As autobiographical instrumental experiences go, Joseph Shabason’s
The Fellowship starts pretty appropriately. On “Life With My Grandparents”, simple, deliberately paced keyboard chords and highly processed saxophone notes float across a mysterious music bed. But it’s the cassette recording of a child’s voice, weaving in and out of the track, that adds a sonic layer that’s both mysterious and also indicative of the hazy memories of early childhood. With this combination of sounds, the listener is drawn into perhaps the most personal project of Shabason’s so far.
Shabason, a Toronto-based saxophonist, has collaborated with Destroyer, the War on Drugs, the synthpop band DIANA, and countless others. But as a solo artist, he’s no stranger to infusing deep personal experiences into his music. The albums