Kingston Heritage
Mandy Marciniak ~ November 10, 2014
News – Known for her lyrical ballads and soulful songs, local singer and songwriter Jenica Rayne hopes that her new album isn’t too much of a departure for her fans.
“The album is different and you can’t really put it into a box or category,” explained Rayne. “Some people say it is alt-country, but it’s not. It’s really eclectic and I think it is a collection of material that is really thought provoking.”
The album, entitled Hit the Ground Running, launched on Oct. 26 at BluMartini. It took almost a year to create and Rayne collaborated with many musicians she has worked with in the past to get the perfect mix of material.
“I went to a studio in Kingston and recorded some tracks and then I took them to Vancouver, played over them with other friends and then brought them back and did it all again,” explained Rayne. “The end result is a nice mix of sounds. I really enjoyed all of the collaboration and we have some trumpets and tenor saxophones on the record that I love.”
Rayne comes from a family of musicians, and while she always played and thought of herself as a musician, she decided to pursue other careers for a number of years. She always came back to music, however, and after making her first album in 1999 she realized that to become a professional musician she would require some training.
“I realized I didn’t have the language to communicate with other musicians,” she said. “I wrote all of the music, but I didn’t really know what I was doing and I certainly couldn’t articulate it. That is what made me pursue an education in music and it has been fun ever since.”
Rayne now teaches music at the Kingston School of Music and Winston Churchill Public School, as well as performing gigs and making albums in her down time. She loves creating new music and taking advantage of the quiet times in her life that allow her to do that.
“I don’t have a lot of downtime so I really appreciate the moments when I can just sit down with my guitar and dig deep inside myself and create,” added Rayne. “I love the studio too and working with such fantastic musicians.”
Response to the new album has been positive so far and Rayne is now in the process of choosing a single for the radio. She has had lots of suggestions, but that hasn’t helped her narrow it down just yet.
“I’ve had some feedback from people about which one to choose, but everyone seems to have a different favourite.”
Rayne hopes that people give the album a chance, and they hear the overall message of the album.
“The whole message of the album is to not wait for life to happen, make it happen because it won’t happen if you just sit around and wait for it. You have to make your own path and follow your own dreams.”
Hit the Ground Running is now available on iTunes and in local record stores. For more information and tour dates visit www.jenicarayne.com