About The Paperbacks
I’m not really sure where to start.
We’ve been a band since 2001, though our progress was largely glacial until the release of “An Episode of Sparrows”, our debut full-length. Prior to that, we spent alot of time rejecting songs, changing guitar players and deeply doubting ourselves. We went on a couple of brief, financially disastrous tours that no one saw. There was definitely a 7″ involved at some point.
Eventually, we mustered up some purpose, recorded a CD (“An Episode of Sparrows”), and then started functioning somewhat like a legitimate band. Since then, we have been touring as much as possible and we released another disc (a split CD with our friend Jason). This September, we are putting out our second full-length CD (“An Illusion Against Death”, produced by Weakerthans frontman John Samson) and an accompanying EP should show up in the following months. 2007/08 should see much more touring to go with the new records. You should probably come see us; we are inexpensive and, according to some biased reports, quite enchanting. You may also be eligible to get University credit for attending twenty or more of our concerts and critiquing them viciously on message boards; please see your crochety old headmaster for details.
Before continuing, I would just like to say that bios are extremely difficult to write, due to the fact that you are forced to make quite a few judgement calls on your actions that you are probably massively unqualified to make. Either that, or you can pretend that you are a different person while writing your bio and it comes off really stiff and empty. Or you can just write a bunch of nonsense and expose the format for what it is (an advertisment) while concurrently advertising for yourself, although that form of subversion is rapidly becoming transparent, too.
So, in summation: we are some friends that play music. We love music. We love playing music, and we love playing it for you. We love that we get to travel to different places to do so. Also, life is awesome. Oh, yeah, and we’re from Winnipeg, which is totally in Canada. I think that’s basically it.
Blind Mule began it’s history as a progressive rock band called Golden Lake Diner, formerly on Sonic Unyon Records, but as the main man of GLD and his side kick matured musically, both Graham Peacefull and Joey Balducchi decided to start all over and build a more rootsy act, incorporating 6 new members to fill out the sound with stand-up/fretless bass, violins/mandolins, drums and percussion.
Since their inception as a band, they toured Canada in the summer of 2007 with Hunter Eves, playing festivals with the likes of Geoff Berner and Ember Swift, as well as other showcases along the way, with the likes of Wax Mannequin and Trooper, to name a few.
They are currently in the studio putting the final touches on their debut LP, and are planning on touring this album throughout Canada in 2008, hoping to play as many festivals as possible, since they are one of the funnest bands to watch for everyone to enjoy..
The hooks are barbed. The lyrics bite hard enough to break the skin. And the soul of a resigned heart booms out in a powerful voice – far bigger than the stature of the man from which it comes. This is Kirby – and his emotionally, and spiritually captivating, new EP The Good Fight.
The former leader of a once powerful empire – now walks alone. The ghosts of melodies have been stripped from a maroon telecaster – and now inhabit a converted left hand acoustic guitar.
The Good Fight is a bold, and often frank, examination of a painful past that stabs in stereo. These melodies of catharsis – in a lilting, albeit somber elegance embody both resolution — and hope for the path Kirby now walks.
There’s bitter-sweet remorse in the painting of each haunting scene pulled from the ether. It would be overwhelmingly morose – if it wasn’t so god damn honest.
Kirby takes The Good Fight to the people. With tours across Canada the empire is being rebuilt. And with dates in the U.S. and Europe in the works – the empire will soon stretch globally. And the voice will become all consuming.