In the wake of a conversation in the parking lot of the West End Cultural Centre, Winnipeg’s cultural capital, and a receiving a surprise offer 12 hours later of a Western Canadian tour, Emma Cloney and Dale Brown formed The New Customs almost out of necessity. Instantly however, they were struck by how well their diverse musical backgrounds and writing styles meshed together. Songs flowed forth, arrangements fell into place with ease, and their style formed so naturally that it seemed effortless. Hitting the ground running at a breakneck pace, The New Customs had written and released their debut EP (recorded with folk music aficionado Scott Nolan and Juno Award winner Jamie Sitar) and were appearing on festival stages within months of that initial conversation.
In January of 2017, The New Customs decided to challenge themselves; for 4 days in a rented cabin at the Falcon Trails resort in Manitoba’s beautiful Falcon Lake, they recorded the songs they had written and arranged over the previous 9 months as a band. With a clear vision for the sound they wanted and having resolved to embrace their DIY principles, they not only sang and played everything themselves, but also did all the engineering and setup, working long days to achieve their goal. What they ended up with was the 9 song record “All Walls Fall”.
With songs ranging from the spooky and sultry “Leave Me Cold”, to a driving adaptation of the Irish ballad “Stretched Upon Your Grave”, to the uplifting title track “All Walls Fall” written in the wake of the 2016 US election, the album is a testament to both the versatility and the cohesiveness of the duo.
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