We recorded the album Six Shooter in august 2008 in the desert town of Ashcroft, British Columbia. Ashcroft rests on the banks of the Thompson River and was a stopping point during the gold rush with a hopping saloon. The sound of trains is ever present with CP Rail running up and down the west bank and CN on its eastern bank. The sounds of these trains serendipitously bled into the recordings of songs like the lead track Railroad. The album was produced by Johnny Ellis and recorded at his studio Nashcroft Manor. The view from various tracking rooms was either of the garden, which grew the bulk of the food we would eat while up there, or the river and the desert hills. Very inspiring, especially when racing the shadow cast by the setting sun while we were recording “Arizona” with the line “oh how the sun lies down across the desert…”

One of the visions I had for this album was to have Luke Doucet dueling with my guitar player Adam Dobres. I called up Luke and he happened to be traveling from Edmonton to Colorado the week we were recording. Ashcroft may not be the geographical midway point between those two destinations but it wasn’t too far out of the way to get him for a couple days. Interestingly when I put the songs in sequence for the final product it turned out that Luke played on 5 of the 6 songs on side 2. There is a distinct side 1 and side 2 with this record. Luke got a good kick out of the “West Coast” recording process that we worked around. We would get up at noon or 1 o’clock, hang out for an hour and a half, go down into the studio, work for an hour and by then it would be 40+ degrees in the studio, too hot to work. So in the back of the pick up truck and down to the river we would go. There is a certain elbow in the river that the locals know about and that is where you go to swim. I tell you it is one of the most spectacular spots on the face of the earth. You park the truck, cross the tracks, and all of a sudden you are on the surface of the moon. This psychedelic wash of river rocks is something that you have never seen before. You walk about a quarter mile to where the river takes a right angle turn and that’s where you dive in. Now you have to understand that the Thompson River is one of British Columbia’s 5 biggest rivers, this is no creek running through the farm and the ride puts any amusement park to shame. You dive in and instantly you are racing at about 20 mph down the river. You can open your eyes underwater as you are screaming along overtop of the riverbed and you feel like a 100 year old sturgeon. Well, at least I did. It was just what we all needed to recharge. Then we’d swing by the booze shop, pick up a case of wine and get to work ‘til three o’clock in the morning. Then do it all over again.

About a year before we started working on “Six Shooter” I met and started playing with Del Cowsill. Up until then my guitar player, Adam Dobres and I had been piecing together different bands for various gigs desperately craving a solid band. A Heartbreakers or a Crazy Horse. Del’s knack for harmony singing, bass playing and being a complete encyclopedia of music from the 60’s made for the perfect fit. We managed to get Pat Steward on the road with us and played for a year as “The Outfit”. With Del coming from a more extensive musical lineage than myself I’m not going to lie, the first time someone who was introduced to him asked if he was related to Billy Cowsill I was more than happy to witness that scene from the third person.

We now had a sound. We worked on it for a year and what we recorded in those two weeks is what you’ll hear on Six Shooter. It was a pleasure working with Johnny Ellis for the second time. Steven Drake blew my mind wide open with his knowledge of sound when we mixed it in the spring. And the beautifully talented and dear friend Pharis Romero designed the cd package, which looks amazing. Of course she had some bitchin’ photos taken by Mark Maryanovich to work with.

Thanks to everyone involved.

Kathleen Edwards has talent, charisma, and fight
By Adrian Mack
At the Rio Theatre on Friday, January 16

The Rio Theatre has amazing acoustics. That was clear with the first long, true, lonely howl from Dustin Bentall’s harmonica, at the top of an outstanding opening set on Friday night.

Judging by the songs he previewed from a forthcoming album, especially a deft defence of art over workaday drudgery called “Draft Dodger”—which also featured a smoking fiddle breakdown from kewpie-doll-sized Kendel Carson—North Van’s own cosmic cowboy has new material strong enough to match his performance chops.

The judges of the Independent Music Awards apparently agree. Last week, Bentall received the best-country-song nod for a cowrite with Ridley Bent called “Nine Inch Nails”. He decisively won over a lively and receptive audience with that number, which describes a breakup in terms of who got what in the record-collection department, although a quasi-slam on Hüsker Dü drew a murmur of confusion. After all, most of this group probably ended up in roots territory after a long apprenticeship in ’80s punk—which might explain their passion for the tough and flinty headliner, Kathleen Edwards.

The hugely popular alt-country queen is occasionally noted for a combative nature and a dirty mouth, but she also pours an enormous amount of vulnerability into her songwriting.

More revealing numbers like “Asking for Flowers”, “Sure as Shit”, and the hymn to dislocation “Copied Keys” speak for themselves, even more transparently when stripped down—as on Friday—to just Edwards and guitarist Colin Cripps. But Edwards gamely lifted the veil by turning the joke on herself every time she snarked at her musical partner, who also happens to be her husband.

