Lorrie Matheson

A long-time staple of the Alberta music scene, Lorrie Matheson spent the '90s playing with indie rockers Fire Engine Red and twang-meets-power-chord outfit National Dust. This decade has seen him striking out alone. Matheson stares down a few personal demons and mixes things up musically on In Vein, making this third album his best solo work yet. There's definitely a rootsy flavour to his latest release but this time Matheson marries his diverse musical inclinations more successfully than ever. From the loping, piano-driven reggae beat and sunny chorus of "Hollow Wind" to the rueful horns of "Down on the Main" to the pure acoustic folk of "Blues From The Register Side," his disregard for genre boundaries takes his songs into unexpected, scalp-tingling territory. With more complex arrangements showcasing his wry lyrics, Matheson's music seeps under the skin and into the bloodstream like slow-release morphine.