Scott Normandy released his first album, My Future. My Past., as a singer/songwriter in 2007. He then embarked on a national tour to promote the album.
Shortly thereafter, Scott began to write new songs, and together with drummer, Allan Campopiano, guitarist, Mike Tuyp and a studio bassist, he recorded his second full album, No Regrets, in Montreal. No Regrets was released in 2009 at a CD release event at the Rivoli in Toronto. At this point, bassist Joel Durksen had officially joined the band.
During the past few years, Scott Normandy has headlined the Niagara Wine Festival in Montebello Park two years in a row (2009 and 2010), and has performed at the TD Bank Tailgate Party (New Vintage Wine Festival, 2010), Dunham Wine and Folk Festival (2009) and Montreal Folk Festival (2008 and 2011).
Scott Normandy and the Newark City Band are now releasing a 6-song EP called Learn How to Live.
Learn How to Live threads together the similar situations that all band members are experiencing, and as a result, Scott felt it was absolutely necessary at this point to name the band. In essence, the music is the band, and the band is the music. The newly-named Newark City Band pays tribute to its hometown of Niagara, as "Newark City" was Niagara's original name.
Learn How to Live is a collection of songs about just that: about balancing responsibilities such as families, raising kids and working to pay the bills with the dream to write, record and perform music. The songs realize that because no one has all the answers, we learn as we grow.
What also sets Learn How to Live apart from the other two albums is the fact that the band worked closely together to self-record and self-produce the EP.
Setting the tone for the EP is the first song, "Restless Days," which balances upbeat music with meaningful lyrics. "Learn How to Live," the title track, embodies the theme of the album with energetic, quick-speaking lyrics that the music races along with. "Get Close" is the album's "love song," a sweet and happy song that is easy to sing along with and fun to sing to a special someone. The EP's final song, "So Cold," is an insightful acoustic ballad.
Passion threads through all songs in the form of real, relatable lyrics and in the moments taken here and there to rock out together during an occasional break down "jam."
Pulled from different cities and towns within Niagara (Virgil, Niagara Falls, St. Catharines and Grimsby), Scott Normandy and the Newark City Band have joined together to create a high-quality combination of folk-rockin' rhythms, moving melodies and tight unity.
With "No Regrets" Scott and the band wanted to capture the vibe and energy of their live show which has earned them a dedicated following across Canada. Working with Producer Dave A. Sturton (David Martel, Jean Leloup), the album was recorded live-off-the-floor in 5 days at DNA Productions in Montreal; a city which has become somewhat of an adopted hometown for the Niagara, Ontario based band.
Scott was once again joined in studio by band mates Mike Tuyp (electric guitar) and Allan Campopiano (drums), with veteran bass player Alec McElcheran (Anik Jean, Jean Leloup) added to complete the line-up. These jazz-trained musicians found a real sweet spot as a unit, creating an alt-country/folk-rock sound reminiscent of a mix of Ryan Adams and Josh Rouse. Highlights on the album include the ultra-catchy title track "No Regrets", crowd-pleaser "Gone", the Tom Petty influenced "Never Too Hard", and the introspective "I Guess", which features Montreal singer-songwriter David Martel.
The album is being released by Hyperbole Music, a management/label/events production company that founded the Montreal Folk Festival on the Canal and the Decanted Concert Series (www.decantedseries.com). Outside Music will distribute the album in Canada, with online and digital distribution handled by CD Baby.
After a year filled with career highlights including a stirring performance at the first annual Montreal Folk Festival on the Canal, a cross-Canada tour with Rob Lutes (one of the country's finest singer-songwriters), and an invitation to perform on "Routes Montreal" on CBC Radio after they became the show's most-requested band, Scott Normandy has every reason to be optimistic and hopeful with the release of "No Regrets".
" A folk-rock, alternative country sound influenced by the likes of John Mayer " - Robert Lapensee - Niagara This Week
"Catch Normandy now before his intimate shows turn into amphitheatre performances"
The Concordian
