Logan Richard is one of music’s rarest creatures—a compelling and diverse songwriter who also shreds.

The P.E.I.-born-and-based artist has been sharpening both skills since he first picked up the guitar as a pre-teen, building a reputation as a deft, genre-fluid songsmith and peerless hired gun for some of Canada’s most exciting musicians. But his new full-length, Character Traits, collects the undeniable evidence of his talents under his own name as he navigates slick pop, spacey R&B, and soulful folk. As the thesis song and title track attests, he’s a 21st-century renaissance man in both skill and style.

Influenced by his axe-slinging brother, artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan and John Mayer, his dad’s record collection, and his Acadian mom’s fiddle-playing family, Logan hit the stage at just 12 years old, cutting his teeth playing gigs around the island he still calls home. He’s built his career as both a solo artist and in-demand live and session player, racking up experience over more than a decade and playing everywhere from dim blues dives to historical soft-seaters.

“‘Character Traits’ was the very last song that I wrote for the record. It came together in one sitting, which doesn't happen to me very often,” Logan says. “That song tied everything together—I don’t think there are any two songs on the album that sound super similar to each other. Each song touches on a different genre and lyrical theme. They all represent separate little character traits. They all reveal different aspects of who I am.”

Character Traits is the inevitable result of commitment to craft. It is a collection of considered and close-to-the-heart songs that provide a detailed picture of a songwriter hitting his stride.[info sheet from distr.]