ANCHORS

An album almost abandoned

Drummer Pat Johnson and vocalist Rolf-Carlos Klausener formed SILKKEN in the fervour of Ottawa’s underground arts explosion of 2011. Over a few short years, the band became synonymous around town for wild live shows, hosting warehouse parties, and rallying the community in their music videos. They also shared the stage with The Juan Maclean, Austra, Bonobo, YACHT, among others.

Along with a slew of local guests, the band released their ecstatic debut ‘Not Forever Enough’ in 2014. They began writing for their sophomore album in 2015, with Klausener penning nascent lyrics in Los Angeles, Costa Rica, Barcelona, Toronto, and Ottawa. By 2017, personal shifts saw the band’s energy wane. To boot, the community that had fuelled and inspired the band was splintering. The album was essentially abandoned in 2018.

Together Apart

As the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, Klausener found inspiration in his community’s communal sense of isolation, and how individuals found ways to both escape, and accept, their changed world: communing with nature, taking pause, taking stock, reevaluating their friendships and work.

He spent Summer 2020 revisiting the album and completing unfinished tracks with help from friends from around the country. The album was mixed by longtime collaborator Jarrett Bartlett, with Phil Bova (Bahamas, Feist) mastering ANCHORS at the end of the season.

CREDITS

WRITTEN IN

Los Angeles – USA
Puerto Viejo – Costa Rica
Barcelona – Spain
Toronto + Ottawa – Canada

MUSIC BY

Pat Johnson (drums), Rolf Carlos (vocals, guitar, keys, programming), and Martin Charbonneau (bass, keys)
with Sylvie Smith (vocals), Joseph Shabason (saxophone), Jon Hynes (guitars), Sara Austin (vocals), Jonathan Pearce (vocals), Jazmine Wykes (vocals), Gold Bonds (vocals), Julien Dussault (guitars), Gianna Lauren (vocals)

LYRICS BY

Rolf-Carlos Klausener
with Sylvie Smith (1,2,4,10)

RECORDING

Original demos recorded in Calabogie ON, May 2015.

Bed tracks recorded at Little Bullhorn Prods, Ottawa ON by Seb Perry, July 2017.

Vocals and additional instrumentation recorded at Chalet 5 à 7, Ottawa ON by Rolf Carlos

Saxophone on #1 recorded at home in Toronto ON by Joseph Shabason

Drums on #11, guitars on #8 recorded at 50 Park Avenue, Ottawa ON by Rolf Carlos & Martin Charbonneau

Sara Austin’s vocals on #6 recorded at home in Summerside PEI by Sara Austin

Sylvie Smith’s vocals on #4 and #10 recorded at The Loft, Toronto ON by Rolf Carlos

Piano on #10, vocals on #8 recorded at The Sparrow’s Nest, Toronto ON by Rolf Carlos

Guitars on #2 recorded in Nepean ON by Jon Hynes

Gianna Lauren’s vocals on #12 recorded at Ocean Floor Studio, Halifax NS by Charles Austin

Artwork by Nicole Tarasick, Toronto ON / www.nicoletarasick.com

Mixed by Jarrett Bartlett

Associate Producers: Matt Tamblyn, Sylvie Smith, Jarrett Bartlett

Produced by Palm Dust

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the City of Ottawa, without which this project would not have been possible. Thank you.