New studio, and other news
Photo: Jason Plumb and the Willing
Jason Plumb hit the road for a few days in April supporting Melissa McClelland. New album, "Wide Open Music - Songs for Saskatchewan" (Jason Plumb and the Willing) is full of new versions of their favourite Saskatchewan-inspired Plumb songs. It was released in Canada on June 9, and on June 13 in Regina at The Distrikt. The Willing gathered in Jason's living room in January to record and film a few songs acoustically (well, mostly). They're also working on "Alive & Willing", a live DVD shot in Regina last summer.
After a competition in his school division and then a provincial-level competition in Gravelbourg in March, Joel Cossette represented Saskatchewan for the pan-quebecois finale of Secondaire en spectacle, May 28-31 in Monteregie. Normally the French youth writes, plays guitar and sings original indie/pop music in Saskatoon band Prom Night in Black and White in English, but for this project he teamed up with piano player and schoolmate from L'Ecole Canadienne, Deryck Blanchard. The youths are excited to be traveling to experience the culture and competition.
Saskatchewan Musical Melodies is a new web forum that aims to bring artists of every genre of music together.
Tanda Recording have a newly renovated facility in Saskatoon. The professional recording studio is the brainchild of producer/engineer Tony Kuzub and stage/session musician Arlen Hall, providing an environment designed to encourage creative workflow. They pride themselves on letting clients come in, jam, and to be able to capture those inspired moments that can create a great record. The heart and soul of the studio is the custom-built Canadian Ward-Beck Systems mixing console. As this console is unique to Tanda, it gives your recordings a tasty flavour. Tanda uses both ProTools HD and a 24-track Studer 2" tape recorder.
|
|
Really big shows
The Rabid Whole has signed with independent management company Synthetic Entertainment, and its label counterpart Synthetic Sounds. After re-releasing their debut album "Autraumaton" (mastered by Shaun Thingvold), and embarking on their first tour in Western Canada with labelmates Left Spine Down in March, the group is set to invade the rest of Canada this summer.
Megan Lane released new album "Bow and Drill The Spark" on May 15, and is holding a series of release shows in Swift Current, Moose Jaw and Saskatoon.
"A Night For Neil" was held on April 22 at The Roxy in Saskatoon, with money raised thanks to generous donations, 50/50, and raffle ticket sales. The benefit was held to raise additional funds for Neil Meckelborg's ongoing medical care and treatment; one year ago on April 10, Neil found out he had cancer of the esophagus. Neil himself, along with many of Saskatoon's finest musicians, took to the stage in randomly assigned "bands".
Wyatt has been hard at work writing, recording and readying for their next album. With manager Kathalene Stearns moving out of music management, the group signed with Brenda McKeever (St. Paul MN), who is on the management team for Outside the Lines, Inc. They released first single, "Next To You" to Canadian country radio in March, utilizing Kennedy Artist Promotions for tracking. It debuted at #64 on the Country Music News Charts and was sitting at #4 on The Bull's (CKBL) Top 6@6 most requested country songs in Saskatoon at print time. Performing at the 2009 SCMA Awards show in Nipawin, Wyatt took home Group of the Year .
Freddie and Sheila Pelletier returned from their 52-date tour of RV and golf resorts in the southern U.S. Shows were well-attended, especially in Yuma AZ where seven of eight sold out. The Pelletiers also hosted their annual guitar and music camp this summer.
Canadian Radio Star National Songwriting Competition finalists: Supported by Astral Media and Canadian Music Week, this event discovers potential stars at the regional, grassroots level and showcases them to the music industry and general public. Finalists performed at the Canadian Radio Star showcase in Toronto on March 13, presented by the Songwriters Association of Canada, hosted by Andy Kim and Tomi Swick. Congratulations to our regional finalists: John Antoniuk for "Out There" and Jeffery Straker for "Flatlines".
|
|
Releases and writing
Photo: Amy Nelson by Greg Huszar
Amy Nelson started off 2009 with a bang, being nominated for "Female Vocalist of the Year" and "All Star Band - Keys" at the Saskatchewan Country Music Awards. In March, she was chosen as one of the four emerging Regina artists to take part in "SoundXChange", to be broadcast across Canada on CBC Radio this spring. Amy just launched her updated website and is busy booking gigs for the summer. She was very excited to release her first CD, a self-titled EP, in Regina on April 30.
