Jacob River Milnes and his Footprint to fame

Concordia student proves his talent once again with fresh new album

Concordia music student Jacob River Milnes has recently dropped his second album,  Footprints. With the songs falling under varying genres such as folk, rock and even country, this album is truly for anyone. Milnes sat down with The Concordian to talk about his work and his passion for music.

Given his proficient recording technique and obvious talent, it is clear that Milnes has been working at his music for a long time. Just last year, he released his debut album I’ll Be Waiting Here which was inspired by a past relationship while the message behind Footprints is left up to the listener. 

“There’s not really a message behind this one. My songs come from my own experiences with the world. The message is up to the listener. I’m sure if they listen to it, they’ll come up with something that is true to them and that’s what’s important to me.”

“Footprints,” Milnes’s favourite song on the album, differs from his other pieces as it is clearly more sentimental. The track stemmed from his experience of moving away from his hometown, Val -des-Monts, to come to Montreal to study music. The heartfelt lyrics of the track paired with his all-consuming relationship with the guitar provokes an undeniable feeling of nostalgia among listeners.

“I grew up in the country and for a long time I’ve been wanting to get out of there and move to the city. Finally, I’m in Montreal now and “Footprints” was written right before I left,” Milnes said.

But “Footprints” is not the only track with a story. “Theme From ‘Don’t Let The Bull Defeat You’” is the last song on the album, composed for a short film that Milnes and his friends created over the summer. The artist wrote and directed the entire soundtrack for the film. Considering it was Milnes’ first acoustic song, he definitely didn’t disappoint.

The rock and roll tone within the two tracks “I Won’t Do It” as well as “You Could Pretend” on Footprints were inspired by some of Milnes favourite artists.While his main inspirations are The Beatles and Bob Dylan, most recently he has started listening to Olivia Rodrigo and Billie Eilish.   

“I do listen to a lot of old music but I try to stay connected with modern music as well. So, I was inspired by those two artists [Rodrigo and Eilish] to write more modern sounding songs,” Milnes told The Concordian.

Milnes also has a number of family members that have been guiding him throughout his career.  

“One of the biggest inspirations for me is the man who introduced me to Bob Dylan and introduced me to all music which was my grandfather. He was the one who got me interested in music.”

Although the most notable instrument in Milnes’ songs is the guitar, he first started out on the drums when he was ten years old. He didn’t originally intend to be a singer-songwriter but starting off on the drums for a band, he quickly realised after playing a few shows, he wanted to be actively engaging with the audience.

“I would see the people in front of me on the stage and I was behind the stage playing drums and I realised that I wanted to be upfront playing guitar and engaging with the audience more. This side came out of me through showmanship. When I picked up the guitar, I slowly realised that I could write.”

Jacob River Milnes is definitely capable of becoming a known name in the music industry and Footprints is a clear indication of that. While letting fans enjoy the new album for the time being, he has some new projects to treat his fans with in the upcoming year.

“There’s definitely going to be a next album. I’m always writing and I have a few songs that will probably be on the next one.” 

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