Today, Canadian singer-songwriter Carleigh Aikins shares her long-awaited debut solo album, JUNK JEWELRY, alongside its focus track, "Good Book." The single comes alongside a lyric video designed and edited by Carleigh, with title graphics by Brandyn Aikins and photos by Stefan Foerster.
On the single, Carleigh wrote:
"I wrote 'GOOD BOOK' after exiting a relationship that was torn apart by restrictions, repression, and indoctrination of Christianity imposed upon my partner in their early home-school days. Their upbringing in the Church caused them to suppress their true identity, which manifested in addiction, secrets, and lies.
I was attempting to manage its affects on my life and relationship. It caused me to reflect on my own upbringing in the Catholic School System, my Catholic Guilt, and what actually defines a 'Sinner' or bad person. I, too, was struggling with addiction, but my 'misbehaviour' wasn't deemed by society as 'sinful' as what my partner was secretly getting into But in the bible, there are myriad of ways one could behave to be damned. So, who was the real 'damned' person in this situation anyway?
'I'm not a Sinner, I'm just working on my Halo,' I proclaim.
I'm making mistakes, but I'm not looked upon as a bad person.
'Now you're the Sinner, 'cause the Good Book said so.'
You're breaking the conventional rules, the relationship contracts we made. Hiding who you truly are. So you're worse.
We are all equal parts 'good and bad.' People make mistakes and can also be really good people at the same time. Making missteps and breaking antiquated rules does not mean we should go to hell.
This song was one of the first we laid down for my album Junk Jewelry, at Studio Mixart in Montreal. Producer Marcus Paquin had been sitting with the demo and eventually proclaimed, 'I know what this needs to be. It needs to be a party song.' And so we cracked out the percussion and wailed a bit over the track and it became this raucous jam. It's held together by the rhythmic genius of Evan Tighe, piano plucking by Jay McCarrol and Pietro Amato, and driving bass lines and wailing guitars by Marcus himself (who also engineered); with additional bass from Dave Dalrymple. This one features several layers of my voice and hi-lights my obsession with choral-like backing vocals."
After years of touring and performing on world stages as a supporting band member, or the shiny pretty thing standing in the shadows of prominent artists as a backing vocalist, Carleigh Aikins finally emerges to reveal herself as a true Canadian vocal treasure worthy of the spotlight on her debut solo album JUNK JEWELRY.
Working with producer/engineer/mixer Marcus Paquin (Arcade Fire, The National), as well as Don Kerr (Bahamas, Ron Sexsmith), Evan Tighe (Patrick Watson, La Force, Elisapie), Brad Barr (The Barr Brothers) and an array of Montreal and Toronto’s finest musicians; Aikins offers this eclectic gang of tunes which draw from the varied influences and flavours of rock, soul, and pop found in the many bands Aikins has been a part of in the past.
JUNK JEWELRY offers a landscape of Carleigh’s diverse vocal range and ability- from her tender vibrato to her distinctive and explosive vocal fry. It serves not only as a landmark of her prowess as a backing vocalist (she performs all the countless layers of the BG’s on the album) - but as a powerful front-woman in her own right.
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