Waterfront Fire's mission? Bring back the concept album

Jordan Coaker and Paul Brace of Waterfront Fire say their band wants to bring back the entire album experience.

"When we went to write this album, Stillwater Lake, we had that goal in mind, to write a concept album right off the bat," said Coaker.

"We're big Pink Floyd fans, and they created one of the greatest concept albums of all time," added Brace, referring to Pink Floyd's iconic 1973 album, Dark Side of the Moon.

Music and visuals 

The band's new record, Stillwater Lake, is a concept album, based around a tale of a character who is a resident in a 1960s insane asylum.

The album art, by graphic designer Aaron Bishop, is designed to be experienced both right side up and upside down.

The music is available digitally, but also in physical CD and vinyl formats.  

"When you print a vinyl and you buy a vinyl, you're going to spend more time listening to the whole album in its entirety," said Brace.

"Maybe you'll snap in to what it's all about."   

Stage show a possibility

Coaker said the band found its love of the concept album, which tells a story through its collection of songs, while the musicians recorded their previous album.

"We had written songs and found, 'Wow, these really flow together,'" said Coaker.

Coaker is also a busy musical theatre performer, and the concept idea taps into his love of storytelling.  

"I'm a huge theatre nerd, and incorporating that into a live show has always been a goal of ours," said Coaker.

"We've been chatting about making a stage show out of Stillwater Lake in the future." added Brace.  

Have a First Listen to Jordan Coaker and Paul Brace's conversation with Weekend AM host Heather Barrett about Waterfront Fire's new release. 

Do you have a new album of music that Weekend AM should know about for First Listen? Email us [email protected] and tell us about it.

You can hear First Listen Sundays on Weekend AM from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. (5:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. in most of Labrador) on CBC Radio One.