Sat 2/2 8PM
Hey Mavis
Honey Man
Hey Mavis is on their way. Laurie Michelle Caner cut her performing teeth with rootsy Akron-based trio the Rhondas, whose all-star-after-the-fact lineup also included Shivering Timbers’ Sarah Benn and Jen Maurer of Mo’Mojo. Ed Caner’s violin has wended an eventful journey through 20 years of the northeast Ohio music scene. He rose to prominence with folk-rockers the Walk-Ins in the early ’90s, moved briefly to Austin, made some noise with experimental instrumental trio Throckmorton, and freelanced with orchestras, touring artists, and various local ensembles, performers and projects.
The duo came together as Hey Mavis around five years ago, and as husband and wife shortly after that. The pairing resulted in a recent three-year stint as artists in residence at Cuyahoga Valley National Park, where they honed Hey Mavis. That’s where they’ll be celebrating the release of their second CD Honey Man, the follow-up to 2010’s Red Wine, on Sat 2/2 at 8PM.
Hey Mavis’s music is easy to slip into a genre slot. It’s Americana (or “roots rock”) — that now-ubiquitous style that layers backwoods twang and a downhome vibe over rock rhythms. If they’re not breaking new ground, Hey Mavis scores where it matters — in songwriting and execution. Laurie brings sharp songwriting skills and sultry vocals to the table, while Ed contributes his schooled musical abilities and range of experience. Expanding the core trio with guitarist Brent Kirby and Bryan Thomas on upright bass has given Honey Man some added kick and a greater range of tonal colors.
The band refers to its music as “Appalachian Americana,” but the “Appalachian” part is mostly flavoring on Honey Man. The “get-thee-gone-cheater”-themed “Little Lovebird,” for instance, could easily slip in with the repertoire of many folk-based contemporary singer-songwriters, save for Laurie’s background banjo. Honey Man’s 11 tunes are too musically diverse and lyrically sophisticated to qualify as old-time mountain music, and Laurie’s supple, nuanced vocals lack the flat, pinched “high lonesome” country sound.
That’s all for the better. Honey Man is a well-paced work that plays pensive songs like “Song for Suitors” and “By Your Side (Strength and Sword)” off against the aggressively rocking “Already Down,” featuring Kirby on lead vocal, the yee-ha sexiness of “Red Hot,” and the jazzy title track with Ed’s seductive viola underscoring Laurie’s sinuous vocal. And Laurie and Brent create a luscious vocal blend on Brent’s gentle and generous “Let the Water Do the Work.”
“Midnight Train” exemplifies how Hey Mavis has a foot in two worlds. While it has roots in the mournful Appalachian ballad tradition, its viewpoint is distinctly contemporary, relating two different stories from a third-person viewpoint, tied together only conceptually.
Like Red Wine, Honey Man was produced by studio veteran Don Dixon, who helped the band achieve an effective balance between their different elements.
Hey Mavis hosts a release show, followed by reception and CD signing on Sat 2/2 at 8PM, doors 7PM at the Happy Days Lodge, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, 500 W. Streetsboro Rd., Peninsula, OH Call 300-657-2909 X 100.
http://www.nps.gov/cuva/planyourvisit/cultural-arts.htm
by Anastasia Pantsios
Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Peninsula, OH 44264