by Barry Newman
Copyright 2002 - Cosmic Debris Musicians Magazine - #78 - June/02
A giant of a Canadian artist is fine-tuning his next recording
project here on the West Coast
this summer.
Over the past few years,
Ryan McMahon has been
writing in relative obscurity on a
beach near Ladysmith,
occasionally treating nearby
Nanaimo to lounge acts or
concerts with his acoustic duo
or with his four-piece band with
guitarist Brad Looyen, under
the banner of 'Citizen Strange'.
Last year, after the release of
Citizen Strange's formidable first
CD 'Sleepness Night', the buzz
gradually got bigger... and more
doors got busted down.
A larger, touristy-type
township to the south - from
where crucial cultural &
economic decrees affect the
fate of serfs from Sooke to
Sointula - even got to hear this
artist on a couple of occasions,
thanks in large part to a cell of
well-informed Al Caiola operatives at
a clandestine radio station in Victoria.
At risk of being swarmed by a
gaggle of civil servants, kabuki repair
gangs and taser-brandishing customs
occifers, 100.3 The Q's Rick Everett
proclaimed 'Sleepless Nights' to be:
"one of the finest first efforts the
station's ever heard". And by getting
Citizen Strange onto this year's
ROCKTORIA project, Rick probably
waived all subsequent WCB claims
incurred by frenzied Furtado fans in
the process.
Earlier this year, Georgia Straight
called Citizen Strange one of the top 8
acts to see at NewMusicWest.
Ryan McMahon doesn't quite fit the
stereotype image of a rock star who
has muscled-in on a million models...
or a scarfaced poet who saw fire n'
rain for 40 years and took to diet lysol
& crack-ASA. Frank Zappa warned
about the image thing, after music
videos stampeded onto mainstage
during the early 80's.
When it comes to outright rock,
McMahon's vocal delivery matches all
known rock gods... with the exception
mayhaps, of the nastily-node-gnashed
crooner from AC/DC.
Ryan's vocal range, inflection and
balance of rasp & clarity, capture and
project both the melodic and edge-driven sides of his mature writing
style. His lyrics provide the listener
with room to conjure & conject without
wanting to eject from the riveting roller
coaster... as evident in 'Dear Maria',
from 'Sleepless Night': "I have driven down I-5 to find a
guarantee and a sleepless night, to
see california's coast recline... even
eureka in disguise might be nice... i
suspect that you'll make progress
confused, or dumb, maybe
embarassed, no counterpart by your
breast through all the routine and
through all the habit, DEAR MARIA...
the rhythm of your listening ear
scarred by hearing me for over a year
benevolent and i'm sorry my dear as
you read this, i drive and i steer... i'll
watch Hollywood bend to it's knees
and spread it's art to the other cities
not that it's ill in controversy, but i'll
place my vote in for placticity DEAR
MARIA...it's hard to see you... it's hard
to be here"
Ryan describes the lyrics, "about a
gutless fella who's had enough of his
current situation in life and decides to
just up-and-leave one morning. His
girl, Maria, will receive a letter when
she arrives home from
work in the afternoon.
Only the song is based on
a dream... the fella never
actually leaves... only
writes down the things
that he'd be doing if he
weren't stuck in
nowheresville... kind of
like myself sometimes...
only I'd like to think I'd
take a few more risks."
Musically, McMahon's
material on 'Sleepless
Night' wanders the vast
soundscape between The
Hip, The Cult and a
health spa frequented by
Jim Morrison.
The diverse talents of
guitarist Brad Looyen,
bassist Ken Scardina
and drummer Billy
Hicks, combined with the
mix, engineering &
production wizardry of
Rick Salt at Island Pacific Studios
resulted in a ballsy, hard-driving rock
record, embellished with spacey,
harmony-filled bridges.
"Billy Hicks injected a phenomenal
amount of input", added Ryan.
This summer, McMahon is recording
a 6 or 7 song EP at Baker Street
Studio in Vancouver; with Paul Baker,
Hamish Thomson, Tom Dowding,
Mike Rogerson on lead guitar... and
probably Doug Elliot & Pat Steward.
A notable aspect of Ryan's writing is
that most of his material is geared for
both rock & acoustic performances.
Vocal harmonies are a big part of
either presentation.
"The new project will feature more
acoustic instruments," says McMahon.
As yet untitled, it will be released this
winter. Some sample lyrics: "you don't want to kiss me
you only want to frame me
and mount me and stuff me
and put me on your wall
a conversation piece
i'll be destined to be listening
to the conversations of you all"
Ryan cites many influences.
"I think a lot of Gordon Downie's
lyrical work... he's someone in the biz
whom I'd really like to meet. I'd like to
carry myself with as much intelligence
and integrity as he does... even if that
sounds like a complete pipe dream. "Tom Waits is an incredibly-gifted
storyteller... with many incredible
stories to tell.
"Everyone from my generation digs
Pearl Jam; it goes without saying.
Eddie Vedder has stayed alive long
enough to continue singing about what
he loves, and with conviction.
"I like anyone who performs with
passion and means what they say. I
think the audience and most of the
record-buying public knows when an
artist is bullshitting.
Ryan added, "Seeing a BB
King performance in '95 had a
big impact on me. His rappore
with the audience was
amazing!"
Indeed, Ryan's own rappore &
wit at a show can be quite
captivating. While snapping
photos at a recent Citizen
Strange acoustic concert, I
watched a lost soul who had
obviously wandered into the
wrong venue, requesting
Johnny Cash tunes. Ryan's
response to the gal was honest
and polite, yet also subtly-amusing to both fans & staff... a
fine balance of wit & wisdom
which few young entertainers
possess (Dave Gogo also has
this gift).
Via a few last-minute emails,
Ryan and I exchanged some
extra "question & answer" things
for this article:
BN: What would you say to Jim
Morrison if you ran into him at
some sleazy bar?
RM: If I met Jim Morrison in a
bar, I would first say thanks for
being a crazy brilliant dude, then
follow up with "I'll buy you a
drink if you make sure that
John, Robbie & Ray never play with
those fuckers from Creed again...
they're pissing all over the legacy."
BN: Any advice for other readers who
sing, on how to prepare for a concert
... meals, drinks, etc?
RM: Before most shows, I have water
& a very light dinner. No caffeine, no
beers, no whiskey... I sometimes just
guage it on how I feel... but you can
never go wrong with water.
BN: Any beefs about the Vancouver
Island music scene?
RM: That's tough. It's been really good
to me. I've had a lot of cool people
nurture me along the way; ever since
I was sixteen. More live venues. We
need more venues for independent,
original artists. Cover bands are great,
but it's always nice to stumble into a
packed club and discover some new
pearl just waiting to be pryed from it's
shell by some A&R dude.
BN: What's around the corner?
RM: Expect a new band to re-surface
around September. In the meantime,
the ROCKTORIA Concert Under The
Stars at Centennial Square for 100.3
the Q on July 28.
BN: If you won a huge lottery?
RM: I guess I'd buy a house, fix up my
own career, start a record company
with some friends... we'd have some
weird artists on that label.
A giant of a Canadian artist is fine-tuning his next recording
project here on the West Coast
this summer.