Edmonton’s Lucette and Lethbridge’s Ryland Moranz are miles apart. But both singer-songwriters express themselves from the soul, delivering poetic songs filled with heartfelt meaning.
Lucette is tagged as an Americana-pop singer-songwriter, while Moranz’s compositions create a roots-rock vibe. Different yet complementary, the duo is billed to perform at the Arden Theatre’s Plaza Series on Thursday, July 27.
Lauren Gilles, whose stage name is Lucette, debuted her first record, Black is the Color in 2014. As her first test run, she leaned towards an earthy, country-rock sound. But her second album, the 2019 Deluxe Hotel Room produced by Grammy winner Sturgill Simpson, flipped a complete 180.
“I abandoned Americana for evocative electronic-tinged arrangements and trippy textures,” said Lucette in a telephone interview.
Now working on a third album, due for release next year, she suggests it lands somewhere in between her two original records. Although the singer-songwriter is keeping the title under wraps, she provided a sneak peek at what fans can expect from the 12-track.
“A friend described it as Fleetwood Mac meets Lana Del Rey,” she said laughing.
As a young child Gilles studied piano but hated the structure.
“I never sang, even for my family. I was far too shy. Emotionally, I was embarrassed.”
In Grade 6 she was given a taste of live performance in a school musical. By the time Gilles enrolled at Scona High, she was performing live and credits a former art teacher, Brad Burns, for encouraging students and nourishing their dreams.
Seven months after high school graduation, she was in Nashville building a network of contacts. By her early 20s Lucette was touring the United States and the United Kingdom alone in a rental car.
“While my friends were in university, I was staying at Super-8 Motels on the highway. To me it was the best. I needed independence and freedom. I loved it. I still do.”
Not only does music drive her, it defines who she is.
“Everyone listens to music for different reasons. But for some people it’s a big part of their being, and it felt part of me from a young age. I feel the need to get things out. Music brought me to songwriting, and I use it like a cathartic experience. There’s comfort in music.”
Unlike a young shy Lauren Gilles, Ryland Moranz was never bashful about belting out his favourite songs. And while he currently promotes roots music, his emblem during the teenage years was punk rock and emo.
“I came from a musical family." Moranz said. "I didn’t have anything to rebel against. My parents gave us a lot of leash to make experiences and mistakes. I guess this was my way of going through a rite of passage."
“But I never switched genres. I’ve always been a folkie," he said. "Even in my punkiest days, it was always Billy Bragg, Miles Davis, Cab Calloway — something rootsy from jazz and blues. And in rock and roll it was Herbie Hancock and The Headhunters. Even when I was exploring punk, I never left the folk catalogue.”
And like Lucette, he did not choose music. He simply feels “compelled” to write songs in the tradition of bygone storytellers, narratives that are lyrically poetic and musically earthy, ranging from nostalgic ballads to gritty roots rock.
His sophomore album XO, 1945, released in 2021, is based on a Second World War documentary.
“In the last episode, it’s the end and there’s relief, sadness and people kissing on the street. We think of it differently today then when it actually happened. Things change over time.”
The singer-songwriter is a keen history buff and plays guitar, banjo, mandolin, mandola, lap steel, harmonica, slide whistle and violin.
“I’m generally attracted to all kinds of good music. As long as it has a good message or is well-written, I’m in," he said.
Currently, Moranz is working on a third album, tentatively titled Better/Worse. It is earmarked for release in the spring of 2024. He’s adapting cello suites from the classical catalogue and arranging them for banjo. In fact, he’ll be road testing several charts at the Plaza Series.
“It helps to know where to go if you know where you’ve been," he said. "I’m drawn to virtuosic playing. People find resonance and an unspeakable connection in it. True moments of clarity come when you understand it all.”
