As much as he loves his job as a special constable with the Campus Community Police Service, music is his real passion, says Kevin Jarvis.

“It’s kind of cathartic to have this outlet,” he says. “This is my way to unload and just let things go.”

Jarvis has been playing guitar and singing since he was 17 years old and has just released his first solo CD, seven original songs he composed despite having no formal training in music.

“Some people can sit down with a pen and paper and write songs,” he says. “I would rather just get together and do it.”

For his album, Beautifully Gloomy, he assembled some of the musicians he has admired and played with over the years—“the best of the best,” Jarvis says—and recorded with producer Martin Bak of SLR Studios.

“Marty is an amazing professional,” says Jarvis. “The production is just as good as anything you’ll hear.”

Jarvis describes his sound as acoustic rock and says his songs draw on episodes from his own life.

“Now with the births of my children, the death of my father, working through my career and marriage, I have real experiences to share,” he says. “I am really proud of this disc because when I listen to it, it brings me back to those experiences.”

The album retails for $15 and is already on the local authors shelf at the University Bookstore. It is also available digitally; hear a preview of each of the songs on the Beautifully Gloomy YouTube video.

Jarvis will perform live during the Relay for Life cancer society fundraiser, June 15 at LaSalle’s Vollmer Culture and Recreation Complex.