable reviews. Clubhouse Records have to be commended for
adding such an immense talent to their roster and enabling him to hopefully
prosper in the UK.
As with the abundance of Canadian female roots talent, the
male contingent offering a range of sounds from a folk bias right through to
straight forward alt-country rock is of an equally high stature and a welcome
addition to the UK scene. Whether live or on record, Dennis Ellsworth and
Leeroy Stagger are worthy ambassadors for Canada’s musical export and their
continued presence in the UK will only help raise standards over here.