Greg Whitbeck has racked up an impressive list of musical accolades across the years. In addition to being an extremely talented producer and multi-instrumentalist, he is the former guitarist and composer for the bands Morning Maker, Tourist, and Shining Hour, and has more recently turned his attentions to being the driving force behind an explosive, Vancouver-based new alternative rock project, Whitbeck.
Rock music enthusiasts can anticipate exhilarating songs, supported by thunderous guitars and powerful rhythms, delivered by the charismatic and talented band members Sean Dillon, Mario Loubert and Shiraz Mohammed.
The group’s full-length debut album, January 22, is also the source of Whitbeck’s third single and music video. In the song, optimism and regeneration are contrasted with loss and despair against a backdrop of Canada’s stunning, glistening port city of Vancouver. It was composed and recorded in the cabin of Whitbeck’s 27-foot Albin Vega sailboat, which he was living aboard at the time; all of the voice and guitar recordings are originals from the Shelter Island Sessions which were later mixed and produced.
“West Coast Love Song” opens proceedings and carries a deep and moving message, with its exploration of the tragedy of the Canadian residential school system, in which more than 150,000 children from hundreds of indigenous communities across Canada were forcibly removed from their parents by the government. The Canadian Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls are the subject of the song.
In order to create its own, coherent characteristic sound, January 22 pays musical tribute to and draws inspiration from a host of genres, including 90s alternative and grunge, vintage rock n’ roll, and contemporary indie rock. Greg Whitbeck’s dramatic guitar compositions and rich, catchy melodies support his emotionally driven voice and relatable lyrics and, whilst some of the songs tread on dark ground, perseverance and optimism permeates throughout.
Listen to Whitbeck – January 22 via our link below
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