Kim Wempe's, "Painting With Tide," by Jaymin Proulx

What kind of sound do you get when a small-town Saskatchewan musician travels fr
om one end of Canada to another? It's a sound that radiates soul, quiet determin
ation and upbeat energy, and Canadian listeners will appreciate her originality
and nationalistic lyrics. Kim Wempe's album Painting With Tides provides a calmi
ng and creative sound that flows well from one song to the next. Wempe is a woma
n that will take folk music to a wider audience, mainly because of her downto- e
arth and mature life philosophy that has led her to where she is now.
Wempe is no rookie. She left her hometown in Saskatchewan, and lived for a brief
period in Alberta, then moved to Nova Scotia in 2007 and found that her life be
gan to piece together. Whether is was the new scenery or acquaintances she met,
inspiration flowed and Painting With Tides was born. Each song on the album is i
nterconnected and brings a fresh folk sound that is gentle to the ears. The firs
t song, Chameleon, is a layer that she peels away to expose herself to the liste
ner. She wanted this song to pack a punch because she "wanted the album to start
boldly," she said. "I think it sets up the album well â it lays out my tenacity but
also my values. Chameleon is way for me to introduce myself to my audience â the fo
undation of me, what I do and what I stand for. The rest of the album takes you
through the layers."
The 11 songs on Painting With Tides range from mellow folk arrangements with a b
lend of acoustic guitar, mandolin and three-part harmonies, to other pieces with
upbeat roots rock fuelled by bold electric guitar and organ. The album's title
song, channels a deeper, darker side of herself with the statement:
"I'll look up instead of starin' at the ground/And until then, I'll try to get s
ome sleep so I can figure this thing out/And until then, I'll put this rage out,
and I'll turn it to ash/And until then, I'll look for colours instead of black.
"
Recorded at the Echo Chamber Studio in Halifax with the engineering skills of Ch
arles Austin, who has worked with the likes of Buck 65, the album features colla
borations with Joel Plaskett, Old Man Luedecke, Thom Swift and Geoff Hilhorst of
the Deep Dark Woods. Her success has also included a stopover at the 2010 Vanco
uver Olympics and Junofest in St. John's, Newfoundland. She has also earned a de
al with the Halifax label and artist management company GroundSwell Music with t
he support and national distribution of Warner Music Canada. Wempe has also shar
ed shows with Jill Barber, Jenn Grant, Amelia Curran, Justin Rutledge, Charlie A
'Court and Coco Love Alcorn.
Though she said, with the wisdom of an older woman, "The idea that by changing m
y view on things and choosing whom I surround myself with, I could become a bett
er person and be happier. We don't really have a lot of control over anything, b
ut this we do. My mom taught me that. It just took me eight years to finally get
what she was talking about."
Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5