The Korte Sisters have released new album "One Family", their second gospel album and fifth CD overall, featuring a mixture of Southern Gospel and traditional songs, plus two originals. They just completed their third year of touring in Arizona performing at resorts, and are working on Saskatchewan tours for the summer.
Carrie Catherine showcased at the Int'l Folk Alliance Conference in Memphis TN in February, performing seven showcases in all with bandmate Sam Mitchell (flute/mandolin/vocals). She is grateful for support from SaskMusic and FACTOR for the amazing opportunity to network and perform. Following Memphis, Carrie spent two weeks co-writing in Nashville with songwriters including Vince Melamed (co-writer, Trisha Yearwood's "Walkaway Joe"). While there, she also worked with Colin Linden, who will produce her next album. Carrie was recently named a finalist for the New Folk songwriting competition, hosted by the prestigious Kerrville Folk Festival; she performed at the Texas festival in May.
"Kyle Riabko: The Lead" is a 60-minute documentary following Kyle to New York for his Broadway debut in the musical "Spring Awakening". With only one high school musical on his theatre resume, Kyle had just three weeks to prepare for the lead role of Spring Awakening, which won eight Tony Awards just a year earlier. Produced in association with
Bravo! channel.
Codie Prevost had mainstage performances at Dauphin Countryfest and Extreme Country Fever in Grande Prairie, and recently opened for The Oak Ridge Boys and Michelle Wright. His current album, "Spin 6-Pak Vol. 1" garnered a 6/7 star review in The Nashville Music Guide, and single "Call Me When You Get There" continues to gain momentum with radio across Canada, with "One of Those Days" just released. Codie showcased during SXSW at the invitation of Country Line Magazine. Then Codie, his band members, and manager took home ten Saskatchewan Country Music Awards out of fifteen nominations, including "Fan's Choice Entertainer" and "Male Vocalist". Prevost has signed on as a spokesperson for Community Futures , an organization that provides loans to aspiring entrepreneurs and small businesses in rural areas. Its marketing campaign uses the tagline "The Road Ahead" - the name of Prevost's first CD.
|
|
New releases and shows
Photo: Ultimate Power Duo
Ultimate Power Duo were invited back for two dates on the Warped Tour (Calgary/Vancouver) with a summer tour to follow; they recently opened for Bad Religion on their Saskatoon stop, and performed at the Great Escape Festival in Brighton UK in May. Their new album, "New Normal" (on Saved By Radio - March 2009) is getting excellent reviews. UPD will also be releasing a white vinyl edition of 16 tracks in summer 2009, "Maximum UPD," taken from their earlier EPs.
Lyn Besse McGinnis held a CD release party for her debut CD, "All Over the Map", on May 9 at the Refinery. Guest artists included Jay Semko, Kim Fontaine, David J Taylor, Glenn Sutter, Ray Whitton and Bryn Besse. Debut CD in hand, Lyn is focused on marketing and playing, but always has a few new tunes in some stage of development! She has played at The Songs for Supper Songwriters Circle-Saskatoon; Sylvia Chave's Delisle Concert Series; Cafe Vivant - Saskatoon & Turks Coffee House - Prince Albert (with Ray Whitton); and recently showcased at the Saskatchewan Country Music Awards.
Musically Your Records has released Colleen K's debut album, "Light In Your Eyes". The album is doing well on online charts including Ultimate Band List and SongVault. The album contains 16 original songs, from pop, country, rock to ballads.
J.J. Voss and his band recently traveled to Nashville, performing four sets for The Billy Block show at Tootsies Orchid Lounge (as well as a few other showcases), doing interviews, and taking part in co-writing sessions. J.J. is now working with Kenneth Kahler of Nashville, who will be doing some legwork on his behalf in the music city. Following three 2009 SCMA nominations, this summer found J.J. playing acoustic and full band shows around the province including on the Pump Roadhouse Stage during the Craven Country Jamboree.
|
|
|
|
|
Edit Ad
