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Mo Kenney: New Album, Clear Eyes

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Photo by Matt Horseman

Mo Kenney was just 17 when Joel Plaskett overheard them playing music at a Halifax high school. Later, he recommended the teenager for a songwriting camp run by his manager.

Fast forward another 17 years. Today, in their early 30s, Kenney is an established singer-songwriter. They’ve recently released a new album, From Nowhere, produced by Plaskett.

This album is a significant one for Kenney, as it marks their transition to sobriety. It all dates back to the early days of the pandemic. Kenney was at home alone, with a lot of time to drink but also, to think.

“I had tried in 2015 to get sober and it lasted eight or nine months and then I fell off the wagon again,” they say. “I knew in the back of my mind that it was something I’d have to do again but I was just unwilling to do it.”

Finally, on May 5, 2020, it was time. “I didn’t hit rock bottom or anything, I just woke up hungover and was tired of living like that.”

They’ve been sober since.

Has it changed their songwriting? “Yeah, definitely. I think just generally there’s a more optimistic and positive lens in my songwriting. Getting sober just completely changed my life. I’m a totally different person. I feel a lot better and I feel a lot more open.”

It was helpful to have Plaskett working on the record with them, Kenney says. “We just have such a good creative relationship and friendship. It felt really nice to be in the studio working on this particular record with someone who knows me so well.”

The two have a long history now. They have written many a song together, Kenney plays guitar in Plaskett’s band, they have a duo act, and Plaskett also plays on Kenney’s records. They even live around the corner from one another.

It gets better—recently they even had the same dream.

“His version was really funny,” Kenney says. “He said that we were in a therapist’s office, we were in therapy together and I was talking about a dream I’d had about somebody who I thought was really attractive and then I said it was George Bush. He asked if it was George Bush Senior or Junior and then we just laughed and laughed and he said he woke up laughing.”

“And in my dream I was in a therapist’s office and I was talking to somebody but I don’t remember who it was. And I woke up laughing.  Super weird.”

Plaskett isn’t the only friend who plays on Kenney’s new album. Her pals Rose Cousins, Victoria Cameron, Siobhan Martin, and Jordan Murphy can also be heard.

See Kenney live, at their shows in Calgary, November 19 and Edmonton, November 20. Details at their website.

Want to learn more about Kenney’s musical buddy, Joel Plaskett? Check out our latest Hidden Track episode, here