Charles Spearin

"Happiness is love," so intones Mrs. Morris to open Charles Spearin's Happiness Project. If happiness is love, then Mr. Spearin's happiness and love are intrinsically tied to and embodied through the voice of music. It's a fascinating proposition to build songs around. Spearin conducted interviews with his neighbours on the subject of happiness and then found portions of the conversations ripe with incidental melody to construct full songs around that strive for accessibility despite the inherent experimentation in the concept. Charles uses piano, guitar, bass and/or horns to follow the melodic intervals of the speaker's speech pattern until a loop-worthy hook emerges, which serves as a springboard for the rest of the piece. Happiness is awash in moments fans of Broken Social Scene and Do Make Say Think would be foolish to miss out on because of an aversion to the distinct use of spoken word. It's a heartening topic, broached with compassion, which yields many wise insights and reveals the beautiful and universal musicality of everyday life.