Chet

Chet's lead vocalist, Ryan Beattie, has managed to perfect that classic blue-collar, contemporary folk voice. It's masculine but unpredictable, traditional yet uniquely poignant and vaguely reminiscent of Samamidon, but colder. Based out of Victoria, BC, Chet are super-talented and Beattie's vocal mastery stems from the fact that his band's new album, Chelsea Silver, Please Come Home, is their fourth full-length release in seven years. With that in mind, it's astonishing that the band have managed to slip under Canada's musical radar for so long, because their album is 41 minutes of mischievous, well-written bliss. Chelsea is arbitrarily interspersed with heavily distorted experimental peaks where the listener is thrown into a cyclone filled with unprocessed guitar and bass drum. Further, the band's brilliant combination of poetic song titles and medieval-influenced album art shows that Chet are indie veterans with a strong hold on their musical identity. Chelsea Silver, Please Come Home is a work of country folk gold from well-read musicians that have managed to evoke a humble turn-of-the-century quality in their music without feeling like they try too hard. Still, I suspect that at least one member of this band has a moustache.