(photo: Jody Shapiro)

The breadth of songwriting talent Canada has produced in the last 10 years or so is staggering, even if popular media tend to focus on just a select few.  Perennially on that list over the last decade has been Howie Beck, whose timeless pop songs have stood head and shoulders over many of his peers.  His work has led to being a producer and collaborator with the who’s who of Canadian indie music, having most recently helped Jason Collett produce Here’s To Being Here.

Howie Beck returns with his fourth solo album, How To Fall Down In Public, and it’s a study in melancholy and meticulous songwriting.  Having birthed the album while in a self-imposed exile in Paris, Beck expanded his sonic palette beyond the bedroom recordings of his previous work.  While in Paris, Beck hooked up with long-time friend Gonzales, then touched base with Fiest and Sarah Harmer when he got back to Toronto.

How To Fall Down In Public is an introspective affair, casting the listener as a voyeur into Beck’s psyche in a way.  It makes for an intensely personal and private listening experience, like Rufus Wainwright’s Poses or even the work of classic songwriters like Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen.  All the while, though, Beck moves the music forward to 2009, sounding modern and of the moment.

MP3: Howie Beck “Flashover”
Myspace: Howie Beck
Buy: Howie Beck  How To Fall Down In Public