Vancouver singer Rachel Ransom releases debut album sixty seven ten

Article content

On her debut album sixty seven ten, Vancouver composer Rachel Ransom lets the music do the talking. The results really sing. The 10-track recording introduces a future Canadian star in the making.

Advanced with the lead single Ballad Queen in March, the album supports the artist’s bio commenting that she is “wishing she was born in the ’70s.”

Article content

Article content

The original material references the raw expression of that decade’s singer-songwriter luminaries such as Carole King, Laura Nyro and Joan Armatrading. This isn’t to say that the sound is museum-worthy. Rather,  the emotional honesty hearkens back to a time when less was more in the production and presentation department.

“Sixty seven ten is actually my parents’ house number and reflects my origins and growing up, so in my mind it is a coming-of-age album of sorts,” said Ransom. “I take it as a massive compliment that people say it sounds like it’s from the ’70s as I’m obsessed with Bob Dylan, Steely Dan, Zeppelin, Billy Joel. Thanks to my parents, I was raised on amazing music.”

Crafted with support from the Vancouver Adapted Music Society, sixty seven ten stands apart from so much music being released. VAMS is an organization co-founded by former Vancouver mayor Sam Sullivan and Dave Symington who are both tetraplegic. The two players formed the band Spinal Chord with guitarist Don Alder and bassist John Shepp as a vehicle to raise awareness of the talents of people with disabilities.

Article content

Article content

Ransom has cerebral palsy and scoliosis, which affects some of her keyboarding technique. She works as a story producer and archive producer for the Hollywood North film and TV industry.

“I’ve been writing songs and plunking on piano for as long as can recall, but the turning point was when I got involved with performing with VAMS in 2018 and met Bryden (Veinot), who started prying about recording my stuff,” said Ransom. “I didn’t think I was that good, or in any way ready. But after a particularly fun show, I conceded and said ‘let’s do this’.”

Bryden Veinot is the VAMS program co-ordinator and helps introduce people with disabilities to the wonderful world of music through support programs at all levels. Veinot and VAMS program assistant Noah Stolte helmed the recording and production of sixty seven ten.

More than 100 people go through the VAMS studio each year. The Re-Imagine Radio podcast on SoundCloud and a virtual concert series on VAMS’ YouTube channel and social media further showcase talented participants. There have been a number of albums from VAMS-affiliated artists, including soundscapist sylvi macCormac, Rolf Kempf whose song Hello, hurrah was an international hit for Judy Collins, Alice Cooper and others.

Article content

Veinot, Stolte and Ransom worked on the album for a year.

“I’ve been with the society for about two-and-a-half years and this is the first time we’ve done a bigger scale production with live instruments, as most of the other projects were more out-of-the-box things we could program on our own,” said Veinot. “Sometimes, our clients aren’t able to play instruments, so we will go with something more directly digital. That has been incredibly rewarding, but pivoting to a more traditional live sound for sixty seven ten put some of my schooling in sound design to work, which was so fun.”

Ransom notes that the creative process involved crafting basic bed tracks and then collaborating on embellishing the full band elements on the final recordings. With a catalogue that goes as far back as the gorgeous Misty Morning (Bassa’s Song), penned at age 14, to more recent pieces such as Fly, Bug and Red, Ransom the record does indeed cover a lot of history. Sifting through which songs would tell the story was one of the toughest tasks.

Article content

“There are a million people out there trying to make music today, then you throw on the fact that I am a disabled artist who is crippled and the window of opportunity gets a lot smaller,” said Ransom. “VAMS and the encouragement that the people here have given me enabled this to happen and got me past that feeling that I wasn’t talented enough to take this to the next level. The way you leave all disability at the door when you enter into the VAMS studio is incredibly liberating.”

That liberation can be heard on all of sixty seven ten’s tunes.

Some producers would push for dogmatic devotion to music conventions, but the recording benefits by incorporating how Ransom’s playing reflects using only six fingers to chord. The latest single, Red, is a prime example of this — there is a great deal of space in the melodic progression which ups its affect for the listener. The entire recording packs similar sonic inventions.

Article content

“Obviously, that has so much to do with what Bryden did playing on the track,” she said. “But I also agree that there is a way that I use my voice and my choice of melody as a way to fill in what my keyboarding lacks. It allows me to be a bit jazzier in approach because I have to rely on those melodies and chord choices to fill in what is lacking.”

Once the bones were in place, Ransom says that the once-a-week studio sessions with her, Venoit and Stolte were brainstorming summits where ideas, such as placing horns on Fly, were confirmed.

“The sessions are really for ideas to be fleshed-out and then I take little pieces of time over the next week to incorporate them so they are there when Rachel comes in for the session the following week,” said Venoit. “Every week starts with an update.”

With the music out there now, the next step to consider is presenting it in concert. Ransom says the band is looking at options and to expect something in future. For now, there are Strong X Virtual sessions online and sixty seven ten is there to enjoy.

sderdeyn@postmedia.com

Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add VancouverSun.com and TheProvince.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.

You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber: For just $14 a month, you can get unlimited access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Vancouver Sun | The Province.

Article content