David Ward

Sound Recording recipient David Ward is celebrating the release of his new single "Banging on my Drum" from the anticipated full length album Violet, Gold + Rose recorded at Monarch and Afterlife Studios in Vancouver. After 12 years of quietly sending ripples through the independent music scene, David Ward’s latest, a cinematic and soulful opus has garnered support from some of the most respected artists in music.

Ward has spent the last two years between Vancouver, London and Berlin, building on the success of his last album, Transitioning. The run has included opening slots for grammy-winner Lisa Fischer, Becca Stevens, Jacob Collier, and a sold-out show at London’s historic Union Chapel with fellow Canadian, Frazey Ford.

With his long-time bandmates, Ward recorded Violet, Gold + Rose in two of his favourite hometown studios with the mammoth musical and administrative undertaking of adding a 12-piece choir and 13-piece orchestra.

“It’s an exploration of different ideas of spirituality and romantic love,” says Ward of the new album, “and how the theme of worship, in its many shapes and colours – love, reverence and despair – connects them both.”

Ward always knew he wanted the voice of a strong, soulful female singer for "Banging on my Drum". He is a big fan of Kamasi Washington’s triple album, The Epic, which inspired much of his approach to Violet, Gold + Rose.

The singer, Patrice Quinn, is a part of Kamasi’s band, also known as the international phenomenon, the West Coast Get Down, a collective of musicians from L.A. that have led and contributed to some of the most exciting albums of the last few years, including Kendrick Lamar’s critically lauded, To Pimp a Butterfly.

“I heard Patrice sing with Kamasi and the band at London’s Barbican and was deeply moved. She sings somewhere that feels spiritual to me. That night she was beating on her chest while singing as if she was trying to invoke something bigger, something deeper and divine.”

The balance of their two voices in this piece, as well as the arrangement and lyrics brings to mind 70’s-inspired soul; a song that speaks of finding and being good to one another in these dark, chaotic and confusing times.