JUNO-nominated and Maple Blues Award winner Spencer Mackenzie has released his new album Empty Chairs via Gypsy Soul Records.
The album is available now on CD and vinyl from his official website, with the digital edition streaming on all major platforms. A live video of the title track “Empty Chairs” is also available on YouTube.
Produced, mixed and engineered by Ross Hayes Citrullo at RHC Music in Toronto, Empty Chairs captures Mackenzie’s direct, guitar-led approach to modern blues rock. Citrullo, a two-time JUNO nominee and Emmy Award-winning mixer, also contributes backing vocals on the record.
The album blends traditional blues foundations with a heavier contemporary edge. Across eleven tracks, Mackenzie delivers punchy riffs, slide guitar, Hammond organ textures and a tight rhythm section. The result feels live, immediate and personal.
The title track “Empty Chairs” opens the album with a stark message. Written from the perspective of families affected by gun violence, it channels anger and grief into a focused blues rock statement.
“Frozen Hearts” shifts the tone. The track pays tribute to the victims of residential schools, addressing loss of identity and culture with weight and restraint.
Elsewhere, Mackenzie balances heavier material with stripped-back moments. “Till I Get to You” is built around acoustic textures and explores emotional relief found in love. “Shoot Me Down” leans on slide guitar and minimal arrangement, examining frustration inside a one-sided relationship.
Track four, “Don’t Know Where I’m Going,” is a reworking of the Rory Gallagher song. Mackenzie takes the acoustic original and drives it into louder territory, adding grit and urgency while respecting its roots.
The album was recorded with Miles Evans Branagh on piano and organ, Stacey Shopsowitz and Steve Pelletier on bass, Adam Canon and Matt Burns on drums, and background vocals from Sandra Bouza and Chantel Williams.
All songs are written by Spencer Mackenzie, with co-writing from Richard Mackenzie on selected tracks, except “Don’t Know Where I’m Going,” which is written by Rory Gallagher.
Critical response has been strong. Blues Matters described the album as proof of Mackenzie’s “great voice, gifted musicianship and superior songwriting craft.” Blues Magazine NL highlighted his soulful vocals and fiery guitar work, while Raw Ramp called it a “lively rock ’n’ roll explosion.”
With Empty Chairs, Mackenzie continues to build on nearly a decade of touring across Canada, Europe and the United States. Still in his mid-twenties, he delivers a record that feels rooted in blues history but driven by present-day intensity.
