Video Premiere: Smokey AB - "Springtime"

There’s no shortage of country revivalist, acoustic guitar totin’ son of a guns releasing music across Canada these days, but none are quite like Edmonton’s Smokey. There is always something oddly ethereal yet firmly salt-of-the-earth to the songwriter’s work, almost like a railroad worker on a mushroom trip; his newest track “Springtime” is grounded in that vibe, which really can belong to no one but him. We’re excited to premiere that song and it’s accompanying video today, ahead of its release on streaming services later this month.

The song is a meditation on the way we tend to reflect on ourselves when the seasons change, and is a strong contender for Smokey’s best lyric to date. They’re relatively light to start; some setting of the stage, talking about the Spring with a great bouncing rhythm to the words as they flow by. But as the song goes on, it becomes clear that it’s less interested in describing the season than thinking about how the season that is defined by change and rebirth can remind us of all the ways we stay the same while the world changes around us. It’s best summarized by Smokey himself:

This song is a simple admission of what a changing season in a northern city feels like for me. I don’t know if I’m alone in this, it often feels like I am. If the listener can relate, I feel both pity and gratitude for them. If you can’t relate, rejoice! And go enjoy your life somewhere else.

The song was recorded by Chris Dadge at Child Stone Studios in Calgary, and is also one of Smokey’s best sounding recordings to date. You can go drop some cash on the single over on Bandcamp, and check out the music video below.