Title - Canyons and Waves
Artist - Griff Peters
For those unaware, Griff Peters’ signature musical voice is best described as artistic roots-rock, an amalgamation of rural Americana, blues, folk, elements of avant-garde, prog, and album-side rock.
Besides being a sage and sensitive songwriter, and soulful vocalist, Griff Peters is a subtly virtuosic guitarist and a tone poet - a musician’s musician.
Nature has always been spiritually grounding for singer-songwriter and guitarist Griff Peters. A few years ago, when the San Diego, California-based roots rock artist was mired in a heart-wrenching personal struggle, he went out to the beach and sat down on a rock formation. There, Griff asked himself this question: if he was told he had a year to live, what would he do?
The answer was simple - make his solo debut, Canyons and Waves (Impropriety Records), a deep and sincere body of work crafted by a skilled and experienced artist with a worthy message of hope within darkness.
That very rock formation graces the cover of the album, and from that fateful day on, Griff’s life has been powerfully transformed. Griff says This is the long-awaited showing-up for my own life as an artist. The music paints a picture of an inner-knowing and the rekindling of hope when we feel lost.
1. Home (1:26)
2. Holiday (4:00)
3. Where You Been (6:25)
4. She Plays with Light (4:14)
5. Choose Love (3:08)
6. Marie Marie (5:10)
7. Climb a Tree (5:36)
8. Dirt (6:50)
9. Stained Glass Eye (5:18)
10. Canyons and Waves (7:25)
This wholly impassioned, heartfelt and infectiously melodic rocker of a new recording opens on the short, but set soundscape Home and the gently forthright Holiday, then comes the mid-tempo balladry of Where You Been, the soaring prog rocker She Plays with Light and the low slung, countrified Choose Love.
Along next is one of my own personal favorites, the hammond-hued, foot-tapping blues of Marie Marie and that is in turn backed seamlessly by the gently-flowing Climb a Tree, the drum-led, slow grind rocker Dirt, the album rounding out on the soaring Stained Glass Eye, closing on the atmospheric, country twang of the titular instrumental Canyons and Waves.
Griff will be promoting Canyons and Waves with shows and videos of the songs being performed live in the studio, onstage, and in breathtaking natural expanses. He will also be performing and releasing more new songs in the months ahead.
Reflecting back on his epiphanic journey, Griff says: Music says things that cannot be said otherwise. It reaches people’s hearts in places that cannot be reached by any other way. I’m using music this time around to transcend barriers and gently say Hey, I’ve been there, too, but now I’ve found a better way.
Griff Peters - Holiday [Official Music Video]
The Making of Canyons and Waves Album by Griff Peters
Official Website
Official Album Purchase Links