BY LANA MICHELIN
ADVOCATE STAFF
A poverty-stricken Mexican woman and an out-of-control girl-band member are some of the personalities that populate Sam Weber’s new album, Valentina Nevada.
The Victoria-based singer/songwriter, who performs with his band on Sunday, Nov. 6, at Bo’s Bar and Grill in Red Deer, has been putting himself inside the heads of various characters who now have title roles on his second CD.
The track Valentina was composed while Weber was in Mexico last year for a cousin’s wedding.
While driving from the resort where he was staying to some Mayan ruins, Weber was struck by the poor living conditions of many Mexicans, compared to his luxurious tourist accommodations.
“I was thinking of traits like ‘struggle’ and ‘injustice,’” he recalled, and soon an image of a woman began forming in his mind. This figment, Valentina, appeared to be “a good person, but in spite of doing all the right things, the odds keep piling up against her.”
Although Weber isn’t normally a speedy songwriter, he said, “I had all the verses done on the way back.” And Valentina stayed in his thoughts; Weber wrote a companion song Faith No More, which is told from an alternate perspective on the album.
Another song, Charlotte, was inspired by a real-life female musician he will not name. He explained that he’s crossed paths with this performer on the road, and views her as something of a cautionary tale: “She tends to indulge, and it catches up with her.”
Members of the Victoria all-women band Fox Glove, whom Weber describes as very professional, in-control and “powerhouse” performers, are featured in the music video — acting like they’re going off the rails to illustrate the song.
Weber understands the temptations faced by every musician who travels away from home and plays for strangers. “You’re out there every night and you can be whoever you want to be.” If a stage persona is an over-confident, over-indulgent one, Weber feels a performer’s real personality can get lost in this fiction.
He aims to walk the line, saying “I’ve seen people who have not checked their behaviour, and their work suffers. They tend to lose sight of what’s good.”
The 23-year-old, who previously released the album Shadows in the Road, has been a professional musician since he was 18 — which is ironic, considering he originally hated practising and even quit playing the piano for a period because he wasn’t great at reading music.
But Weber eventually followed in the footsteps of his dad, who played in a number of bands when he was young, and started learning the guitar and writing songs.
While he’s been across the country several times, Weber said shows at Bo’s are among the ones he most looks forward to. “Honestly, I tell everybody this, although I don’t know if anyone believes me, but it’s one of the best venues in Canada.”
He will be performing with drummer Marshall Wildman, keyboardist Hugh Mackie and bassist Esme John.
For more information, please call the venue.
lmichelin@www.reddeeradvocate.com