Wil Set To Release December Album In March

It's not nearly as confusing as it sounds.

March 27 is the day you can pick up By December, the new album from Calgary singer/songwriter Wil. For his sophomore effort, Wil enlisted the production talents of Dave MacKinnon (FemBots), as well as guest artists Pat Steward (Matthew Good, Odds), John Borra (John Borra Band, Change Of Heart) and Greg Smith (The Weakerthans, FemBots), to name a few.

"Dave [MacKinnon] was able to hook me up with great people who play bass or horns or keys or whatever," says Wil of his producer. "Plus, there were a few recommendations through the label, and it blossomed into this open door of players."

By December was recorded in various studios in Vancouver, Toronto and Calgary. After taking a trip to Nashville for mixing, the disc was mastered at Gateway Mastering & DVD in Portland, Maine by uber-engineer Bob Ludwig (R.E.M., The Who). Wil claims that his songwriting has grown in leaps and bounds since the release of his 2004 Both Hands debut.

"I'm not a prolific writer. I don't write a lot, but I've learned how to be more focused. It was an issue that I had. I was either super-focused or I didn't have any."

Two songs on the new disc are particularly meaningful for Wil because of the labour that went into them.

"'Tight Fist' is the one I'm most proud of in terms of lyrical content. It just ended up in a place where I don't think it could've got any better. It came together after a long, frustrating day.

"My other favourite is 'Wedding Dress' because it was a three-year venture. I used to do soundchecks and only sing the few lines, 'cause that's all I had."

After spending night after night playing in Calgary clubs for 12 years, Wil moved to Vancouver Island with his wife to have a little more peace and quiet. Although Both Hands sold more than 6,000 copies before getting the major label treatment from EMI, Wil doesn't see people's expectations as a source of stress.

"My manager, Dan, puts an appropriate amount of pressure on me. He just lets me know what I'm capable of and that the people around me believe in me."

Wil says he'll be "pimping the heck" out of the new record by touring non-stop in the coming months. In the meantime, here are the songs on By December:
"Tell You Twice"
"Friend Of Mine"
"Big Life"
"Wedding Dress"
"Rain On"
"Always With Love"
"The Way I Used To"
"December"
"She's Coming Down"
"Tight Fist"
"Help"
"Honey Pie"
"Don't Let Me Down"