I recently got to talk to local musician David Ivan Neil, who released his first “semi-pro” album entitled What is Love. This alternative folk musician takes a playful, easy-going approach when writing his music, with lyrics about people living in Walmart parking lots, the struggles of using Tinder, and of his own journey as an indie-folk artist here in the Fraser Valley.
David described his new album as an evolution from lo-fi records of a guy recording himself on a cassette tape to a mid-fi, semi-professional album. With the help of another local musician, Simon Bridgefoot, Neil was able to create a polished, easily accessible album available for purchase as a digital album, cassette tape, or vinyl record. Neil describes it as “the same kind of song-writing, same kind of mentality, just cleaned up a little bit.”
What is Love is comprised of love songs, but not your typical AM radio love songs, as Neil puts it, but rather love songs about “the idea of love, how you feel doing something you love, or dealing with people who love you and trying to understand different forms of love.”
Although Neil confesses that he may not know what key every song is in, he has been writing and playing music for about 18 years, so he had a wealth of songs to draw from when creating this album. A passion for making music was sparked in his early 20s, when he and his friends formed a band.
“It was just us drinking beers and recording ourselves; my friend would play guitar and I would write the lyrics and sing. Ever since then I’ve just really enjoyed creating music.”
Neil’s songwriting process involves writing lyrics, picking up a guitar, and just starting to strum until he finds a tune that goes along with the words. “Come To Bed” is a song on the album that Neil wrote in half an hour by playing around on a two-stringed guitar, riffing out the lyrics as he went.
My personal favourite song on the album, “The Great Explorer,” has a slow, melodic guitar and soft harmonica playing behind beautiful lyrics of the exploration of love: “I’m a great explorer / I discovered my heart / It was lost in the dimples of your face / That appear when you smile my way.”
Neil describes his favourite song on the album, “Free,” as “a song about love, but about my love of making music and my love of going to shows and seeing other bands … about buying shirts from guys and giving them your CD. Just coming to terms with your own abilities, your own range, and just doing your own thing.”
See Neil perform at Carport Manor on Sept. 13 with Alex Rake and the Leaves, and consider buying a digital copy, investing in a vinyl record, or busting out your old cassette player to listen to his new album!
Neil would like to thank Simon Bridgefoot, the producer of the album / all-around sweet guy, along with Kristin Witko, Alex Rake, Drew Riekman, Jason Sylvester, Philip Dyck, and his wife Marla Sawatzky who all contributed instrumentally to the album. Also to be included are his video people: Casey Kowalchuk, Mitch Huttema, Miranda Huttema, James Frost, and his label Tim Clapp and the Kingfisher Bluez.
Neil encourages listeners of his album who are interested in hearing more about local talent from the Fraser Valley to check out Common Room Music, where you can find all the details for upcoming shows at venues such as Carport Manor, Vicinity Lounge, and Tractorgrease Cafe. They also hold songwriters’ nights and retreats to create a community of local artists.
Image: Raunie Mae Baker
Andrea Sadowski is working towards her BA in Global Development Studies, with a minor in anthropology and Mennonite studies. When she's not sitting in front of her computer, Andrea enjoys climbing mountains, sleeping outside, cooking delicious plant-based food, talking to animals, and dismantling the patriarchy.