Having worked with Canadian rock bands such as FemBots and Royal City, Nathan Lawr could also have graduated from the Blue Rodeo Canadian College of Roots Music with the gorgeous and light “Righteous Heart” which saunters along without a care in the world. Lawr’s voice has a gentle warble along the lines of Ron Sexsmith, but his musical chops don’t wobble with the retro-ish vibe encompassing “The Glass”. Sexsmith’s signature traits come to the fore during the gorgeous “Make Yourself”. Lyrically, Lawr has mined a lot of topics for his songs, including the kidnapping of Canadian James Loney during the mid-tempo and melancholic jazz-tinted pop nugget “Footsteps”. Through it all, the artist is confident but without the strut or swagger, instead relying on well-crafted pop tunes such as “If You Don’t Believe” to win listeners over. Perhaps the best of the bunch is “Oh No!” that ambles along in the vein of a Ricky Nelson or Everly Brothers ballad. Another solid singer-songwriter from north of the 49th, who would have thought?

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