4/5: Up-and-coming singer/songwriter T. Nile debuts with a fantastic record, At My Table. It stands out as a mature, heartfelt, and startlingly original performance.
Vancouver-based singer/songwriter, Tamara Nile’s debut record, At My Table, is impressive for reasons almost too numerous to list in a short review.
First of all (and I am not normally such a superficial music critic) she is gorgeous. However, I believe I’m enamored with her physical beauty because it is simply the outward manifestation of a musician of impeccable talent.
On At My Table, Nile plays guitar, mandolin, harmonica, percussion and her signature claw-hammer banjo. She also co-produced the record.
Backed by a fantastic group of players known as The Peals, her songs appear as vast and lush as the river that is her namesake. Collectively, these ten tracks flow smoothly, transferring renewed life and vitality to anything that comes into contact with Nile’s music.
Second, this is not your typical folk or roots record. A diversity of styles inform Nile’s music. Whether it is the reggae-tinted groove “Silently” or the cheery ditty, “Something Better,” which is a love song that unexpectedly recalls Depression-era ballads.
Nile comes from a rich musical background and this pedigree shines through on her rendition of the traditional, “Buddy” as in “Can you spare a dime?” Although many folk music fans will know this song well, Nile takes a traditional song and creates a raw and poignant commentary on the current state of the world.
Not only does her interpretation of the traditional sound modern, but her originals also have an undeniable hint of longevity and durability. For example, the disc’s opening track “Trees” invokes times gone by with a banjo-driven homage to a simpler existence.
Finally, on the other end of the album, the closer “Willie” is a portrait of human struggle that, at once, appears world-weary and yet raises its fists in anticipation of the next adversary.
At My Table proves once again that Canada’s west coast remains one of the world’s most fertile areas for roots music. With efforts such as this, Nile’s name will soon be heard in the same breath as Neko Case and The Be Good Tanyas as the torchbearers for neo-folk music in North America.
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