BROCKZEMAN: REVIEWS

Where was this troubadour hiding ? As someone well versed in this country's roots scene, this was the first time I had heard of the Wakefield, QC-based song slinger.
But Zeman, who combines the rich, deep-in-the-well vocals of Steve Earle with the poetic storytelling of Townes Van Zandt, is no newcomer. This is his fourth release in four years and another disc, recorded with Dan Walsh, is due soon. While he's physically located in Canada, his soul resides with Texas tellers of song and their brethern. By exploring themes that mine a time and place far away, yet so near, that are at once dark, brooding reflections and life-affirming celebrations, Zeman paints vignettes that everyone can relate to. Produced by veteran country rocker Keith Glass (Prairie Oyster), Zeman gethered a band with all the chops to fill out the melodies of these 14 tracks and add a rich layer of instrumentation that complements his tear-stained tales. With the backing of Kitchener-Waterloo indie label Busted Flat, hopefully Zeman's words and music will now get heard by more of the masses. This is a songwriter worth hearing over and over again.

On an otherwise quiet and unassuming night, when all the streets of Nanton seemed fast asleep, Main Street Café was just coming alive.
Brock Zeman and Dan Walsh were back in town to play the café once again, and this time they brought a new bass player with them, Dawson Willsey.
A small but appreciative crowd packed the modest café for the show, which featured two sets of about an hour each that ran the gamut of old fan favourites, new songs heard for the first time by those present and a slew of as of yet unrecorded carnival songs.
The band displayed a distinctive brand of rough edge country, bluegrass and folk with a slight blues tinge.
“It’s a lot of everything,” Zeman said of the band’s musical style.
Regardless of what you call it, the music definitely rocked, and when coupled with Zeman’s raspy, almost Leonard Coen-esque voice and often poetic writing, it frequently hit chords of raw emotion scarcely glimpsed in more mainstream acts.

With the ease of an experienced showman, Zeman never let the evening get too heavy as he interweaved strands of humour throughout the show through both his song selection and in his numerous comical interludes between songs.
“Sorry for getting all serious on you,” Zeman said after one particularly heavy song, “I thought we needed a good cry.”
The band, which has been playing a show a day for the past two and half months, heads to Calgary next then off to B.C. for 10 days before making their way back to Ontario where the tour started.
This busy work schedule is exactly how the band prefers to operate.
“That’s how we like it,” Walsh said, “the goal is always to work all the way down and all the way back.”
Zeman and Walsh, who have been playing together for a little over a year now, will record their next album in Walsh’s home studio where they recorded their last album, The Bourbon Sessions.
The carnival themed album is still between a year and half to two years away, according to Zeman, who noted that they want to take the time to make it right.
“It’s a big undertaking,” Zeman said, noting that the album will require numerous new instruments.
The band, after adding a new bass player this time through, is hoping to add a drummer for their next tour.
“That’s the goal,”
Zeman said.

"Step by step, 25 year old Canadian Brock Zeman is building on a solid
career.With his gritty voice,which reminds me a lot of Steve Earle, he
already filled 4 cd's full of wonderful singer-songwriter stuff. On "Welcome
Home Ivy Jane" he evoluates once again one step further into fame. His
recordings keep getting better and better each time a new cd appears.Being
still young,
he could be famous very soon if the quality of his albums keep growing like
that.This album is full of strong compositions: stories about lost love,
bars on a saturday night, saying goodbye and other less joyfull themes.
Brocks voice is perfect for this type of songs, but also in rocksongs such
as "Greasy..." and the wonderful " Saturday Night" which are more his own
typical
style, and in the melancholic "Porch Light" his superb voice can turn this
into alternative country masterpieces. Still have to mention that Steve
Smith on dobro and pedal steel,and Dennis Keldie on Hammond do a wonderful
job, and contribute a great deal to that typical sound of the band "The
Dirty Hands", which make a nice background for Brock's wonderful voice and
great songs.Keep an eye on this guy, he surely is gonna make the big time!"

BROCK ZEMAN & THE DIRTY HANDS -- WELCOME HOME IVY JANE (BUSTED FLAT RECORDS)

Ottawa singer/songwriter Brock Zeman joined Kitchener's Busted Flat Records just in time to release his fourth album. Produced by Prairie Oyster guitarist Keith Glass, Welcome Home Ivy Jane is reminiscent of Steve Earle circa Guitar Town.

Zeman has a firm grasp of alt-country as both a songwriter and a performer. Whether breaking your heart with an acoustic ballad like Boxcars or raising hell with a roots rocker like Storm's A-Comin', Zeman doesn't surrender an inch to any Texas singer/songwriter you care to name. Closer to home, he has the chops to join the likes of Fred Eaglesmith on the lonesome outskirts of town after the street lights some on.

"Brock Zeman’s last album earned a good review from this site in January and, on the strength of ‘Welcome Home Ivy Jane’, he’s got himself another one. Never straying far from the gravelly-voiced troubadour spirit of Steve Earle, Zeman’s authenticity and experience still cuts through and the recording has a vintage barroom feeling to it, especially on rockier numbers like ‘The Greasy Skillet Boys’ and ‘Down in the Basement’."

"Brock Zeman is back with a new cd of intelligent, tuneful. heart-felt songs served up with an authentic but understated style."

