Single Premiere: JP Lancaster - "Hometown"
In recent years, the Kamloops music scene has surged into our collective conscience; a spark was lit that fired up a roaring bonfire of talented artists and bands in numbers that would be impressive for cities double in size. One of the biggest people behind this onslaught of inspiration is JP Lancaster.
Lancaster came back to Kamloops after being away and immediately began making his mark by forming At Mission Dolores (RIP), Factotum Cassettes & Oddities, and becoming the city’s foremost respected promoter. It was a wild few years that really kick-started a music scene in a city that had been pretty quiet on the national scale. Today, Lancaster has slowed down slightly with the demise of At Mission Dolores and a 2019 decision to no longer promote shows. His mark was quickly made on Kamloops and now others have stepped up in to fill the gaps.
The good news is that Lancaster has, by no means, left the music scene. His label is still going strong and on March 27th it will be releasing a two-song single of Lancaster’s new, solo material. Today we are pleased to deliver you an exclusive premiere of “Hometown” and “Dusk Came Early”.
“Hometown” is inspired by an experience from Lancaster’s childhood when he and his mother intervened to stop a suicide attempt:
“I was probably about 5 or 6 years old and my mother and I were walking across the main bridge in Kamloops, my hometown. There was a man standing on the other side of the rail building up the courage to jump. He was completely unresponsive to my mother’s pleas to step back onto the bridge. The memory is burned into my mind’s eye as it was my first experience with a tense moment and someone who was completely despondent.”
As to the conclusion of the encounter, Lancaster struggles to recall what exactly occurred:
“I don’t exactly remember how the situation resolved itself and my mother has never talked about it. The bridge is low enough that you would probably survive the fall, but this transpired during the spring runoff when the river is at its highest peak. The chances of making it to shore when the waters are that swift would be slim.”
“Hometown” was recorded by James Bethell and mixed by Jordan Koop (Orville Peck, Wolf Parade). “Dusk Cam Early” acts as an epilogue to the “Hometowns”, and features a rare, Jordan Koop appearance on piano.
The two-track effort will be released digitally via Factotum CO on March 27th, with Lancaster’s debut full-length expected in November. Jordan Koop will be mixing the album that will feature Matt Kelly (City and Colour - pedal steel/keyboards) and Graham Jones (Yukon Blonde - drums).