INUVIK
This Goose is ready to take full flight.
After years of preparation, Inuvik singer-songwriter Leanne Goose is set to release another recording, titled This Time. - photo courtesy of Leanne Goose
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Inuvik singer-songwriter Leanne Goose is set to release her latest album, This Time, this week as she sets her sights on building her musical profile. With 11 songs on it, it's taken a few years to produce.
"Some albums can take months or years to produce. I come from up here, and travel is astronomical, so I had six days in the studio to record a full album.
"I'm still what they describe as an emerging artist," she said. "But things are looking up."
She has been performing since the age of 12 and has won some awards, including 2011 Best Country Album and 2012 Best Producer at the Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Awards. The rationale, she explains, is that she hasn't made the "breakthrough" into mainstream success.
Goose said her musical influences are all over the map, from AC/DC to Ella Fitzgerald.
She attributed that to the influences of her father and grandmother, both highly-talented and successful musicians in their own right. Between them, they had amassed a more-than-respectable record collection that Goose spent hours listening to.
She described her musical style as very "Delta."
"It's a blend of country, blues and rock," she said. "Somewhat rockabilly with more grit. It's very Delta. You'll hear a very distinctive style here," she said. "It's not quite country, it's not quite rock, it's not quite blues. It's got some movement to it and it's got character. There's a bit of gospel in there. There's a lot of stories in behind that."
Original material
She writes all of her own material. Goose said she doesn't listen to radio or CDs or watch television, so what she produces isn't influenced by pop culture and billboard hits.
"I find that I'm easily distracted, and so when I'm in creative mode I really need to thin out what I'm hearing. I have to try really hard to remain focused.
"I also have to try really hard to keep my ideas mine. My songs come to me in five minutes. That's songs from start to finish, so I have to be prepared and ready to put them down. I sing it into my phone, and I'll e-mail it to myself. They come quick and I have to be paying attention.
"I make music and either you like it or you don't," she said.
Goose said during those creative periods she thinks of herself as a "vessel."
"I'm channelling things that I don't quite fully understand and maybe I never will. When a song comes, it comes fast and it comes hard and there's a direct message. It requires me to take more time working on my craft. It comes from life and the experiences you have. It could be from kids laughing and playing. It could be from hearing one of my friends cry. It could be a story I heard as a little girl. I just write them down and record them."
Goose plays guitar and piano primarily, along with other instruments. She said she considers her voice to be her greatest asset.
"It's very strong. I range of about five octaves. It's raw, it's gritty, it's real. It is what it is.
"I am also an educated musician. I read music, I write music, I write songs," she added. "I've had quite an interesting formal and informal musical education."
That education began with playing in her father's band at the Mad Trapper Pub when she was 12. Goose recalled that time with fondness, saying the pub then was much different than what it has evolved into now. At that time, the pub was the go-to hot spot in town. Still, that was good preparation for a career in music.
"I'm thankful I cut my teeth in the Mad Trapper. It made me tough, it made me gritty," she said. "I've lived through a lot to get to where I am today and there's not many things that can stand in my way."
Along with the latest CD, Goose said she's ready to release an app featuring her music.
She also announced with pride that she has a song that will appear in a movie in the near future, but she wasn't allowed to provide more details.
"You can't ask for more than that. I'm doing very well, and I'm doing what I can handle and take on right now on my own."
Goose said she's prepared for more success – sort of.
"But who knows what will happen? It's one thing to have a number one song and another to have longevity. I'd rather have a string of number-10 songs over a course of 30 years than one number one. It's all up to the fans, up to the music and where that goes. It would be nice, everybody would love their 15 minutes of fame. I've lived in the south before and I didn't really like the person I became there.
"It's like climbing a ladder and all the rungs fall out," she said. "But when I come home I'm allowed to be me. I like that. I like the fact that I'm allowed to stay grounded."
