(PR) The Cricket's Orchestra, the full-length debut album from acclaimed Canadian musician Meaghan Smith, will be released October 6 on Sire Records. This is the follow up to Smith's highly acclaimed 2008 EP The Cricket's Quartet, which The Washington Post declared as "one of the best finds of late '08." The full-length album will be available as a Barnes & Noble exclusive as well as through all digital retailers. In celebration of the release, Smith will perform a special show at Los Angeles' Hotel Cafe on October 5. Please see below for full tour details.
The 11-track album was written in Smith's home of Halifax, Nova Scotia and was recorded in Toronto with help from producer Les Cooper. The child of a piano-teacher mother and a bass-playing father, Smith devoured old musicals and animated films as a child and later fell in love with the jazz and big-band music of the '20s, '30s and '40s. Those early inspirations influenced the material featured on the album, as Smith says, "My music is modern vintage. The record incorporates a lot of instrumentation from older eras in the form of horns, strings and arrangements, but I also love DJs and their turntables." These modern influences are reflected on the record through the use of turntables, omnichords, melotrons and optigons.
Smith has already found success in the area of film and television-her rendition of the Pixies classic "Here Comes Your Man" (co-produced by T Bone Burnett) was recently featured on the acclaimed film (500) Days of Summer and two original songs from the record, "A Piece For You" and "5 More Minutes," have been included in episodes of "One Tree Hill" and "Grey's Anatomy." Additionally, Smith joined legendary singer k.d. lang on the road earlier this year for a series of select dates.
September 29 Hollywood, CA Cranes Hollywood
September 30 Los Angeles, CA Bordello**
October 5 Hollywood, CA Hotel Cafe*
October 6 Hollywood, CA Cranes Hollywood
October 12 Los Angeles, CA Genghis Cohen
October 13 Hollywood, CA Cranes Hollywood
**With Ruby Friendman and Eric Korn
*CD Release Show