Brown dishes some DIRT

It can be tough to form an impression of a person just by talking to him or her on the phone for 30 minutes.

However, Colleen Brown, 29 comes across as the genuine McCoy – a woman with a sunny, breezy outlook on life tempered by self-confidence, a sublime wit and the sense of being in a balanced headspace.

A countdown is on for this charming Edmonton-based songstress. Known throughout the industry for her melodic folk-pop, Brown is releasing her third album at the Arden Theatre on Friday, Oct. 21.

DIRT, a 13-track CD recorded by producer/engineer Ian Martin, is a lush ode inspired by sixties and seventies recordings, a contemporary throwback if you will.

“Half of the concept for DIRT was dishing the dirt, telling secrets. But it was also a search for authenticity and being grounded and finding a peaceful place,” said Brown.

The Lloydminster-raised singer specializes in romantic relationship numbers. Part of the reason she partnered with Martin, (he also produced her second album, Foot in Heart) was to create a well-crafted album.

“I like to listen to an album all the way through and some of the most beautiful albums were produced in the sixties and seventies. Today there’s a lack of that. There are lots of albums, but with many singers you get the sense the craft of putting together an album is not important to them.”

To string the tunes together, Brown has written additional individual narratives that link the lyrical content and illustrate context.

Of Brown’s three albums, DIRT has the biggest sound and on concert night she will be backed by a 10-piece band. In addition to Brown, a core group of Peter Hendrickson (drums), Patrick Michalak (bass), Amy van Keeken (percussion/back-up vocals) and St. Albert’s Stephen Tchir will perform. Add-on musicians include Graham Guest (organ), Moni Mathew (violin), Ian Woodman (viola/cello), Laura Craig (bari/tenor sax) and Greg Hutchinson (trumpet/sax).

“This is the kind of music I want to perform live and I feel those are the kinds of songs that call for big production numbers.”

Her instincts are quite solid. In July, one of the album’s singles, a feisty pop-rock Fight! Fight! Fight! won the New Music West’s Song Search contest. The prize was a cool $20,000.

“I was about $20,000 in the hole with this album so it was really good timing. It was an amazing boost to the project. I had already overspent my budget and it was getting tight and stressful,” she chuckles.

“Fight! was a song that came out in a flurry. I was in a good space. I plucked it from the ether and there it was. In some way, I feel like I was channelling it. And that’s probably my greatest accomplishment – getting out of the way of a song and not forcing it.”

One tune that came naturally is Ignorance Prayer, a song that is closest to her heart.

“It illustrates my personal struggle and the catalyst for DIRT. Once you dig deep and look at your relationships, it’s difficult to go back and pretend everything is fine. You have to deal with how destructive it is. It was my journey and the journey of the album.”

At the concert, Brown will perform her album start to finish. In addition, the audience will receive a linking narrative.

“I want them to experience it with that perspective. There are some big pop songs and some quiet introspective stuff. We had a rehearsal with the strings the other night and it made the hair on my neck stand on end. This album has legs and I’m going to do my best.”