Here’s Canadian alt-country artist Bobby Dove with the immediately-absorbing ‘Trans Canadian Blues’. A great guitar groove, propulsive percussion from Dani Nash and Dove’s urgent vocals combine to make this into a compelling, compulsive track that grabs you and doesn’t let go. After a surging guitar solo midway through, the song quietens, a change of pace and volume that hooks you back in before it races towards its conclusion. Produced in Toronto by Aaron Goldstein (Cowboy Junkies), the song is about touring across Canada’s vast expanse. Fittingly, the song is positively driven along with a brilliant sense of motion and energy.
‘Trans Canadian Blues’ is the follow-up to the acclaimed 2021 album “Hopeless Romantic”. The song is a preview of Dove’s as-yet-untitled new album, which promises to continue their rocking brand of classic country with a set of new songs, including a co-write with GRAMMY Award-winning singer-songwriter Jim Lauderdale. Dove says of ‘Trans Canadian Blues’ and the album that will follow: “The sound of this track is unique to the album in many ways, with a more rocked up, guitar-driven feel. Thematically, it is an integral part of the album, with its exploration of my identity and experiences as a gender-diverse person mixing with elements of classic country music storytelling.” Dove explains the inspiration behind the song: “I was just off the road from an east-to-west Canadian tour, and I was feeling ragged but restless. I think I was actually drinking alone when I started writing the verses, and it led to creating a little story about what it’s like to push on from either end of this country, alone in a car with hours to lose your mind between great distances. I wanted to express—with a sense of humour—what might have been some of my less dazzling moments as a touring trans-person with a honky tonk mind, and perseverance in the face of it all.”
After Dove’s debut album, “Dovetales”, back in 2013, they have toured Europe, as well as showcasing at AmericanaFest in Nashville and making appearances at SXSW in Austin, the Vancouver Folk Music Festival, the Winnipeg Folk Festival, Countryfest in Dauphin, Manitoba, and at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. Dynamic performances from a powerful songwriter who relentlessly delivers classic country to modern audiences. Enjoy.