CD Review - BROCK ZEMAN - And The Dirty Hands

BROCK ZEMAN
And The Dirty Hands
(Indie) – No Number
Produced by: Keith Glass
(15 Selections – Playing Time 62:03)
Nothing On The Radio / Sweet Charlotte / Down By The River / Two Steps Back / Amanda / My Heaven / Raise Your Hands / Danny’s Song (The Fiddler’s Gone Home) / Small Town Tongues / Blood Of Christ Blues / Breanna Harrison / Bones / White Freight Liner / Another Song / Talking Reality Show Blues

Brock Zeman, a singer/songwriter out of Carleton Place, Ontario debuted only a couple years ago with the highly-acclaimed Cold Winter Comes Back album, followed that up with his Songs From The Mud CD; and is already into his third album with this latest collection, again filled with his biting song lyrics that are reminiscent of the messages contained in a John Prine song; and a voice that begs to be compared to Steve Earle. Nice company to keep…but it’s a neighbourhood that gets little respect or attention from mainstream country radio.

There are many highlight moments on the album. Brock Zeman seems to have already recognized the dilemma he faces with his music getting played on radio, and opens this album with the statement song, Nothing On The Radio. The song title pretty much tells you where he’s going with the song…and he stresses the point with the lyrics:


“Good thing Hank ain’t alive today”

Quick learner, this Brock Zeman !!
Zeman also scores nicely here with the rock ‘n roll / rockabilly tune Raise Your Hands, and some bluesy efforts in Blood Of Christ Blues and Two Steps Back. He shows flexibility with a slow melancholy effort in My Heaven and the haunting song, Bones.
Danny’s Song (The Fiddler’s Gone Home) is a poignant tribute to musician friend Danny O’Connell who recently took his own life; while the Steve Earle vocal comparison is best felt in the song Small Town Tongues. The comparison to John Prine’s songwriting can best be appreciated in the album’s closing song, Talking Reality Show Blues.

We also get a rare occurrence on a Brock Zeman album…a cover tune. This time it’s the Townes Van Zandt nugget White Freight Liner (Blues). The song Amanda is a Zeman original and not a cover of the Bob McDill tune popularized by Don Williams and by Waylon Jennings.

Like previous releases by Brock Zeman this album was produced by Keith Glass (of Prairie Oyster fame), and recorded at Audio Valley Studios in Perth, Ontario

Brock Zeman & The Dirty Hands “Brock Zeman & The Dirty Hands” (MAPL Records 2006)


Brock Zeman & The Dirty Hands consists of Brock (acoustic guitar, vocals - and song writer excluding a cover of Townes Van Zandt's 'White Freight Liner') and The Dirty Hands, them being Keith Glass (all guitars, banjos etc), Peter Newson (bass), Peter Bigras (drums), Kevin Sullivan (mandolin, dobro), & Dennis Delorme (pedal steel). Brock & The DHs are not creating anything new, so with a running time of 60 minutes plus there needs to be something to make you hang on to the end. Immediately the Steve Earle influence is evident - on the first song 'Nothing On The Radio' Brock is critical of the current radio format in the US - aimed at the MOR side of Nashville - 'it's very clear to me, that I'd have to get plastic surgery, go to the gym five days a week,and cut out my soul. I'd have to wear designer clothes of course, drive around in my new Porsche' - and Hank would be turning in his grave. Whilst many song writers sing about their lack of recognition, this adds an additional bite to the sentiments.Throughout the record Brock sounds very much in the Steve Earle and Todd Snider, and the songs carry a familiar ring. It's on 'Danny's song (The Fiddler's Gone Home)' where Brock steps up with just acoustic guitar and his story telling of a musician/friend who took his own life - it's a brilliant song that makes you wish Brock had concentrated more on the stripped down side of his repertoire - on songs 'Brenna Harrison' and 'Another Song' once again the stripped sound shows off his vocals best where he sounds like his own man. On the last song 'Talking Reality Blues,' Brock cleverly sums up the state of TV shows and our pre-occupation with so-called Celebs and the trivia that surrounds them - Brock would like to see a new reality show just about 'ME' - a brilliant song. Tales of lost chances, twists of fates, and how life turns out are where Brock sets his stall and creates songs that stand out - and yes, at 60 minutes plus, it's worth your time.


Date review added: Monday, January 16, 2006
Reviewer: Andy Riggs
Reviewers Rating: 8 OF 10
Related web link: www.brockzeman.com

Brock Zeman “Songs From the Mud” (Audio Valley Records 2005)


‘Songs From the Mud’ is Brock Zeman’s second album and one on which he has gone back to acoustic basics with some fairly spectacular results. The album consists of 14 tracks, one of which is a cover (‘Dark as a Dungeon’ by Merle Travis). For a 24 year old Canadian, Zeman does a remarkably good impression of a grizzled old authentic country singer. He sings of; the devil, mining and outlaws with the authority of somebody much older and more experienced. On ‘Scarecrow Blues’, Zeman even sounds like the slightly younger brother of Tom Waits. ‘Songs From the Mud’ is a great, consistently strong record and one that elevates Zeman into the pantheon of top notch Canadian singer song writers.


Date review added: Tuesday, December 13, 2005
Reviewer: Admin
Reviewers Rating:
Related web link: www.brockzeman.com