Get in the mood and experience the blues with Brandon Isaak.
Juno nominee and Cowichan Valley resident Isaak will be bringing his brand of soulful blues to various venues and festivals across the island this summer and fall as part of his extensive tour across Western Canada. Valley residents will have plenty of opportunities to see him starting on July 13 as part of the annual 39 Days of July festival on the city square stage at 8:30 p.m.
"It feels great to be on this extensive tour with so many stops in the Cowichan Valley. The support here is always amazing," said Isaak. "We have a lot of gigs on Vancouver Island, we just love this amazing place, and the support is always there in spades. We have lived here for three years now and I plan to be here for life."
Known for his gravelly voice and love of the blues tradition, the Whitehorse born blues craftsman of 37 years will be taking fans of the genre on a raw and soulful journey with what is being called his most authentic and electric album to date: Walkin’ With The Blues. It was recorded live with minimum mics and vintage gear on Vancouver Island with his touring band the Saint's of Swing. This is Isaac's love letter to the grit and emotion of classic old-school; blues.
“We built this in a single room with ribbon mics, cold beer, and heart,” said Isaak. “Every note played was real, unfiltered. The drums, the guitars, the feel — it’s all there, honest and alive.
"That honesty translates to every track, from rollicking shuffles to mournful ballads. This is the most straight-up blues record I’ve ever made, and I could not be more pleased with how it turned out. I wanted to make a record with strong lyrics, soulful playing, and zero tolerance for wanking — and I think I’ve achieved this.”
In addition, this is also the first album in which Isaak did his own engineering and producing and engineering — a feat he describes as both a challenge, and a dream realized. Isaak's hallmark songwriting style is captured through his lead single 'Walkin’ With The Blues', a track with with equal parts of heartbreak and hard-won wisdom. Isaak draws listeners into his own personal experiences of lost love and the grit of perseverance with lyrics such as “With the blues as my companion down this long hard road / we’ll keep on walkin’ and share this heavy load." Other themes throughout the album include life and death, sex and love, and even murder, which Isaak said are all delivered with gusto and passion.
”Each track is infused with the vintage tones of electric blues, channeling the spirit of legends like T-Bone Walker and Ronnie Earl," said Isaak. “I’ve always dreamed of making an electric blues album that captures the feel of the records I grew up on. This one’s for the guitarists I worshipped as a kid.”
Aside from his 2024 Juno nomination, Isaak has received other accolades such as four nominations at the 2023 Maple Blues Awards, where he was recognized for Male Vocalist of the Year, Album/Producer of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, as well as Acoustic Act of the Year.
If you miss Isaak at 39 Days he will be at the Parksville Museum on July 24. Come fall, some other stops close to home include Crofton's Osborne Bay Pub on Sept. 20, and two performances in Victoria at the Oak Bay Recreation Centre on Oct. 7, and Hermann’s Jazz Club on Nov. 21.
"My hope is that blues fans take away a sense of connection to the roots of the blues and that the album shows are both honest and soulful," said Isaak. “I’m not trying to reinvent the blues, I’m just doing what it's always done which is telling stories, sharing truths, and keeping the fire burning.”
