Style: religious, experimental
Label: self-released
Year: 2010
Home: Ontario, Canada
Members: Dr. Moe ~ guitar/bass/keyboards/vocals
Michael Keyes ~ keyboards/bass
There are many people who are surprised when they hear that the father of modern avant-garde John Cage was an expert scientist in mushrooms or Queen's Brian May has Ph.D. in astro-physics. I also once knew a high school algebra teacher who who was a folk guitarist & published poet ... & a more interesting artist than some of the professional poets that were teaching up the hill at the college. The scientific with the artistic are often seen as contradictory but this is really a stereotype that does little justice to how much one field bounces off & inspires the other. Dr. Moe, or Dr. Maurice Turmel, is a retired psychologist of 35 years who has continued his healing via his original compositions of spiritually uplifting easy listening music. Robin Hitchcock is one name that first comes to mind for Dr. Moe with his simple guitar rhythms against ethereal keyboards, electronic drums & soft singing on personal issues, though vocally he's more akin to a young Levon Helm. Many of the songs are slow & almost hypnotic 4 minute moments but a few (i.e. "Remember When", "Let It Begin", "My Vision Of Heaven") are more upbeat with almost a 50's R&B feeling ... imagine if Buddy Holly took to George Harrison chanting & not drawing from the Devil's blues. But, at the same time, the music isn't Holly or Harrison, nor R&B, nor particularly bluesy though the modest solos belay this as Dr. Moe's roots, while at times the electronic foundation is a cross between the lighter side, if there is a lighter side, of Gary Numan mixed with the feeling of modern New Age music. Following his professional work Dr. Moe has crafted a set of humble songs of personal self-discovery, including: "Breathless", "Feels Like Home", "On My Way Again", "Let It Begin", "My Vision Of Heaven", "Dreamer", "Diamonds In The Rough" & "Twilight Time". The titles belay the themes found in the album.
Now Is The Time is uplifting as it can get, let alone spiritual. It's not Christian but much more New Age oriented, as the linear notes say it aims for "connection with Source" by the "spiritually hungry sometimes known as LightWorkers, Starseeds, WayShowers & Seekers in preparation for Ascention 2012." Though, considering the specifics of his audience the lyrics aren't incredibly specific aiming more for generic New Age holistic thinking of world peace & self-enlightenment through love, which is the essential idea behind the LightWorkers & other groups. "Can't wait until tomorrow/to find out who I am" Dr. Moe sings in "Diamonds In The Rough" & in many ways that's the message of the album. Don't wait until 2012 to see how your life can change or, hopefully, be better.
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