Donovan Woods - Without People (Canadian Exclusive Cream Vinyl)

Late at night, as the world felt upside down in quarantine and when a hush fell over the house after his kids went to bed, Donovan Woods got to work on his latest album, Without People.

In a makeshift recording studio at his Toronto home, the acclaimed Canadian singer-songwriter tracked his vocals and guitar alone and then emailed files to producer James Bunton. As Woods’ new songs took shape, backing musicians sketched out their own parts in isolation from their respective homes.

This is not how Woods, winner of the 2019 Juno Award for contemporary roots album (for Both Ways) with global streams surpassing 200 million, prefers to create music.

“So much of what I like about making records is the spontaneity of making music in a room together, and we missed that,” Woods says. “But we tried our best to re-create that feeling.”

They succeeded. For an album made so piecemeal, Without People is alive with intimacy and connection at a surreal time when we’re all in desperate need of both. So much of its allure and power is rooted in how Woods connects with his collaborators.

These 14 new songs prompted Woods to reckon with why his songwriting has been so invested in the human condition throughout his decade-long career. The short answer? Relationships are what bind us, and what matters most is how we treat one another and whether we’re truly listening and trying to understand experiences distinct from our own. “I dove in deeper on this album than I ever have,” Woods says. “So if we are coming to the end of something, I can say that I tried my hardest to write truthfully about the people I’ve loved and the things I did wrong, and add my little verse to the story of what it feels like to be a person.”

Canadian Exclusive CREAM coloured vinyl released by Meant Well. Limited to just 300 copies worldwide. This special edition includes an autographed insert and a special note written by Donovan Woods.

TRACKLISTING:

Side 1

1. Without People
2. Last Time I Saw You
3. Seeing Other People
4. We Used To
5. She Waits For Me To Come Back Down feat. Katie Pruitt
6. Clean Slate
7. Man Made Lake
8. Interlude

Side 2

1. Lonely People feat. Rhys Lewis
2. Grew Apart
3. Whole Way Home
4. High Season
5. God Forbid
6. Whatever Keeps You Going