Emma-Lee's a different kind of triple threat
A photographer and songwriter with an affinity for oldies AM radio, Emma-Lee has become used to wearing several hats, which, over the course of her career, have included artist, publicist, manager and even financier. She owns Stripped Media, a photography company, and more recently, her debut album, Never Just a Dream, was released on a self-owned record label.
It's being prepped for release through her new home, Bumstead Productions (whose roster includes The Trews, Boy, and recent Polaris prize nominees Two Hour Traffic), but until then, Emma-Lee still mails them out by hand.
The record is a 10-song self-examination that thematically tackles love, with its every charm and fault. Taken as a whole, it's rather sombre, and the tone is perfectly captured by a phrase in the song “Bruise Easily”, which asserts “It's hard to love a girl wearing sorrow.”
But it would be wrong to call it a depressing listen, especially considering the stylistic range Not Just a Dream encompasses. From ballads to jazzy pop tunes that channel the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Cat Power and Feist, Emma-Lee's voice is the perfect vessel to carry the beautiful melodies she writes.
They don't always come easily for her, though.
“I sort of pour over songs for months, fine-tuning things… and in my case a lot of those songs are relationship based,” Emma-Lee said earlier this week over a phone conversation. “You can probably hear the different stages that I went through with some of them.”
Her music is very personal, and to many artists, baring your life to the public (including the objects of the songs) can be emotionally taxing, but to Emma-Lee, honesty is a part of her artistic philosophy.
“I think you have to keep perspective of the fact that it is art. It is a creation, and I think you have to be honest to that inspiration in the moment,” she said. “If you start to over-think ‘well what's this person going to think about me if they know my true feelings' then you'll really lose out on the opportunity to share a true emotion.”
And though she emotes her tales of love and loss beautifully, the making of Never Just a Dream tells a story of its own - one of perseverance.
In 2006 and 2007, Emma-Lee underwent career-threatening throat surgeries, and there was even some question as to whether she would sing again, given the unlikely, but still present potential for vocal cord paralysis. Even in the best case scenario, there would have to be some form of rehabilitation.
But her sense of optimism and strong familial support aided immensely in the recovery process, and after a week or two without the ability to speak at all, Emma-Lee began training her voice back to where it was when she left off.
Soon, her career was once again in full motion, and it was time to find a producer to help finish the album.
Emma-Lee settled on Mitch Grigio, a surprising choice, given his extensive work with reggae and ska acts like Montreal's The Planet Smashers.
“I started setting up meetings with different producers to see what their approach was to recording music, and [Mitch] just sort of started pulling out records, and he seemed really enthusiastic about what it was that I wanted to do... He did end up being the perfect person for the job.”
What Emma-Lee wanted was a record that sounded “warm and vintage-y”, with a modern appeal, combining her love for oldies radio with a more contemporary production style.
And according to critics from The Globe and Mail, The Toronto Star and NOW Magazine, Never Just a Dream has succeeded exceptionally with its vision. She even placed on the top singer-songwriters list of 2008 by iTunes Canada.
Those favourable reviews reached the offices of Bumstead Productions, and not long after, a deal was made for the re-release of Never Just a Dream.
Now, in preparation, Emma-Lee has been performing a few one-off concerts in Southern Ontario before heading to Texas for South by Southwest, and back home for her first ever cross-country tour.
