Photo: Press
Ben Caplan & The Casual Smokers have released the video to the title track from their second album, Birds With Broken Wings. Watch it exclusively on Gigwise below.
The band, who hail from Halifax, Nova Scotia, have built a strong reputation for their heady mix of powerful emotional songwriting, gypsy folk, and blues. The band are particularly renowned for their live performances, as the enigmatic frontman and songwriter, Ben Caplan, has one of the most engrossing voices - comparisons to Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits are thoroughly deserved. Meanwhile, his gypsy jazz elements give him a unique twist away from the typical introspective bearded singer/songwriter.
Until this year, Ben Caplan hadn’t performed in England since 2013. Back then he performed a glorious Glastonbury set - it’s not often you see a band attract such a religious response. Half the audience at his sold out London gig earlier this month had seen that set and simply couldn’t miss it a second time around.
Subsequently, we’re thrilled to be the first to show you the brilliant new video from a musician who’s earned such critical acclaim - and it’s one of his most enthralling cuts to date. We spoke with Caplan to introduce what the song and video are all about.
"The video for 'Birds With Broken Wings', like the music and the lyrics of the song, is an exploration of beauty and chaos. Striving for an idea of perfection and arriving at place worse than imperfect. It's a video about struggle, articulated by dancers, and it was exciting for me to work on a project in which I could collaborate with artists in that medium.”
Ben Caplan is currently on a European tour. See his dates below.
January
22 Scandic Grand Central - Stockholm
24 Cafe Mir - Oslo
25 Ideal Bar, VEGA - Copenhagen
27 Badehaus Szimpla - Berlin
28 Teatr na Plaży - Sopot
29 Café Kulturalna - Warsaw
30 Zimowy Green ZOO Festival - Kracow
February
1 B 72 - Bezirk - Ottakring
2 Club Manufaktur E.V - Schorndorf
3 Café Kairo - Berne
4 Bleu Lézard - Lausanne
5 Papiersaal - Zurich
6 Parterre One Kultur (Kasernenareal) - Basel
7 Les Etoiles - Paris
9 Mc Hughs Basement Bar - Belfast
10 Upstairs at Dolans - Limerick City
11 De Barra's - Cork
12 Roisin Dubh - Galway
13 Upstairs At Whelans - Dublin
