Personnel: Kevin Drew (acoustic guitar); J Mascis, Andrew Whiteman, Brendan Canning (guitar); Spiral Stairs (guitars); David Newfeld, Charles Spearin (acoustic guitar); Julie Penner (violin); James Shaw (trumpet); Evan Cranley (trombone); Gonzales (piano); Jason Tate, Andrew Kenny (vibraphone); Ohad Benchetrit (bass guitar); Joules Scott Key, Julie Peroff, David Mitchell, Justin Peroff (drums); Emily Haines, Feist, Jason Collett, Tom Cochrane, Bill Priddle, Amy Millan (background vocals).
The first in a series of proposed BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE PRESENTS releases, 2007's SPIRIT IF is the debut solo album by BSS keys player Kevin Drew. Not surprisingly, though, many other members of the Canadian indie-rock collective pop by for a visit, including in-demand singer Feist and the Do Make Say Think duo of Ohad Benchetrit and Charles Spearin, making the record sound an awful lot like a full-on Broken Social Scene outing. Highlights of the eclectic set include the New Wave-tinged "Frightening Lives" and the quirky electro-pop tune "Big Love." Most notably, however, SPIRIT directly connects Drew with his alt-rock precursors when Dinosaur Jr. guitarist/vocalist J. Mascis joins in on the glorious six-string workout "Backed Out on The...," which easily stands out as the dynamic album's most majestic moment.
