Provogue Records, a division of Mascot Label Group, is pleased to announce the release of the debut mini album from
No Sinner – an exciting, powerhouse blues rock band from Vancouver, Canada, fronted by vocalist
Colleen Rennison. The debut mini album
"Boo Hoo Hoo" features nine tracks - released in the UK on
Monday 20th January 2014.
Photo Credit: © Mandy Lyn
No Sinner will make their UK live debut on
Monday 25th November 2013 when they perform at
The Black Heart in the heart of London’s Camden Town.
Photo Credit: © Nelson Mouëllic
25-year-old Colleen Rennison is a post modern blues belter and queen
of soul. She’s a hard-singing, hard-loving, hard-drinking,
hard-working throwback to those she grew up listening to - Nina Simone,
Tina Turner, Joe Cocker, Big Mama Thornton, and Bessie Smith.
"People have told me I sound like Janis Joplin since I was five
years old," says the Canadian blues rock vixen. "My mom was a little
wary of introducing me to her at an early age. Maybe she wanted to keep
me away from sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll as long as possible."
If that was the case, her mom failed miserably, because Rennison,
who learned from a cousin that her name was "No Sinner" spelled
backwards, is now the singer of a raucous rock band with guitarist Eric
Campbell, drummer Ian Browne and bassist Bradley Ferguson. In Canada,
the band released their debut album,
Boo Hoo Hoo, which included six tracks from their 2012 EP released on Vancouver indie label First Love Records.
Boo Hoo Hoo travels from the juke-joint jump blues
rockabilly of its title track and the Delta swamp of "Running," with a
chugging Creedence beat, to "Love Is Madness" with a Motown bass line
and a Dusty Springfield "Spooky" vibe.
Boo Hoo Hoo includes a cover of Nina Simone’s version of
Nat Adderley / Oscar Brown Jr.'s "Work Song", the soaring, affirmative
gospel revival of "Rise Up," the sensuous plaint of "If Anything" and
the feedback-charged "Devil on My Back," an original track that features
Black Mountain's Matt Camirand.
Photo Credit: © Nelson Mouëllic
No Sinner’s music is about the clash between the sacred and the
profane, the preacher and the devil, the sins of Saturday night at the
local watering hole being washed away in the redemption of Sunday
morning in church. It’s the contradiction at the heart of rock ’n’
roll.
"It’s a consistent theme in my life to negotiate between being
animals and being righteous," explains Colleen. "We need a healthy dose
of good and evil in our lives. Music is a medium between us and the
spiritual world. Our songs express the gamut from sinful to celestial."
In her hometown of Vancouver, Colleen started writing songs with
Parker Bossley (formerly of Hot Hot Heat) and joined up with future
band members Campbell and Browne, for a weekly Thursday night residency
at Guilt and Company, a new club in Vancouver's Gastown district. "I
honed my chops, my stage confidence, my style and versatility,"
explains Colleen. "I learned to play with other musicians."
Known for performing in a T-shirt and cut-off jean shorts,
Rennison’s larger-than-life, whiskey-swigging, last of the red-hot
blues mamas is no act.
"So much of the music I started listening to as a girl came from
churches and gatherings where people congregated and sang their blues
away," she says.
"It’s a dirty business loving me / It’s going to be hard sometimes,"
she warns on the sultry "If Anything." "That’s a disclaimer for
anyone who wants to get involved with me," laughs Colleen. "I’m warning
you now."
With her in-your-face stage presence and t-shirt and blue jean
shorts, Rennison is an old soul, wiser than her years might suggest. "I
want to bridge the gap between class and trash," she says. "I love the
idea of these women who very much lived in a man’s world, touring on
the road."
Photo Credit: © Nelson Mouëllic
We write whatever comes to us," insists Colleen. "We’re fans of a
variety of different sounds and all kinds of music. We're inspired that
groups like Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, early Kings of Leon and the
White Stripes brought the blues and rock back to basics. We’re into so
many different styles of music that we have the liberty to do what we
please. We really don’t have a formula. We’ve here to make our own
mark."
Photo Credit: © Nelson Mouëllic
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