Saint John-based Kylie Fox is going to be debuting with her first album BalconyEP (pronounced balcon-yep) on November 1st. In the meantime, she’s put out an introductory teaser of two singles: ‘Alberta’ and ‘Stephen’.
Fox has a big singer-songwriter vibe to her. She’s earned it putting in the hours at open mics. There’s a raw expressiveness to her voice. It’s not perfect, and it’s all the better for it. She lunges into her songs with tenderness and playfulness and a sincerity in her storytelling that feels like a fresh spin on a classic genre. She’d be right at home with the likes of Joni Mitchell, and Janis Joplin.
‘Alberta’, Fox’s first single, is a familiar tale for Maritimers. It’s about leaving your home to move out west, all for the sake of making a living. It’s often associated with hard work and heartache, but Fox goes further and explores the mental toll that comes with it.
“I was tree planting in Alberta after tree planting in British Colombia. From what I was observing, most labourers hanging around town weren’t from there. I was worried about what Alberta does to ours heads,” says Fox. “[It’s a] classic east coast tale of moving west to make big bucks and getting homesick, I guess.”
Fox’s b-side digs a bit more into the tongue-in-cheek side of those who are living (or at least believe they are living) the musician’s lifestyle with ‘Stephen’. It fits right in with what Fox refers to as her genre of “folk-comedy,” which humoursly sheds some insight on the subject while also getting a little too real for comfort.
The album itself was produced with an all-star cast of Saint John’s music scene. It was recorded and mixed over the summer by Monopolized Records’ Corey Bonnevie. Featured on the album are Geoffry Smith (Little You Little Me, Tooth and the Fang) on drums, Chuck Teed on bass, Nienke Izurieta (Ladd and Lasses) on violin and Jamie Comeau (Jamie Comeau and the Crooked Teeth) playing lead guitar.
Fox will be playing at Perish Fest October 7th, with Gianna Lauren at Fredericton’s Wilser’s Room October 18th, and with The Galpines at Grimross Brewery October 21st. A full album release tour is expected to be announced in the coming weeks.