Montreal roots group Sussex launches its third album SHINE Like nothing else you will hear, SHINE is Sussex's third album of genre-defying roots music. Featuring a unique blend of acoustic guitar, vibraphone, pedal steel and upright bass, and two-time CFMA Contemporary Singer of the Year Rob Lutes's soulful vocals on seven well-crafted originals and three gems from the early 20th century, SHINE illuminates a lush sonic landscape with masterful playing and charts an unlikely path right to the heart of American music.
Following on the critically acclaimed Parade Day (2016) and The Ocean Wide (2019), Sussex is back with a new sound that touches into multiple genres and at times conjures the melody-driven sounds of Tin Pan Alley. Lutes, a Kerrville New Folk winner and multiple CFMA and Maple Blues Songwriter of the Year nominee, brings his talents for humour and depth and his knack for seductive melodies to bear on a set of memorable songs that look at everything from backyard maples to ocean journeys to meat preferences, telling stories of real life, family and bittersweet love.
The show will feature Sussex's founders Lutes and Michael Emenau on acoustic guitar and vibraphone, with special guests Morgan Moore (Barr Brothers, Martha Wainwright, Ranee Lee) on upright bass and Kim Deschamps (Blue Rodeo, Cowboy Junkies) on pedal steel.
"...a truly great evening...energy, intricacy, texture, nuance, expressiveness, and power, but all with great subtlety. Suffice to say, a great show."
- Thom Meredith, AD, Sainte-Anne Blues Cafe
"What this eclectic group came up with is a treat. Lutes rose to the occasion with sophisticated songs that make the most of these instrumental colours. They say they were aiming for a sound that incorporated their early jazz and early blues influences and while these are apparent, they’ve quite clearly moved far beyond that. The combination of Lutes’ songs, his strong vocals and the band arrangements makes this an album to watch for when this year’s ‘best of’ lists come out."
- Toronto Blues Society - Maple Blues Magazine
