This multi-talented band has been playing all over Calgary since their inception in 1994 and chances are that you’ve heard them in one form or another. They’ve played backup for blues great Long John Baldry, opened for BB King, appeared at the Palace and other Calgary clubs as well as all over Alberta and British Columbia.
The band is able to play so many venues due to their reluctance to stick to one style. While the guys are always groove-oriented, their sound swings from blues to jazz to pop to ska. The reason for this is their wide-ranging backgrounds, said Rob Phillips, lead singer.
“The horn guys are all classically trained, and so is the organist, and it really helps. It really is an interesting mix,” said Phillips, who also plays guitar and piano. “They call me the pop guy, I’m the one who writes the pop songs.”
Here’s an interesting tidbit for you — Mocking Shadows’ music is used in the documentary series Kink - yet the band members have not actually seen the show. I’m sure the Mocking Shadows never intended to be purveyors of “porn music.”
Bandleader Rob Phillips says they were told Kink was an expose of the Vancouver street scene. The song in question, ‘Part of Me’, was written about “how awful it is to be depressed in a bar,” so it fits, he says. I wonder what he thinks “kink” means, man? The show features some of the ugliest people you’ve ever seen doing disgusting, albeit consensual, things to each other in some of the seediest settings imaginable. Cue the wah-wah pedal. But then this Calgary band pulled off a career move that makes up for hours of wah-wah on potential porn soundtracks – opening for B.B. King.
“We never really wanted to be a blues band,” Phillips says, “We all enjoy the blues so much, but if people don’t like blues and you’re a blues band, then you don’t really have much chance. We wanted to have something for everybody.”
Phillips hints there may be more high-profile opening shots for Mocking Shadows coming up in 2009 including a possible tour across Canada.
So far, no more porn music.
Wanna check them out for yourself? Well, you have a number of options. You can pick up their music: Long Way
Or check them out live! Now, no upcoming shows are listed for Mocking Shadows, but stay tuned — when I get them, you’ll get them!
Mercury Lounge Ottawa Friday May 2nd 7-10:30
Bambi Blue