Shotgun Wedding

Country of origin:

U.S.

Type of music generally:

mainstream pop/alternative pop

Status:

Most recent release, a big world of fun (1998)

See also:

Lynn Canfield's site

The Ectophiles' Guide entries for Area and The Moon Seven Times, bands which members of this band have belonged to.

Comparisons:

A more mainstream pop The Moon Seven Times

Covers/own material:

Own

General comments:

Lynn Canfield's various projects are quintessentially ecto.
     After Area broke up, ectophiles were ecstatic to find that Lynn had re-teamed with Area member Henry Frayne to create The Moon Seven Times, which at first seemed sort of like Area with a traditional bass 'n drums rock and roll rhythm section instead of a cheesy drum machine. But through their 3 albums, The Moon Seven Times distinguished themselves from Area, an evolution which culminated with their release Sunburnt—smokier, jazzier, and wonderfully new and different, while maintaining the qualities that made Area so great—Henry's atmospheric guitar noodlings and Lynn's dreamy, ethereal vocals and lyrics.
     At some point, Lynn started working with fellow The Moon Seven Times member and co-songwriter, Brendan Gamble on a side project, which eventually turned into Shotgun Wedding, featuring yet another The Moon Seven Times member, Todd Fletcher. (burka@jeffrey.net)

Recommended first album:

a big world of fun only album to date

Recordings:

a big world of fun (1998)

a big world of fun

Release info:

1998—Whiner Brother (self-released)

Availability:

See Lynn Canfield's site

Ecto priority:

Recommended for fans of alternative pop and/or for fans of the band members' previous projects Area and The Moon Seven Times

Group members:

Lynn Canfield—vocals, Wurlitzer, Rhodes, subsonic bass, blox, piano
Brendan gamble—drums, bass, guitars, Rhodes, Marimba, backing vocals, percussion, organ, Mellotron, triangle, toys, Hammond organ, mutron bass, e-bow, keyboards, melodica, vibes
Brian Wilkie—guitars, upright bass, clavinet, pedal steel
Rob Arrol—bass
Todd Fletcher—piano, organ, tube Wurlitzer, Hammond organ

Guest artists:

Neal Robinson—concertina
TJ Harrison—upright
John Tubbs—bass
Jesse Brown—piano
Jay Benet—Hammond
Bill Herriot—tenor saxophone

Produced by:

Brendan Gamble with Lynn Canfield and Jonathan Pines

Comments:

I think "fun" is the perfect way to describe this album. I actually hadn't expected to enjoy this one as much as I do, but if you're someone who prefers the later The Moon Seven Times material to their first album you should probably give this one a try. (mcurry@io.com)

A Big World of Fun has perhaps a bit more of a pop sensibility to it than the band members' previous work, but it's not any pop I'd expect to hear on the radio. It's jazzy, playful and low-key, swirling with vintage hammond and wurlitzer organs, concertina and melodica. Lynn's vocals are as beautiful as always, and her lyrics morbid and bizarre (witness the first track, "Shotgun," about some highschool kids who cut class and then died in an auto accident—"Give me something to remember you by, a bit of hair or dreamy eye." Kind of just makes you go "ewwww!" But then, is it any surprise coming from the pen that also wrote, "In a field of high corn / crows are waiting for roadkill / I know a man / who says that's just a reflection / of our own predatory selves"). Other subjects range from the plight of a cat not allowed to venture outdoors to love, death, monday mornings, and vacations....
     Despite Lynn's dreamy vocals, this isn't really an ethereal album the way, say Area's work was. But it's an awful lot of fun to listen to.
     I adore this...but not nearly as much as I would if Lynn and Brendan's previous release, whilst still in The Moon Seven Times, hadn't been Sunburnt, because while A Big World of Fun has great moments, it's not nearly so perfect. Just...good. (burka@jeffrey.net)

Well, I can't say that I like this as much as The Moon Seven Times' recordings—Henry Frayne's absence takes much of the individual atmosphere out of this, but I do love Lynn Canfield's vocals. This is even farther toward mainstream pop than The Moon Seven Times' last album, but still remains individual. (Neile)

Further info:

Write: P.O. Box 4041, Urbana IL 61803, email: bgamble@prairienet.org, canrain1@aol.com, shotgunwedding@prairienet.org