Dana Sipos
Album: Roll Up The Night Sky
Label: Muddy Roots
Tracks: 12
Website: http://www.danasipos.com

If somebody said to you I know this Canadian female singer who was raised in the Northern Territories near the Arctic Circle, whose song writing is influenced by the supernatural experiences of the area and her lyrics represent this by being somewhat quirky. Not sure, OK then, I'll tell you more. This singer has had a nomadic last of couple of year apart from being the musician in residence at the world renowned Banff Centre in Alberta has toured by bicycle and tall ships and whose tour for this album is planned around using canoe and trains as transportation. As an inquisitive kind of bloke, I was intrigued to know what she sounded like. Welcome to the world of Dana Sipos.

Her first for Nashville-based indie Americana label Muddy Roots Music, 'Roll Up The Night Sky' was recorded in the home studio of Arcade Fire's Richard Reed Parry and the Barr Brothers' Montreal studio. This is her third album following on from 2011's offering 'Lay of the Land' and the 2009 'The Moonshine Brigade' which were both recorded in the Yukon wilderness. 'Roll Up The Night Sky' features some of Montreal and Canada's finest music makers :- Ben Hermann, Mark McIntyre, Pietro Amato, Michael Feuerstack and John Tielli; who along with composer, sound designer, sound artist and multi-instrumentalist Jordy Walker on production and assorted instruments, bring out the warm charm of Sipos's compositions. The cherry on top comes from the mastering of the album by Philip Shaw Bova at the vintage time capsule which is Bova Lab in Ottawa giving that tonal warmth that only analogue equipment can give.

Although Dana Sipos has a fairly unique vocal style and at times sounds similar to Elephant Revival's Bonnie Paine, her influences seem to bridge different musical genres from Icelandic artist Sóley to Sam Amidon and early Natalie Merchant. If you could imagine Portishead playing acoustic Americana you wouldn't be far from the overall sound of the album.

It kicks off with the minimalist "Old Sin" a simple melody with a subtle bassline embroidered by staccato drums and percussion. There is a change of pace and feel with the second track "Morningside" which sounds like a reworking of an old English folk song and features the violin of Michael Feuerstack and Jean-Christophe Lizutte's cello. The song introduces Sipo's three fingered mandolin picking style as it starts to weave its way throughout the rest of the album. If Philip Glass composed on mandolin I think it would sound something like this, combining harmonic and three note progression with the rhythmic structure of each song.

Other outstanding tracks include "Portraits" demonstrating the classic minor key hallmarks of singer songwriter territory, underscored by a Danny Thompson like double bass line; the title song "Night Sky" with the soulful surreal chorus:- 'Roll up the night sky, replace the stars with your fire eyes, roll up the night sky… hang the moon in your bedroom'; the REM sounding "Holy People" which I would love Mr Stipe to cover and contains a wonderful cello, pump organ and violin refrain and the dirge like "Full Moons Sinners" which closes the album.

Is it Americana or Canadiana? I'm not really bothered as 'Roll Up The Night Sky' is an album I will continue to dip into.

Chris Light