Ottawa, ON area singer-songwriter Zeman is a hardcore troubadour whose career is beginning to resemble that of Fred Eaglesmith’s, a clear influence. This is the ninth album by a prolific artist who regularly plays 200 shows a year, here and south of the border.
There’s a gritty feel to his voice and songs that also brings Steve Earle to mind. He is ably abetted by such strong players as multi-instrumentalist Blair Hogan, Anders Drerup and drummer/engineer Steve Foley, while Kelly Prescott and Cindy Doire add vocal harmonies on four cuts.
Zeman overreaches a little vocally on “Claws,” but that’s a rare misstep. More effective are the strong vocals on the sparser “End of the World.” Another album highlight is “Triple Crown,” an homage to a Texas bar he makes you wish you could hang out in. Zeman stretches out on closing track “Rain on the Roof,” a nine-minute-plus epic featuring horns and full-blooded production that showcases an artist worth watching closely.
Push Them Stones
Until It Bleeds
Triple Crown
Someone For You
Light in the Attic
Claws
End of the World
Season of Sleep
Rain on the Roof #1
Rain on the Roof #2