NEWS: Julie Doiron, Jay Crocker, Grant Lawrence & Rebekah Higgs
Rebekah Higgs Brings "Little Voice" Home To Halifax
Rebekah Higgs is an instrument all her own. At times happy, often haunting, her voice echoes and chimes like a xylophone French kissing a wa-wa pedal. Produced by Brian Deck (Iron & Wine, Modest Mouse, Califone), Little Voice is not only a shiny new four song EP to wrap around yourself for warmth against the coming winter but also a glimpse into what fruit Rebekah Higgs' upcoming sophomore full length record will bear come the new year. Little Voice was released on November 23rd.
Dec 28 @ The Paragon – 9 PM
“...seemingly effortless hooks. We can only hope Higgs' full-length puts as many new spins on the traditional female singer/songwriter character class as this excellent EP". Chartattack
“As an introduction to the coming new album, Little Voice does a fantastic job of teasing and building anticipation. I was starting to think that 2011 would be a slow going year for new music, but Rebekah Higgs looks set to be a big voice in the coming months.” Quick Before It Melts
“Little Voice is a marvellous EP that raises the bar high, but with the right company, Higgs's sophomore LP should have no trouble Fosbury Flop-ing over it.” Exclaim!
“The ep was produced by Brian Deck (Iron & Wine, Modest Mouse), who wisely lets Higgs big voice shine on the waltzy title track.” The National Post
Little Voice Tour Dates
Dec 15 – Hamilton, ON @ The Casbah w/ The Rural Alberta Advantage
Dec 16 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace w/ The Rural Alberta Advantage
Dec 17 – Montreal, QC @ Cagibi w / Yellow Jacket Avenger, Jon Samuel – 8 PM
Dec 17 – Montreal, QC @ Il Motore w/ The Rural Alberta Advantage – 10 PM
Dec 18 – Ottawa, ON @ Ritual Nightclub w/ The Rural Alberta Advantage
Dec 28 – Halifax, NS @ The Paragon – 9 PM
http://rebekahhiggs.bandcamp.com/
___________________________________
Grant Lawrence's Debut Book "Adventures in Solitude" Reaches #2 on National Bestsellers List
CBC Radio personality and first-time author Grant Lawrence continues to make strides with his debut book "Adventures in Solitude". First released on September 27, 2010 to universally rave reviews, within one month the book was the #1 Bestseller in BC. Within two months it was #2 on the National Bestsellers List for non-fiction paperback in Canada. In November, Grant Lawrence completed a successful coast-to-coast book tour which touched down in Victoria, Vancouver, Regina, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa, Halifax and many other spots in between, events which have included live performances from such musicians as Jim Bryson, Matthew Barber, Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, Aidan Knight, Said The Whale, Andy Swan, Jill Barber (Lawrence's wife) and others.
"To say I'm shocked by the reception the book has received is a huge understatement", said Lawrence. "I'm truly flattered, and I profusely thank the book buyers of Canada for proving a lot of naysayers wrong... including myself!" Lawrence has two more book events in his home province of BC before Christmas break, including an event in Lawrence's hometown of West Vancouver. Upcoming book event dates in 2011 will include Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Fredericton, and Charlottetown.
"Adventures in Solitude" is Grant Lawrence's coming-of-age memoir of his time spent at his family cabin in Desolation Sound, a remote area of the West Coast, populated with hermits, outlaw bikers, and naked hippies. "Adventures in Solitude" was recently listed as one of the Top Ten Canadian Books of the Year in the Vancouver Sun, Montreal Gazette, and Calgary Herald. The book is published by Harbour Publishing and is currently in its second print run.
Critical praise for "Adventures in Solitude":
"A hilarious and touching memoir [told] with an effortless storytelling style". - Exclaim Magazine
"Adventures in Solitude is a study in dualities, none stronger than the timeless conflicts between old versus new and man versus nature." – Vancouver Sun
"Funny and insightful, Adventures In Solitude is chock full of outrageous and quirky rural stories." - Telegraph Journal
Upcoming Events
Wed Dec 15, Harriot Bay Inn, Quadra Island BC, w/ Jill Barber 7pm, free
Sun Dec 19, West Vancouver Memorial Library, West Vancouver BC, w/ Jill Barber 2pm, free
http://grantlawrence.ca/
___________________________________
Saved By Radio Recording Artist From Calgary,
Jay Crocker Announces The February 15th Release Of Co-Stars
http://killbeatmusic.com/jaycrocker
Tucked away behind an inauspicious house a fair distance from Calgary’s oil-rich downtown core rests an unassuming shack unlike any other. 10’ x 10’ in size with scuffed hard wood floors, full of rare (and in some cases, even homemade) recording implements and instrumentation, this shed is a rare anomaly in the digital age – a fully analogue studio without even a digital clock as distraction. To those in the know, this simple hand-built shed is Sea Legs, the secret hide-out bunker and personal recording space of Jay Crocker, producer and arranger of several of 2010’s finest Calgary-produced records including Ghostkeeper’s self-titled Polaris Prize-nominated opus (on Flemish Eye), internationally acclaimed NOMORESHAPES’ Creases Crisis (on Flemish Eye / Drip Audio), and Ryan Bourne’s The Super Modern World of Beauty (released by Saved by Radio).
