"Maria," the first single on Doc Walker's self-titled, third album paints the story of a good mid-western boy desperately yearning for a girl. It's the sort of catchy, upbeat radio magic that pop masters like the Barenaked Ladies would be proud of. It's also the sort of song, along with the forthcoming, hook-laden second single �Trying to Get Back to You�, that makes it clear that these five Manitoba boys have definitely arrived.
The trademark harmonies between lead singer Chris Thorsteinson and songwriting partner Dave Wasyliw are simultaneously sharper and smoother than ever before.
Super-guitarist Murray Pulver�s exceptional playing and vocal contributions are indispensable and the band has recruited the powerful drum-bass one-two of Chris Sutherland and Paul Yee on the back end. With these parts in place, Doc Walker have evolved into something they never really thought they've been before � a band.
"This," says Thorsteinson, with emphasis, "truly is a band. Everybody is at the level that they need to be to actually go into a studio and make a record � as well as pull it off live."
Doc Walker split the recording of the album between Winnipeg and Nashville. Their experience in Nashville only further enforced that they're a unified musical gang.
"When you go down to Nashville," says Thorsteinson, "the bands are all pieced together. They're amazing players, but they're not a band. We're a band. We were trying to get the band to the point where if we went into the studio with a world class producer, like we did, we could pull it off. Everybody definitely stepped up to the plate."
Considering Doc Walker's 2003 album Everyone Aboard won them Group of the Year at the 2004 Canadian Country Music Awards, Entertainer of the Year and Country Recording of the Year at the 2004 West Coast Music Award; Juno Award nominations and a host of other accolades, the fact that they're feeling stronger than ever bodes very well.
The band contributing half of the album's songwriting, also unearthing excellent gems from the likes of Mike Daly (Whiskeytown), Justin Currie (Del Amitri) as well as co-writing with Winnipeg legend/Guess Who driving force, Randy Bachman ("We instantly hit it off," says Thorsteinson).
The band went to Nashville to record part of the album with mega-producer/engineer Justin Neibank (John Mellencamp, Keith Urban, Marty Stuart, Blues Traveler). They recorded at The Castle, a literal castle built by Al Capone's bookie that has been used by the likes of Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, Waylon Jennings and pretty much every other important country star.
"You go, 'Man, some of our favourite records were recorded here,'" says Thorsteinson. "It definitely brings a good vibe and is totally inspiring because we're thinking 'We're recording in the exact place, in the same town where history was made over and over again.'"
The band weren't above stretching Neibank�s boundaries though. Along with the Nashville sessions, they also ventured north and recorded a number of songs in a "shag and cedar" Winnipeg studio with "a fish market beside it, so it always had an odd smell," says a grinning Thorsteinson. The castles and fishy studios inspired both Neibank and Doc Walker, resulting in a smarter, more mature album that takes their unique country-rock style in all sorts of musical directions.
"That Train" and "Driving with the Brakes On" bring you back to the sweet, lazy-hazy, Eagles-inspired country of the '70s. And the riffing and rocking in "Mama Don't Know" and "I'm Alright" would do Keith Richards proud.
"In some ways we're not far off from what Keith Urban or Dierks Bentley are doing, country with a rock influence," says Pulver. "We're definitely a wolf in sheep's clothing," says Wasyliw, throwing in a touch of mystery. "It's not like we're a rock band or a metal band," adds Sutherland. "It just happens. And it's all there on CD. This is a band that just sounds different." "That's the thing," says Thorsteinson, defending Doc Walker's desire to rock the party a bit with their country. "Everybody says, 'Well, you're a rock band.'
But some alleged rock bands made some of the best, most treasured country records ever. If you look at The Eagles, The Band, Neil Young... they all made great country influenced records with a lot of soul. "And across the prairies and in Winnipeg, that mid-west sound is truly what the prairies are about," he continues. "Guys just get together and play the music they love to play."
Doc Walker's cover of "Comes a Time" by another Winnipegger, grunge godfather Neil Young, nicely illustrates this prairie sound. While Young's version is straight country, the Doc version is a bit faster, edgier. "It kind of brought all the elements of the record together," says Thorsteinson. "The harmonies, the rock, the country, it's all there. It's funny that a country band takes a rock band's song and makes it more rock. I think Neil would like it."
There's someone far more important that Doc Walker are hoping will like the new album though � the fans.
Ultimately, the band says, this whole journey is about making sure the fans get what they want. "We're not a band who says we're going to make our own kind of music and who cares if anyone likes it," says Thorsteinson. "This is for the fans. We love the fact that people come out to the shows, singing our songs. That's the whole point for me. I love that and can't imagine any other reason for doing what we do for a living."
