12 East Coast Music Award nominations with wins for Solo Recording of the Year, R&B Recording of the Year and the first woman to receive Producer of the Year. With such acclaim showered on Maritime singer-songwriter Erin Costelo’s 4th album Down Below, the Status Quo, nobody would question her if she opted to keep on walking down a well blazed path when it came time to record again. Halifax's queen of salt water soul had other things in mind.
Pushing the envelope, raising the bar, whatever you want to call it, Costelo was up for a fresh challenge and Sweet Marie would place her squarely inside exceptionally unique territory for any musician. As the waves washed outside her timber-frame home and studio in Little Harbour, Nova Scotia, the goal was to self-produce 10 songs in 10 days.
The result is Sweet Marie, a genre-defying gut kick from an artist that had been pushed so close to the edge that thoughts of abandoning her own music career seemed like a very viable option when she looked over it. There was not going to be any tumbling over into an abyss here, however. Instead Erin Costelo decided to push back.
“I think being a musician today is becoming more and more difficult to get by. Financially and emotionally it is very challenging,” explains Costelo.
“I thought I might continue to produce records for people but cut back on touring and that Sweet Marie might be my last album. In the middle of recording a signed a record deal with Compass Records in the US and had one of the most inspiring musician experiences making the record. I think it breathed new life into me to keep going.”
A day ahead of the album's release --celebrated with a show at the National Arts Centre Fourth Stage on Saturday night--, I talk with Costelo about this inspiring recording and how she turned to friend and fellow musician Amelia Curran to document the entire process.
Andre Gagne: Your last album Down Below, the Status Quo received some amazing accolades. Did you find there was much pressure on you going into the studio to record Sweet Marie to replicate that success somewhat?
Erin Costelo: I always feel pressure making a new album. This one is my 5th. I think the pressure is a result of wanting to grow as an artist and not really because of award nominations or wins. Although that is also a nice bonus!
Of course, this album is pretty unique with you wanting to record 10 songs in 10 days. What had you wanting to challenge yourself in this way?
As I started to produce more records for others, they didn’t have years to make a record! I was learning that extending the project didn’t always make a better record so I wanted to challenge myself to capture a moment in time and strive for a creative energy and not perfection.
Tell me a bit about why you turned to fellow musician (and friend) Amelia Curran to help document the recording?
Amelia stayed very much in the periphery during the filming process and I think that is why I wanted her instead of another film director to make the documentary about the album. Because she is a musician she knows the moments in a studio recording that are worth capturing and also knows how to stay out of the way and not disrupt the creative flow. She was a wonderful fly on the wall, as was her excellent and sensitive film crew.
I chose Amelia because she is great at what she does and I loved her documentary film work. It was a coincidence that she was a woman. A very happy one as I love supporting female artists especially an artist like Amelia who is growing a career in a new art form for her.
What with a documentary crew filming and the want to get those ten songs out in the short deadline, what are your personal thoughts on the final album?
I love it! It feels like a group of musicians playing together and is a real snapshot of a moment in time.
Though hurried to record, do you feel that the process still evolved organically or were you constantly trying to beat the clock, so to speak, making things more regimented?
Quite the opposite. Once we were all at the home and recording, it ended up being the most relaxed studio experience I have ever had. We all lived at the house together and would record for a few hours, take a break, go for a walk, make a great meal, record again, and repeat. It was lovely and easy.
When you look back at this project what do you feel will stand out as most memorable to you?
I think the time I got to spend with such wonderful musicians will be a cherished memory.
What do you feel you most learned about yourself recording Sweet Marie?
Be confident. Say what you think. Keep dreaming.