But while much of Crocker’s props these past few seasons has focused primarily on his gifts of production and arrangement, much like Sea Legs itself there’s far more to Crocker than simply a set of skilled fingers at the mixing desk. Performed almost entirely by his own hand within the walls of Sea Legs tiny confines (and a couple of apartment spaces in Calgary and Montreal), the cheekily-titled Co-Stars (since there aren’t really any) marks the studio re-emergence of one of Canada’s most unique musical talents from noted side-man behind the scenes to front-and-centre.
Packing an album’s worth of ideas into each and every track, Co-Stars bewilders and surprises at every turn. Colliding old-school pop songcraft with experimental tendencies – call it avant-pop if you’re the type who yearns for genre-fication – Crocker’s sense of composition and adventure is unleashed in full over the album’s 10 quick-moving tracks. Looking past the all-encompassing melodies (Crocker’s voice has never sounded quite so assured, quite so endearing), looking deep into the sounds of Co-Stars is like glancing into a skilled magician’s bag of tricks – you’ll never quite figure out how it’s all been done. At one moment pulsating and severe, while at the next gentle and serene, the force behind Co-Stars is one grappling with the possibilities of sound, wide eyes and blown eardrums echoing in Calgary’s sprawling beltline.
The pummeling opener ‘Super Disease’ meshes distorted quick-fingered riffs with a hook so sticky it’s unforgettable after the first listen, while the gorgeously elegiac ‘Beard in a Mirror’, sees Crocker attempt to define himself with the lyrical knock-out, “There’s a few words that come to mind when I try to describe myself this time: earthquake / handshake / paranoid believer just trying to be a dreamer.” Furthermore, it’s a rare record that can string together the electro gristle of ‘Porno is a Mustang’ and the gentle The Band-style shuffle of ‘Beaver Hat Man’ and still sound from the same source. Surely, here is a musician who never sits still.
Hard to pin down? Maybe. Worth giving into and following through its myriad nooks and crannies? Definitely.
___________________________________
Julie Doiron Is Honoured By CBC Radio 3 With The Bucky Award For Lifetime Achievement and Announces New Canadian Tour Dates
Since Releasing The Juno Award Nominated "I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day" Julie Doiron has toured The United States, Europe, Japan, China and Canada as a solo artist, with her highly acclaimed trio Daniel, Fred and Julie, with Mt Eerie and as part of Gord Downie's Country Of Miracles. When she has not been on the road she has worked tirelessly on promoting her much beloved festival Sappyfest in Sackville, New Brunswick. Julie was recently honoured by CBC Radio 3 with a Bucky Award for Lifetime Achievement and with yet another accolade to fit into her guitar case she has announced new Canadian tour dates.
Julie Doiron Canadian Tour Dates
Jan 14 - London, ON @ Aeolian Hall w/ Castlemusic & Sunbear
Jan 26 – Fredericton, NB @ Gallery Connexion w/ Baby Eagle
Jan 27 – Charlottetown, PE @ Baba’s w/ Baby Eagle
Jan 28 – Halifax, NS @ The Seahorse w/ Baby Eagle
Jan 29 – Sackville, NB @ George’s
Feb 01 – Kingston, ON @ The Grad Club w/ Little Scream
Feb 02 – Peterborough, ON @ Red Dog w/ Little Scream
Feb 03 – Toronto, ON @ The Horseshoe w/ Little Scream
Feb 04 – Ottawa, ON @ Mavericks w/ Little Scream
Feb 05 – Montreal, QC @ Il Motore
Praise For "I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day"
“It’s a rare and amazing thing when an indie musician finds ways to keep chugging along on her own steam for years and then releases an album that brings together in the most powerful way everything she’s learned.” Now Magazine
“Hands down, this is Doiron's most engaging work since 1999's Julie Doiron And The Wooden Stars.” Chartattack
“Helmed once again by Eric's Trip main man Rick White, I Can Wonder is easily Doiron's most jubilant effort to date --one that makes you feel you're discovering her all over again.” Canwest News Service
http://www.killbeatmusic.com/juliedoironwonder
___________________________________
print/radio/digital media - killbeat music
www.killbeatmusic.com / 604 683 2124 / http://twitter.com/killbeat
Rebekah Higgs is an instrument all her own. At times happy, often haunting, her voice echoes and chimes like a xylophone French kissing a wa-wa pedal. Produced by Brian Deck (Iron & Wine, Modest Mouse, Califone), Little Voice is not only a shiny new four song EP to wrap around yourself for warmth against the coming winter but also a glimpse into what fruit Rebekah Higgs' upcoming sophomore full length record will bear come the new year. Little Voice was released on November 23rd.
