A neo-folk duo from our very own city, The New Customs is made up of locals Emma Cloney and Dale Brown. Capable of producing tear-jerkers, foot-stompers, sorrowful ballads and everything in between, the multi-instrumentalists have established themselves in both the local music community and all across Canada through their original and engaging sound.

The band’s latest album All Walls Fall is storytelling through music at its finest, with an undoubtedly Canadian voice that sounds like home. The music of The New Customs has everything from soulful harmonies, soaring fiddles and guitar like a heartbeat, combining to make a passionate and heartfelt experience almost tangible to the listener.

The band recorded the nine songs written for All Walls Fall all on their own during a four day stay at a cabin near Falcon Lake, Man. They created a work that was purely original while embracing a DIY attitude.

One feature track off the album is “Leave Me Cold.” The song is reminiscent of a broken heart, filled with haunting fiddle lines and brought together by Cloney’s emotional voice and profound lyrics.

“Stretched Upon Your Grave,” another must-listen song off the album, is an adaptation of an old Irish poem by an unknown author about a bereaved man who refuses to leave the grave of his deceased lover, and the uplifting title track “All Walls Fall” is said to have been written in the wake of the 2016 U.S. election in an attempt to inspire hope in their audience.

You can see The New Customs when they play at Festival du Voyageur on Feb. 17, 2018 or listen to them through Spotify or the band’s website: thenewcustoms.com.

- Zoë LeBrun

Published in Volume 72, Number 10 of The Uniter (November 16, 2017)