There are no limits when it comes to music and what it can create.
Guelph-based band, SHEBAD has announced the forthcoming release of its debut full-length album, Music Is the Answer, on Nov. 1, a project the band said is an ode to music, and the 'guiding force' that has shaped their lives.
"We owe so much to music and what it's created in our lives, how it's formed our relationships, and where it's taken us in this world," said SHEBAD singer Claire Voy.
"We want the album to be an honouring of that connection to music and all of the multifaceted ways that love shows up in our lives."
With jazz and R&B roots, SHEBAD describes it's sound as being multidimensional.
"When you make a piece of art, I feel like there are so many layers. Thinking maybe my expectation was different from the reality, and having to grip with that, at the end, it all comes down to how great the journey is of creating, finishing and completion," Spagnolo said.
Coming off a number of big summer performances including Guelph's Hillside Festival, Mariposa Folk Festival, and Toronto Jazz, SHEBAD has certainly made it's mark in Guelph since 2019, when Voy and Spagnolo first met while studying at the University of Guelph.
During the pandemic, the pair began to write and record in a little house in The Ward.
"I think we always had a hope that it would be this way. When you look around and you see alot of creative people, you have a lot of belief in what's possible, but you never have control. So, you just keep going, knocking on wood, hoping no one loses interest," Spagnolo said.
"I do feel like we always knew that if we could continue, it would continue to fruit amazing things. I didn't know what those amazing things would look like. It's incredible because it all looks better than I could have ever hoped."
Voy has always had a seeded feeling that this is what she and Spagnolo were meant to do.
"I don't know why, but we both just kind of had this steadfast faith in where this was taking us," Voy said.
The new single on the debut album, Black Walnut, is a danceable, jazzy track that began with a simple bassline from Spagnolo, which ignited a spontaneous collaboration with drummer Emmitt Leacock. Voy's vocals, mimick horns and violins, intended to add an extra layer of vibrancy.
Inspired by Spagnolo and keyboardist Emil White's transformative experience beneath one member of the titular tree species, the pair celebrated the release by collecting black walnuts and used them to hand-dye over 100 shirts for fans.
"We just finished the album and we had a little dance party celebration. It feels like a lot of feelings going on at once, but mostly just feeling gratitude for the journey, for all of the people who have been involved in our path so far," Voy said.
"We are anxious in anticipation."
For both Voy and Spagnolo, 'music is the answer and love is the message' SHEBAD hopes to share.
"We have led the project, but everybody involved has their own connection and what it means to them. For me personally, music really is the answer. There's been a lot of family turmoil. My music journey has done things that I just could not have ever done with just words," Spagnolo said.
For Spagnolo, music has helped to heal.
"There's been a lot ot of reconnection with family. Music can help move through blockages. It's something that heals the wounds. To me, when I hear, 'music is the answer', it is the answer to those unsolvable questions. For me, it's family. For others, music just does that magic thing," he said.
Spagnolo teaches at the Guelph Outdoor School, a local non-profit that provides outdoor immersion and mentorship programs for children.
"I don't think we would have made the album nearly the same without being in Guelph. At work, I have the ability to be around kids and a guitar. I write a lot when I'm there," he said.
"At work and in the community, everyone has been championing us and believing in us."
Two other band members, Bridget Walsh and Emmitt Leacock, were born and raised in Guelph.
"They are such incredible musicians. This just deepens that community aspect by having them. Guelph has brought in these multifaceted artists that don't keep themselves in a box. I think that's been big," Spagnolo said.
On Nov 1, Music Is the Answer will be released through Lovetown Records and will be available here.
A release show will be held on Nov. 30 at Royal City Evangelical Missionary Church. Tickets can be purchased here.
Looking back on her musical journey, Voy said she often reflects on her surroundings.
"I ask that question, why am I here? Why am I in this particular place, on this particular land and surrounded by the community that I am in? How can I work with the light inside me and share where I am in life with everyone?" Voy said.
"I have really felt that return from Guelph, from all of the people we have met along the way. There is a certain divine energy to the people we have connected with on this path. It couldn't have been any other way. This is our place."