Dec 28 @ The Paragon – 9 PM
“...seemingly effortless hooks. We can only hope Higgs' full-length puts as many new spins on the traditional female singer/songwriter character class as this excellent EP". Chartattack
“As an introduction to the coming new album, Little Voice does a fantastic job of teasing and building anticipation. I was starting to think that 2011 would be a slow going year for new music, but Rebekah Higgs looks set to be a big voice in the coming months.” Quick Before It Melts
“Little Voice is a marvellous EP that raises the bar high, but with the right company, Higgs's sophomore LP should have no trouble Fosbury Flop-ing over it.” Exclaim!
“The ep was produced by Brian Deck (Iron & Wine, Modest Mouse), who wisely lets Higgs big voice shine on the waltzy title track.” The National Post
Little Voice Tour Dates
Dec 15 – Hamilton, ON @ The Casbah w/ The Rural Alberta Advantage
Dec 16 – Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Palace w/ The Rural Alberta Advantage
Dec 17 – Montreal, QC @ Cagibi w / Yellow Jacket Avenger, Jon Samuel – 8 PM
Dec 17 – Montreal, QC @ Il Motore w/ The Rural Alberta Advantage – 10 PM
Dec 18 – Ottawa, ON @ Ritual Nightclub w/ The Rural Alberta Advantage
Dec 28 – Halifax, NS @ The Paragon – 9 PM
http://rebekahhiggs.bandcamp.com/
___________________________________
Grant Lawrence's Debut Book "Adventures in Solitude" Reaches #2 on National Bestsellers List
CBC Radio personality and first-time author Grant Lawrence continues to make strides with his debut book "Adventures in Solitude". First released on September 27, 2010 to universally rave reviews, within one month the book was the #1 Bestseller in BC. Within two months it was #2 on the National Bestsellers List for non-fiction paperback in Canada. In November, Grant Lawrence completed a successful coast-to-coast book tour which touched down in Victoria, Vancouver, Regina, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa, Halifax and many other spots in between, events which have included live performances from such musicians as Jim Bryson, Matthew Barber, Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, Aidan Knight, Said The Whale, Andy Swan, Jill Barber (Lawrence's wife) and others.
"To say I'm shocked by the reception the book has received is a huge understatement", said Lawrence. "I'm truly flattered, and I profusely thank the book buyers of Canada for proving a lot of naysayers wrong... including myself!" Lawrence has two more book events in his home province of BC before Christmas break, including an event in Lawrence's hometown of West Vancouver. Upcoming book event dates in 2011 will include Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Fredericton, and Charlottetown.
"Adventures in Solitude" is Grant Lawrence's coming-of-age memoir of his time spent at his family cabin in Desolation Sound, a remote area of the West Coast, populated with hermits, outlaw bikers, and naked hippies. "Adventures in Solitude" was recently listed as one of the Top Ten Canadian Books of the Year in the Vancouver Sun, Montreal Gazette, and Calgary Herald. The book is published by Harbour Publishing and is currently in its second print run.
Critical praise for "Adventures in Solitude":
"A hilarious and touching memoir [told] with an effortless storytelling style". - Exclaim Magazine
"Adventures in Solitude is a study in dualities, none stronger than the timeless conflicts between old versus new and man versus nature." – Vancouver Sun
"Funny and insightful, Adventures In Solitude is chock full of outrageous and quirky rural stories." - Telegraph Journal
Upcoming Events
Wed Dec 15, Harriot Bay Inn, Quadra Island BC, w/ Jill Barber 7pm, free
Sun Dec 19, West Vancouver Memorial Library, West Vancouver BC, w/ Jill Barber 2pm, free
http://grantlawrence.ca/
___________________________________
Saved By Radio Recording Artist From Calgary,
Jay Crocker Announces The February 15th Release Of Co-Stars
http://killbeatmusic.com/jaycrocker
Tucked away behind an inauspicious house a fair distance from Calgary’s oil-rich downtown core rests an unassuming shack unlike any other. 10’ x 10’ in size with scuffed hard wood floors, full of rare (and in some cases, even homemade) recording implements and instrumentation, this shed is a rare anomaly in the digital age – a fully analogue studio without even a digital clock as distraction. To those in the know, this simple hand-built shed is Sea Legs, the secret hide-out bunker and personal recording space of Jay Crocker, producer and arranger of several of 2010’s finest Calgary-produced records including Ghostkeeper’s self-titled Polaris Prize-nominated opus (on Flemish Eye), internationally acclaimed NOMORESHAPES’ Creases Crisis (on Flemish Eye / Drip Audio), and Ryan Bourne’s The Super Modern World of Beauty (released by Saved by Radio).
