FabricationsHQ - Putting the Words to the Music
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    • The Wilson Brothers - Backstage at the Green, Kinross
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  • Selected 2021 Gig Reviews...
    • Sweet - The Garage, Glasgow
    • The Damn Truth - Now Or Nowhere Record Release Experiment Live
    • Anchor Lane - Lockdown Live, DreadnoughtRock, Bathgate
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  • Selected 2020 Gig Reviews...
    • Jared James Nichols - Garage G2, Glasgow
    • Oscar Cordoba Band - Blue Arrow, Glasgow
    • Rebecca Downes Band - The Ice Box, Glasgow
    • Ben Poole Trio - Room 2, Glasgow
    • Sensational Alex Harvey Experience - DreadnoughtRock, Bathgate
    • The Aristocrats - Liquid Rooms, Edinburgh
    • Fat Suit - Drygate, Glasgow
    • Francis Dunnery's It Bites - St Lukes, Glasgow
  • Selected 2019 Gig Reviews...
    • WinterStorm Rock Weekender IV - Troon
    • Hawkwind - 02 Academy, Glasgow
    • Opeth - SWG3 Galvanizers, Glasgow
    • Félix Rabin - Nice 'N' Sleazy Glasgow
    • Anchor Lane - G2, Glasgow
    • Stray - Backstage at the Green, Kinross
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    • Talon - Pavilion Theatre, Glasgow
    • Lifesigns - Smiles of Musical Travel
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  • Muirsical Conversations...
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  • FabricationsHQ Q&As With...
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Chantel McGregor – Shed Sessions Volume One & Volume Two
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With the Shed Sessions, singer-guitarist Chantel McGregor joins the ranks of the many who used the pandemic lockdowns to their best musical advantage (in McGregor’s case via one hour live stream sessions between spring and early summer of 2020).

Chantel McGregor is best known for her weightier, progressively tinged-blues rock; particularly in the live environment where she and her band conjure up an impressive semi-improvised moment or three.

But the reality is, as many of her fans know, Miss McGregor is equally comfortable (and captivating) in acoustic/solo mode, delivering an incredibly wide ranging and reinterpreted selection of covers, from classic pop to heavy metal.
(This is a musician who, not too many years ago, was likely to "open" for herself with an on-the-fly set of Stevie Nicks numbers – and indeed did).

So, what we have here ladies and gentle acoustic (Volume One) and piano backed (Volume Two) folks, is a selection of covers originally performed by Chantel McGregor on those weekly livestream Shed Sessions, sprinkled with a number of songs requested by fans plus some of the musician’s personal favourites.

While there are no solo songs from the aforementioned Stevie Nicks here (the Nicks-penned Mac classics 'Gold Dust Woman' and the beautiful 'Landslide' make an appearance however) just about every other influential artist in Chantel McGregor’s multi-faceted DNA is "covered."

The vocal & acoustic guitar Volume One opens with a delicate rendition of the 'The Needle and the Damage Done,' with simple but nicely phrased vocals that help enforce the lyrical message of the Neil Young classic.
Another winner is Peter Gabriel’s heavy pop & rock hit 'SledgeHammer,' which works surprisingly well in its stripped back clothing (having a lovely voice to accompany the acoustic refrain helps, of course).

Other highlights across the 13 track Volume One include John Prine’s 'Angel From Montgomery,' James Taylor’s folk-pop classic 'Fire and Rain,' 'Voodoo Chile' (the chunkier acoustic chords bring a country-blues vibe to the Hendrix classic) and 'Nothing Else Matters,' which exchanges its Metallica skin for more plaintive, folk clothing.

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Shed Sessions Volume Two features an even more eclectic choice of covers (from Radiohead and Steven Wilson to Alanis Morissette and Gershwin) plus a couple of originals.

Song diverse as Volume Two is, there’s a cohesiveness throughout, due in no small part to the piano backed arrangements, Chantel McGregor’s lovely (sometimes sweet, sometimes sensitive) vocals and, on a couple of the numbers, McGregor’s electric guitar prowess.

From Radiohead’s 'Creep' (which works superbly well in its fully McGregorised vocal & piano form) and Jewel’s 'Foolish Games,' to Steven Wilson’s deeply moving 'Drive Home' (featuring some strikingly emotive lead guitar work) and a woozy, soul jazz rendition of the Gershwin classic 'Summertime' (complete with complementary sweet-noted guitar solo) Shed Sessions Volume Two is a stand-out, lockdown, ten track winner.   
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Chantel McGregor’s long-form songs, the progressive 'Walk On Land' and semi-improvised live instrumental 'April,' also work well in their more stripped back form; the latter plays host to a truly striking and fully unfettered solo from Chantel McGregor, backed only by synth wash and piano.

Other gems include Alanis Morissette’s darkly delicious 'Uninvited' (here without the fuller scope but with some decidedly sinister and screaming-from-within guitar remarks) and second Steven Wilson number, the reflective and haunting tones of 'The Raven That Refused to Sing.' 

It’s not just the songs and the performances that make these Chantel McGregor sessions such wonderful listening experiences; it’s the sound.
There’s a beautiful warmth and intimacy (as befits the performances) applied to both volumes, which is all the more remarkable when you consider we’re talking bedroom recordings with a wardrobe used as a vocal booth (yes, really).

The reason the Shed Sessions sound like professional studio room recordings (or fully mic’d up intimate stage performances, sans audience) is courtesy of Wayne Proctor and his House of Tone touches (mixing & mastering).
The subtly reverbed sound applied to the piano and vocals on Volume 2, where both voice and instrument have just enough echo to fill out the sound without losing any intimacy, is a particularly impressive sonic touch.

Shed Sessions perhaps, but High Quality Performances
– from a top-notch musician.

Ross Muir
FabricationsHQ

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