Victoria Day ***
Six Shooter
Victoria Day is full of lyrical surprises and tongue-in-cheek throwbacks to its ’60s country influences. But among life-in-Marlboro-country numbers like “Glenrio” and “Segovia” (which give the impression of being at least partly pastiche, with lines like “She’s been flirting with the law / He’s got his hand right up her skirt”) we also get plenty of references to McClelland’s current home base, Toronto. The singer’s fourth release and first for Six Shooter, Victoria Day swings freely among styles without sounding muddled, from classic country tracks like “A Girl Can Dream” to the vaudevillian “I Blame You,” even squeezing in a couple of avant-garde instrumental interludes. Always richly evocative, especially in the late night drive–worthy “Brake,” Victoria Day is a musical journey that is worth taking.