But while much of Crocker’s props these past few seasons has focused primarily on his gifts of production and arrangement, much like Sea Legs itself there’s far more to Crocker than simply a set of skilled fingers at the mixing desk. Performed almost entirely by his own hand within the walls of Sea Legs tiny confines (and a couple of apartment spaces in Calgary and Montreal), the cheekily-titled Co-Stars (since there aren’t really any) marks the studio re-emergence of one of Canada’s most unique musical talents from noted side-man behind the scenes to front-and-centre.
Packing an album’s worth of ideas into each and every track, Co-Stars bewilders and surprises at every turn. Colliding old-school pop songcraft with experimental tendencies – call it avant-pop if you’re the type who yearns for genre-fication – Crocker’s sense of composition and adventure is unleashed in full over the album’s 10 quick-moving tracks. Looking past the all-encompassing melodies (Crocker’s voice has never sounded quite so assured, quite so endearing), looking deep into the sounds of Co-Stars is like glancing into a skilled magician’s bag of tricks – you’ll never quite figure out how it’s all been done. At one moment pulsating and severe, while at the next gentle and serene, the force behind Co-Stars is one grappling with the possibilities of sound, wide eyes and blown eardrums echoing in Calgary’s sprawling beltline.
The pummeling opener ‘Super Disease’ meshes distorted quick-fingered riffs with a hook so sticky it’s unforgettable after the first listen, while the gorgeously elegiac ‘Beard in a Mirror’, sees Crocker attempt to define himself with the lyrical knock-out, “There’s a few words that come to mind when I try to describe myself this time: earthquake / handshake / paranoid believer just trying to be a dreamer.” Furthermore, it’s a rare record that can string together the electro gristle of ‘Porno is a Mustang’ and the gentle The Band-style shuffle of ‘Beaver Hat Man’ and still sound from the same source. Surely, here is a musician who never sits still.
Hard to pin down? Maybe. Worth giving into and following through its myriad nooks and crannies? Definitely.
___________________________________
Julie Doiron Is Honoured By CBC Radio 3 With The Bucky Award For Lifetime Achievement and Announces New Canadian Tour Dates
Since Releasing The Juno Award Nominated "I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day" Julie Doiron has toured The United States, Europe, Japan, China and Canada as a solo artist, with her highly acclaimed trio Daniel, Fred and Julie, with Mt Eerie and as part of Gord Downie's Country Of Miracles. When she has not been on the road she has worked tirelessly on promoting her much beloved festival Sappyfest in Sackville, New Brunswick. Julie was recently honoured by CBC Radio 3 with a Bucky Award for Lifetime Achievement and with yet another accolade to fit into her guitar case she has announced new Canadian tour dates.
Julie Doiron Canadian Tour Dates
Jan 14 - London, ON @ Aeolian Hall w/ Castlemusic & Sunbear
Jan 26 – Fredericton, NB @ Gallery Connexion w/ Baby Eagle
Jan 27 – Charlottetown, PE @ Baba’s w/ Baby Eagle
Jan 28 – Halifax, NS @ The Seahorse w/ Baby Eagle
Jan 29 – Sackville, NB @ George’s
Feb 01 – Kingston, ON @ The Grad Club w/ Little Scream
Feb 02 – Peterborough, ON @ Red Dog w/ Little Scream
Feb 03 – Toronto, ON @ The Horseshoe w/ Little Scream
Feb 04 – Ottawa, ON @ Mavericks w/ Little Scream
Feb 05 – Montreal, QC @ Il Motore
Praise For "I Can Wonder What You Did With Your Day"
“It’s a rare and amazing thing when an indie musician finds ways to keep chugging along on her own steam for years and then releases an album that brings together in the most powerful way everything she’s learned.” Now Magazine
“Hands down, this is Doiron's most engaging work since 1999's Julie Doiron And The Wooden Stars.” Chartattack
“Helmed once again by Eric's Trip main man Rick White, I Can Wonder is easily Doiron's most jubilant effort to date --one that makes you feel you're discovering her all over again.” Canwest News Service
http://www.killbeatmusic.com/juliedoironwonder
___________________________________
print/radio/digital media - killbeat music
www.killbeatmusic.com / 604 683 2124 / http://twitter.com/killbeat
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