Something is cooking in the studio of this wonderful Canadian trio NUA. Yes you must have read my interview and review and you can tell by my enthusiasm that they won me over. Crisp and lush production combine with the best cuts from the recording-yes they have what it takes to turn heads/ears. A full-length album? Sounds wonderful. I know what to expect and it’s always a collection of amazing tracks. Have you heard their EP? If not, try to listen to the bandcamp playlist above and you will know what I mean. Since when have I featured less interesting music? You bet. So what’s up with this article?
I got a word out from award-winning bodhrán player Jacob McCauley regarding this new album. So how hectic were the past two months for the trio?
Last month was very hectic to say the least. We basically had set aside a week (the last week of June) for recording and spent the weeks leading up to it rehearsing and putting together new material. It was a little more rushed then we would have liked, as James and Graeme had just recently graduated from college and university and we had played very little in the last few months. But nonetheless we started putting in the time and things began to come together. As we entered the studio to record things weren’t 100%, but it’s quite common to often make changes or add things when you are in the recording zone. That was the case with some of our new material. We got the bulk of material recorded and we will be finishing off the rest in a couple weeks. James and Graeme are both involved in a music camp run by James’s family in B.C, so they are now in B.C for the camp and to spend time with their families. When they return we will be putting the finishing touches on the tracks so they can be ready for mixing, mastering and production.
I know this is too soon to ask but I was curious about the promo plans for the new album when it gets released. According to Jacob:
At the moment most of our focus has been on preparing the material and recording, so the promo plans have not been set in stone at this point. But there will of course be some of the usual online promotion. We will be releasing a single from the album a few weeks before the album officially releases, as well as some live concert footage of new material. We will also be doing a small pre-release run of copies, but those will only be for sale at the local festivals/concerts that we are doing this summer. Lastly, there will be a CD release party locally here in Toronto, but the date is TBA.
So there is going to be a CD release party. That sounds amazing! I asked him what to expect in the new NUA album in terms of sound and concept:
Well, if you listened to the EP we released last November, then you will certainly have an idea of how we sound, but you can expect this full-length album to go much deeper. The EP was essentially just our 4 favourite original tunes at the time, recorded and presented in a simple format. It’s really a challenge to explain the concept without giving too much away, but to put it in plainest terms; the album will not be your standard album that simply goes from tune to tune. The layout of the album, what happens between track to track and the overall flow is all a reflection of our creativity and how we feel the album should be presented. From start to finish we want the album to reflect our moods and our feelings through each tune and leave the listener feeling as if they experienced a journey; however that journey makes them feel. It is most definitely the type of album to listen to from start to finish. I’m afraid that’s all I can say for now!
I really love the EP. So this is going to be a progression from the initial 4 tracks. When a band is releasing an album I am always curious about the distribution upon release. You see, there are other Celtic bands out there who are trying to brainstorm their way into this generation of releasing albums and I am always happy to help get the word out through my interviews with musicians. So I asked Jacob about how’s the distribution for the release going to be:
The distribution will be fairly standard. It will be available on all major music sites such as iTunes, Amazon, Google Play etc as well as our own websites. Physical and digital copies will be available. The release date is TBA, but when the released date is announced we will be taking pre-orders.
And as for what made the three of them decide that it’s time to release a full-length album? His answer:
Well, we actually did have enough material at the time of the EP last year to work on a full-length. But we felt that it was a better idea to record and release more of a teaser at that point in time to help get our name out there and give people a preview of our music. I think it’s safe to say that it always was evident that we also wanted to work on new material to add to the repertoire already composed as well as continuing to grow as a group. Now that James and Graeme have finished their musical studies and have more time to devote to the group, it made perfect sense to begin work on a full-length album. Once the album is out it will give us an opportunity to devote to many more concerts, festivals and tours.
Sounds like an ingenious plan to me. Testing the waters before diving!
And the band’s message to NUA listeners?
On behalf of myself, James and Graeme we would like to thank all of our devoted listeners for their support and we are really looking forward to rewarding you with our full-length album. You can keep track of our progress via our official Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TRIONUA as well as our Reverbation page which has access to all of our music, videos and all other info: https://www.reverbnation.com/trionua
That’s it folks. Take note of the name : NUA. They are from Canada and they play wonderful instrumental Celtic music!