Alberta singer-songwriter Leeroy Stagger sets himself free on new track “Deeper Well”, out today. While the tempo is upbeat and breezy, underneath its surface is a story of survival and moving forward. Stagger reflects on his past, declaring in the song’s first verse “I’ve been a fighter all my life.” This strength is present throughout Stagger’s forthcoming album Strange Path due out September 13 via True North Records. Previously, Stagger released Marie Antoinette and The Favourite inspired-video for lead single “Strange Attractor”.
Strange Path is the end result of a triple-album’s worth of scrapped demos, and a spirit-reviving retreat inwards. It’s also Stagger’s most ambitious and philosophical creation yet, a veritable self-help book pulled from a lifetime of struggling towards the light and brimming with the hard-won joy at the heart of his recent renaissance. From the appropriately haunted “Leonard Cohen is Dead” and the cosmic reflections of album-closer “The Light” to the hard-edged stomp of “Jesus and Buddha,” it’s an album of sharp hooks and sharper insights, a statement on loss, forgiveness, pain, faith, The Clash, Gord Downie, love, death, fear, letting go, higher powers, Mother Earth, obsession, redemption, and the path we all walk through life. In support of the record, Stagger will head out on tour throughout North America and internationally. Tour dates listed below + here.
In making Strange Path, Leeroy surrounded himself with some of the best players in the business, including drummer Pete Thomas (Elvis Costello and the Attractions, Elliot Smith, Los Lobos), longtime collaborator Tyson Maiko, Paul Rigby (Neko Case, Garth Hudson, Jakob Dylan), Ryland Moranz and Michael Ayotte. The album was mixed by five time GRAMMY winner Ryan Freeland (Ray LaMontagne, Bonnie Raitt, Rodney Crowell) and Brad Barr of The Barr Brothers shared producer’s chair with Leeroy on four of the eleven tracks.
Leeroy Stagger | Upcoming North American Tour Dates
8/29: Prince Edward Island @ Trailside Cafe
8/30: Halifax, NS @ Halifax Urban Folk Festival
8/3: Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus
9/1: Wentworth-Nord, QC @ Rickks Room
9/4: New York, NY @ The Rockwood
9/5: Marlboro, NY@ The Falcon
9/7: Rhinebeck, NY @ The Barn
9/10: Syracuse, NY @ House Concert
9/11: Burnstown, ON @ Neat Cafe
9/12: Toronto, ON @ The Horseshoe
9/14: Lethbridge, AB @ Coulee Festival
10/13: Los Angeles, CA @ The Mint
10/15: San Francisco, CA @ Hotel Utah
10/16: Sacramento, CA @ Fiest Wines
10/17: Portland, OR @ White Eagle
10/18: Vancouver, BC @ Fox Theatre
10/20: Victoria, BC @ Capitol Theatre
10/21: Parksville, BC @ Bayside Resort