The Steve and Eydie dynamic was one thing, and Cripps’s tasty accompaniment on a cream Telecaster and electric mandolin was another, but it was Edwards’s catalogue of classically tooled adult rockers and seasoned stage presence that made the lasting impression.

When she raised her guitar with a big shit-eating grin and made us wait for the brilliant “Here comes my softer side, and there it goes” payoff in “The Cheapest Key”—a song that drew devil horns and a small eruption of hysteria from two ladies in the audience—Edwards signalled that she’s at the top of her game, and she knows it.

She’s also ready to curse out Merle Haggard for some of the more Neanderthal sentiments in his “Are the Good Times Really Over”.

“Fuck you, Merle Haggard,” she snarled, after delivering his line about “a girl who could still cook, and would”. There’s no record of the chin-bearded legend’s opinion on Edwards, but he’d have to respect a “girl” with that much talent, charisma, and fight.

Hey folks

I'm frantically getting ready to hit the road tomorrow morning (thrs Nov 1st) so I'll have to make it quick. But heres whats going down. I've put a new band together which I am really excited about. "The Dustin Bentall Outfit" is the name, the outlaws are as follows. The demon slaying Adam Dobres on guitar who is no stranger to the DB stage, and the new characters, Del Cowsill on bass and Evan Middleton on drums. Get used to these names cause unless we kill each other on this trip we will carry on touring through the new year and beyond. There are lots of plans for touring next year, we've just started talking about a Dustin Bentall/ Ridley Bent tour in the spring. Yeah! thats gonna be rad. By the way Ridley's new record "Buckles and Boots" just came out on Open Road records last tuesday. So if we're coming to your town get your ass down to the bar. You wont be let down.

oh ya, plans for the new record. Studio in January. I know its been a long time but fortunately "Streets" has kept me this and that busy since then! Believe me I want it more than anyone.

thanks for listening

DB

I hooked up with Carolyne Stossel and Mark Maryanovich (Sleeping Dogs Lie Productions) to make a music video a couple weeks ago. Well, Its all done and we are extremely excited about it. It will be up on the site soon but not before we show it at a party next week at a bar on Granville where we shot some footage, GINGER 62. Everyone and their dog are invited, we want this to be a big party. We'll show the video and then the Band will ROCK. Its gonna be a blast. Also it's looking like ION magazine is gonna get on board to pump this up because of the next bit of news I have to bring. Mark Maryanovich is an incredible Photographer, best in town! He took the shot on myspace page. ION magazine hired him and I to do the Cover Story for the May issue. So, we took a trip up to the ranch with The Bottle & The Truth. Shot some amazing photographs. Exciting times
Come join us on Tuesday.

Dustin

HOWDY FOLKS,

So, you might have noticed that i've had to cancel a few shows coming up here. well...... so......ya....... I kinda went and damn near cut my hand off playing hockey the other night. it was pretty gore so I wont get into it but the status is that i might have to get surgery and reguardless, i'm out for a couple weeks. Nothing to worry about though Doc says i'll be back to 100% soon as it heals. In other words, its not going to affect my persuit of becoming a master of smooth jazz guitar...kidding... So ya, the island tour is quite questionable at this point, but we will do the show in Vancouver on Friday the 23rd as we are getting some live footage for the video we are shootin' later that night for "Streets With No Lights"!.....mama, i'm gonna be a rock star!..... Yeah, thats the good news, I got a Videofact grant. So we're shooting a video soon. That's gonna be fun. And then I'll be good to go by the time the T.O. shows come around.

See ya out there
Dustin

Howdy folks!

We played some shows in the fall as "The Grand Cariboo Opry". What a blast. I'll have a video of of one of my own songs up on the page soon. We traded songs all night at these shows each of us did 2 or 3 songs throughout the night. They were such fun shows to play and the crowd response was amazing. We WILL play more of these shows in the future and we can't wait. So, this is the first 'blog' i've ever written. What do you want to read about? ha. I've got big and exiting things coming in the near future and hopefully they involve your town. I'm hitting the Yukon, Vancouver Island and Toronto doing solo shows with cats like Leeroy Stagger, Kent McAlister and Romi Mayes (better bring my 'A' liver for those shows) which i'm excited about no doubt. What I am REALLY excited for is hitting the road with the band in May. We're gonna do a run out to Winnipeg and its gonna be outta hand. I'm bringing my band "The Truth" from Vancouver. Can't wait. Also, I find out in a couple days if i get a Videofact grant to do a video for "Streets With No Lights". lets keep our fingers crossed.
feel free to feedback!

Cheers
Dustin