CORNWALL, Ontario – Cornwall guitar virtuoso Paul Deslauriers believes the title of his band’s newest album speaks for itself – and the Seaway City will be the first place it is played live.
The Paul Deslauriers Band will premier ‘Relentless’ at The Port theatre June 2 (doors open at 7 p.m., tickets $20 in advance, $25 at the door). In an interview the famed bluesman said the title for the new release is all about summing up the last couple of years for PDB, which included a second place finish at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tenn. this winter.
That’s on top of winning the Quebec To Memphis Challenge sponsored by the Montreal Blues Society in October.
Oh yah – all three members of PDB were nominees at the 2015 Maple Blues Awards; DesLauriers for guitarist of the year, Sam Harrisson for drummer of the year and Greg Morency was not only nominated but won the award for bassist of the year.
“The mood and music is reflected that way. It’s a hard driving album,” said Deslauriers, who recently signed the book of recognition at city hall during a council meeting. “It explains everything that has gone on, and our attitude of the last couple of years.”
‘Relentless’ comes at a time when PDB is hitting its stride. Not only have there been accolades from industry experts and fans, but Deslauriers said he is feeling the love in his hometown.
As a consequence, PDB booked The Port to showcase its new material.
“We actually held back to playing in Cornwall for over a year…because I wanted to come back with the new record,” said Deslauriers. “I think it’s a great venue for us. It’s an appropriate venue for us – I probably saw Star Wars there when I was a kid. It holds a lot of cache. It’s just such an iconic place. It’s got a real cool vibe about it.
“There’s room to get up and dance…and you can have a drink. It’s a much more laid back type of venue. It’s a fun place to play.”
‘Relentless’ includes completely original material.
“This is really an effort that was written from scratch,” said Deslauriers. “The fact that we were three guys sitting in the room and writing riffs – you sense that unity between all of us. You get that sense of unity.
“As an artist you can never be 100 per cent sure what you’re creating is going to be accepted. The culminating event for that was the International Blues Challenge. We didn’t try to change because it was a judged event. We just went down trying to be the best Paul Deslauriers Band we could.”
‘Relentless’ will be available for digital download, and on CD, June 3. The first 200 to purchase a ticket for the Cornwall show will receive a sampler of the band’s previous material, and other goodies.
Tickets for the June 2 show are available at Melody Music, St. Lawrence Appliance and The Port box office.
