It's been an eight-year labour of love, but today Nathan Lawr's latest solo album Apocalypse Marshmallow has arrived on all digital platforms and Bandcamp. Listeners have been able to preview its diverse range of material over the past several months with the singles "Restless," "Terminal Love" and the title track.
Nathan Lawr is one of the unsung heroes of the Canadian indie rock renaissance, having served as the drummer-of-choice for artists including Feist and FemBots, while also being a key collaborator in the 1990s Guelph, Ontario scene that spawned Constantines, Jim Guthrie, Royal City and Sea Snakes.
In 2000, Lawr began releasing acclaimed albums of self-penned folk songs, but made a dramatic turn a decade later in forming Minotaurs, a politically-charged, Afrobeat-inspired group that on any given night numbered eight to 10 players on stage. It was an intense period for Lawr that found him taking on the roles of bandleader and producer, and although Minotaurs continue to be a going concern—the band released its latest album Higher Power in March 2020—the urge to establish himself as a more traditional singer-songwriter never faded.
It’s resulted in Apocalypse Marshmallow, Lawr’s first solo album since 2013’s Chance Encounter—eight songs that were truly eight years in the making. “From the time I started piecing these songs together, I knew I wanted to make something of a classic rock album, something completely different from the Minotaurs’s experimentation,” Lawr says. “I wanted the sound to be more jammy and psychedelic, something that had the long-form groove explorations of Minotaurs but with more structure and hooks. At the same time, I was busy with so many other things, so in order to have this album turn out the way I wanted, I really had to let it breathe.”
To see an artist reach this point of self-actualization—no matter how long it’s taken—is always a remarkable thing to behold, and Nathan Lawr’s Apocalypse Marshmallow deserves to be regarded as the beginning of a new chapter in his career. Like so many other members of his generation of indie rock lifers, Nathan Lawr’s best work is just starting to be revealed.
credits
released July 9, 2021
Produced, written, and edited by Nathan Lawr
Passing Train produced by Thomas Hammerton with Nathan Lawr
Grass Keeps Growing and Wandering Eyes produced by Dave McKinnon with Nathan Lawr
Engineered, Mixed and Mastered by Andy Magoffin.
Additional Engineering by Nathan Lawr, Aaron Goldstein, Andy Magoffin, Dave McKinnon, Dave Merritt, Thomas Hammerton, Ryan Carley, Misha Bower, Will Kidman, Matt Monoogian, Nick Zubeck and Jeff McMurrich.
Performed by:
Nathan Lawr: drums, acoustic guitar, percussion, vocals
Thomas Hammerton: piano, synths
Anna Ruddick: bass (Apocalypse Marshmallow, Restless, Terminal Love, Shakey Hands)
Aaron Goldstein: electric guitar (Apocalypse Marshmallow)
Nick Zubeck: electric guitar (Restless, Shakey Hands)
Will Kidman: electric guitar (Half the Time, Terminal Love)
Dave McKinnon: piano, acoustic guitar, bass, piano, percussion, melodica, ukulele (Grass Keeps Growing, Half the Time, Wandering Eyes)
Misha Bower: vocals (Terminal Love, Wandering Eyes)
Dave Merritt: vocals, electric guitar (Apocalypse Marshmallow, Half the Time, Terminal Love)
Dan Gooch: trumpet (Half the Time)
Ben Grossman: percussion (Passing Train)
Matt Monoogian: vocals (Shakey Hands)
Nathan Lawr is one of the unsung heroes of the Canadian indie rock renaissance, having served as the drummer-of-choice for
artists including Feist and FemBots, while also being a key collaborator in the 1990s Guelph, Ontario scene that spawned Constantines, Jim Guthrie, Royal City and Sea Snakes....more
supported by 8 fans who also own “Apocalypse Marshmallow”
Minus the penultimate track, which might get better on relistens, Higher Power is an absolute thrill ride from start to finish. This is the best that Minotaurs' wind-heavy sound has ever been, and it's for that reason that this criminally overlooked album deserves your attention. onionBoy_btwihateonions
supported by 4 fans who also own “Apocalypse Marshmallow”
Master of melodies, casually deft at strumming that guitar, thoughtful, poetic; this album has everything you ever came to love about Sarah Harmer.
A Beautiful Voice with a beautiful voice and I'm so glad to hear it singing again! A
Buoyant songs that summon the spirit of New Orleans, with beautifully bleary brass, light up the latest from Annabelle Chvostek Bandcamp New & Notable Mar 27, 2021