Ben Caplan And The Casual Smokers

     Ben Caplan & The Casual Smokers have been on the Halifax scene for over three years, but only recently have they begun to explode, attracting ever more attention from the media and music lovers. For a long time, the band's lineup was a constant revolving door as musician after musician lent their talents to the project. In September 2009, the band nailed down its powerful permanent lineup and the whole city is starting to notice.      With th...

     Ben Caplan & The Casual Smokers have been on the Halifax scene for over three years, but only recently have they begun to explode, attracting ever more attention from the media and music lovers. For a long time, the band's lineup was a constant revolving door as musician after musician lent their talents to the project. In September 2009, the band nailed down its powerful permanent lineup and the whole city is starting to notice.      With the sexy and poised classical violinist Signe Bone, and the bluesy sax and flute player Neal Read, the melodies and harmonies soar. Cellist Emma Morgan-Thorp beautifully rounds out the sound while Asher Nehring holds things down and spices things up on the upright bass. The drummer, Matt Gallant, is one of the cities premier percussionists and can be seen at every show making rhythmic love to his drum kit.      And then there is Ben Caplan. The big bearded minstrel plays guitar, banjo, melodica and piano and sings out with a voice like no other. His singing has been compared to everything from Tom Waits to Freddy Mercury. Backed by his stellar band, the man puts on a performance that is not to be missed.       The songs above are from several different recording sessions. The top three songs, Stranger, Conduit, and Beautiful were recorded live in the chapel at the University of King's College on February 28th, 2010 with recording engineer Evan Cox and assistant Adam Pye. They were recorded in preparation for some grant proposals with eyes on a studio album.      The next tunes down, Ride On, Seed of Love, and Southbound, are live recordings from a show on November 28, 2008 at the chapel at the University of King’s College in Halifax. They were recorded with an earlier manifestation of the casual smokers. These tracks, along with four others, are featured on the limited release live EP that was released in August of 2009.       The last two tracks, which are arguably more Uvenburd songs than Casual Smokers songs, are Student Song and Sorry That It's Over which come from a session recorded in a Hamilton Ontario basement in 2007 with some help from Joe Girard on piano and organ and Aaron Goldstein on drums, bass, lead guitar and pedal steel. What People Have Said About Ben Caplan: Bryan Acker, Herohill.com"Caplan and his talented band - The Casual Smokers - will undoubtedly garner review after review build around on his voice, but even when they deliver the roughtest of bar room stomps, there is a surprising depth and musicianship to the songs... Caplan and the Casual Smokers stand out from the masses influenced by the same sounds."Craig Norris, Host CBC Radio 3: "I really like your stuff. And now I want everyone out there to hear your stuff… it’s kind of rough around the edges, has a real sort of bar room, salooney, Tom Waits vibe to it; wicked playing, and great delivery. I cannot wait until the full length real record comes out." Amelia Curran, Singer-Songwriter: "He's like Freddy Mercury meets Mr. Bungle" Peter Katz, Singer-Songwriter: "More like Freddy Mercury meets God!" Paul Cram, Bandleader, Producer, Improviser, Musician: I played with Ben Caplan and the Casual Smokers the other night and It was great fun. I love the energy of their minor slinky music, cause it's bendable and makes you wanna wail.. It was also a nice surprise to play with a "horn section" improvising around arrangements for violin, Cello and winds on solid songwriting that could take the punishment and throw it back: Klezmer/Torch Balkan Jazz/Folk/...anyone? Joe Bigda-Peyton, Psychology Major: Although still able to recognize fear-evoking facial expressions, there is a clear indication that Ben Caplan has experienced some damage to his anterior and possibly even posterior amygdale. Joe Girard, Expert: "The music of Ben Caplan is the cure for diarrhea, malaria, and malignant ennui! Third world nation's rejoice!" Ben Caplan & The Casual Smokers On Facebook With the sexy and poised classical violinist Signe Bone, and the bluesy sax and flute player Neal Read, the melodies and harmonies soar. Cellist Emma Morgan-Thorp beautifully rounds out the sound while Asher Nehring holds things down and spices things up on the upright bass. The drummer, Matt Gallant, is one of the cities premier percussionists and can be seen at every show making rhythmic love to his drum kit. And then there is Ben Caplan. The big bearded minstrel plays guitar, banjo, melodica and piano and sings out with a voice like no other. His singing has been compared to everything from Tom Waits to Freddy Mercury. Backed by his stellar band, the man puts on a performance that is not to be missed. The songs above are from several different recording sessions. The top three songs, Stranger, Conduit, and Beautiful were recorded live in the chapel at the University of King's College on February 28th, 2010 with recording engineer Evan Cox and assistant Adam Pye. They were recorded in preparation for some grant proposals with eyes on a studio album. The next tunes down, Ride On, Seed of Love, and Southbound, are live recordings from a show on November 28, 2008 at the chapel at the University of King’s College in Halifax. They were recorded with an earlier manifestation of the casual smokers. These tracks, along with four others, are featured on the limited release live EP that was released in August of 2009. The last two tracks, which are arguably more Uvenburd songs than Casual Smokers songs, are Student Song and Sorry That It's Over which come from a session recorded in a Hamilton Ontario basement in 2007 with some help from Joe Girard on piano and organ and Aaron Goldstein on drums, bass, lead guitar and pedal steel. What People Have Said About Ben Caplan: Bryan Acker, Herohill.com "Caplan and his talented band - The Casual Smokers - will undoubtedly garner review after review build around on his voice, but even when they deliver the roughtest of bar room stomps, there is a surprising depth and musicianship to the songs... Caplan and the Casual Smokers stand out from the masses influenced by the same sounds." Craig Norris, Host CBC Radio 3: "I really like your stuff. And now I want everyone out there to hear your stuff… it’s kind of rough around the edges, has a real sort of bar room, salooney, Tom Waits vibe to it; wicked playing, and great delivery. I cannot wait until the full length real record comes out." Amelia Curran, Singer-Songwriter: "He's like Freddy Mercury meets Mr. Bungle" Peter Katz, Singer-Songwriter: "More like Freddy Mercury meets God!" Paul Cram, Bandleader, Producer, Improviser, Musician: I played with Ben Caplan and the Casual Smokers the other night and It was great fun. I love the energy of their minor slinky music, cause it's bendable and makes you wanna wail.. It was also a nice surprise to play with a "horn section" improvising around arrangements for violin, Cello and winds on solid songwriting that could take the punishment and throw it back: Klezmer/Torch Balkan Jazz/Folk/...anyone? Joe Bigda-Peyton, Psychology Major: Although still able to recognize fear-evoking facial expressions, there is a clear indication that Ben Caplan has experienced some damage to his anterior and possibly even posterior amygdale. Joe Girard, Expert: "The music of Ben Caplan is the cure for diarrhea, malaria, and malignant ennui! Third world nation's rejoice!"