Sunshine State

小簡介 Aleza艾蕾莎(Vocal)和James Bryan詹姆斯布萊恩(Guitarist/Producer)在一次偶然的合作之後決定組成Sunshine State愉悦之州合唱團。如果一定要用一種關係來描述這兩個人的話，那就是病人與音樂治療師的關係，當在境內首屈一指的吉他手兼製作人James用他的吉他來為Aleza治療時，Aleza用她的歌聲來訴説她的故事——一個獨自在都會中生活的女性，這樣的互動彷彿成為了一股相當正面的能量，因此，就成就了屬於Sunshine State的音樂! 從Aleza在首支單曲《Day Job》中用她柔順清量又簡潔有力的歌聲唱出了上班族的心聲，也因此在加拿大被奉為“上班族國歌”，而Sunshine State這個名字連同他們的同名專輯迅速的在加拿大境內四處流傳。 Sunshine State began as a therapy session between two friends. Vocalist Aleza Coldevin was the patient, and guitarist/producer James Bryan provided the therapy with his acoustic guitar. Over a backdrop of upbeat jazz- and soul- tinged acoustic pop , Aleza started telling her story : a single young woman in the city , looking for love. Sunshine State was born! Based in Toronto, Canada, Aleza and James were longtime friends before they ever made music together. James had already established himself as one of Canada’s top guitarists as a member of the platinum selling act The Philosopher Kings ( Sony/Bmg) , widely regarded as one of Canada’s best live bands . He is also a hitmaking songwriter and producer with over a dozen top 20 hits, awards, and a handful of gold and platinum credits. James has worked with a who’s who of the Canadian music scene, including: Nelly Furtado , Divine Brown , Prozzak , and Fefe Dobson and most recently completed a 30 date world tour as Nelly Furtado’s guitarist, a true testament to his world class skills. Meanwhile, Aleza had dabbled in music, recording a track called “Trust in Us “with Toronto Dj / producer Sassa’le, which not only hit the U.K. Garage charts, but also got nominated for a Canadian Urban Music award. While James was recording his debut solo album 'Beautiful World” (Universal) in 2004, he asked Aleza to sing on a track called “Sunny Song”. It was a revelation for both of them, and one track turned into three. When it came time to tour, Aleza was the singer of James’ band. On the road, the friends would discuss the sorry state of Aleza’s "love life" and other misadventures (new crushes, a one night stand, a soul-crushing day job), and jam on some favorite musical influences, from Brazilian bossa nova to The Beatles and New Order. Sunshine State evolved from there. The duo’s chemistry sparked a sound that is fresh, fun and totally infectious. Each song tells a story that anyone can relate to and many of us have been through, with equal parts humor and raw emotion. Blessed with a truly original voice, Aleza mixes Blossom Dearie-esque quirkiness with the tonal purity of a Scandinavian pop chanteuse. Meanwhile, James’ mastery of the acoustic guitar is dazzling, and complements the catchy melodies with warm, organic arrangements. Sunshine State started playing on the local scene in late 2005, and made a 3 song EP in James’ Toronto studio, which they sold out of at nearly every show. As the buzz continued to grow in 2006, Aleza and James went back to the studio to record their debut album. With James producing, the duo added bass virtuoso Marc Rogers on upright, and percussionists Dave Gouveia and Daniel Stone to fill out the upbeat acoustic vibe, Davide Direnzo also makes a guest appearance on “the Day After“. Always autobiographical, what often starts off as a tearful tirade ends up getting soothed by the happy strains of a guitar refrain, and the comfort of friendship, and that’s where the name Sunshine State comes in: It’s a state of mind we all aspire to but seldom reach, the place where love and happiness finally meet.