The Social Threat will be doing a FREE acoustic set at Inspire Café this Friday, March 30th from 8:00pm until 10:00pm. Come on down, grab a coffee, and chill to the sweet punk-acoustic tunes.

Here’s a little taste of what to expect:

Facebook Event

Something to Say

Something to Say is more than just an album title for Emma Cloney. It’s a statement about surviving a painful period of her life. Emma overcame the challenges of a difficult upbringing in foster care – creating a life for herself filled with love, friendship and opportunity. On her first ever western Canadian tour, Emma will share the songs that have helped her find her voice and indeed give her something to say. An honest and talented songwriter, Emma captures the essence of her experiences in music and she’s ready to share it with anyone who is genuinely willing to listen:

Where: Medicine Hat, AB – Private House Concert (contact me at signy@soundstrategymusic.ca)
When: Friday June 3, 2011
Time: 7:00 PM
Special Guests: Dan Frechette

Emma will be joined on her Uphill Both Ways tour by the venerable Dan Frechette – a well-respected Winnipeg folk musician who has graced the stages of some the most prominent folk festivals in North America. Dan, with his innate ability to engross his listeners with stories and melodies, has long been a mentor to Emma.

As true folk raconteurs, both Emma and Dan will offer their audiences a variety of introspective, original songs interwoven with timeless folk classics. From Something to Say, Emma will perform a number of songs, including “Tiny Soldiers” – an ode to her siblings’ ordeal, “The Anthem” – a heartwarming tribute to a friend battling cancer, and “Mustang Dreamer” – a lullaby about watching her daughter grow up too fast.

Emma Cloney has something to say with her new album, and no doubt the new fans she’ll be making on her western Canadian tour will be eager to hear more.

Visit Emma Cloney online: www.emmacloney.com
Visit Dan Frechette online: www.danfrechette.com

Danny Michel

Eclectic singer-songwriter Danny Michel, with local opener Danny Dyck, are in concert this Friday, March 4th, 8PM at the Medalta as part of the Tongue on the Post concert series presentation.

Tickets are $25 at www.tixx.ca or at the door. Look for more info at mhfolkmusic.com.

Preview of Danny Michel’s Music
More information on Danny Dyck

Alexis Normand, bilingual singer-songwriter from Saskatoon who sings jazz-folk music is looking for a gig in town. Why don’t we help her out! From her email:

I am in the process of booking a tour out west and would like to make a stop in Medicine Hat. I am looking for any suggestions for venues that I can contact in order to book a show in October. I stumbled across your website and figured you may have some suggestions.

I’ve tried the Ottoman Lounge and am finding it difficult to get in touch with someone. Are there any other venues of this type in the Hat that you can recommend?

Here is a quick description of my music (to give you an idea):

Warm folk ambiance sooths the palate while the sweet aftertaste of jazz lingers… Valued and acclaimed as one of Saskatchewan’s few, the bilingual singer-songwriter, Alexis Normand, has entered the world of indie-folk music with the release of her debut recording in January 2010. Her versatile and suave voice, soothing piano arrangements and Latin-influenced guitar rhythms are quickly making her one of Western Canada’s most talked about francophone emerging artists.

You can contact Alexis Normand through email or through her MySpace.

Looking for the Spectrum 2011 post?

I have already posted about All the Colours of the Spectrum, but what about the main event? This year it taking place over the following dates:

• Friday 4-10PM (June 4th)
• Saturday 11AM-10PM (June 5th)
• Sunday 11AM-4PM (June 6th)

The main Spectrum event contains a huge amount of art, sports, dance, music, food, festivities and other performances (including the magic of Trevor Moore). In fact, I think this post has been tagged with the most categories a single post has ever received. The following is a list of stage performers (which are free, by the way):

Friday, June 4th

4:00 – 4:45 – German Harmony Band
5:00 – 5:45 – Amy Nelson
5:45 – 6:30 – The Magic of Trevor Moore
6:30 – 8:00 – Scott Ward – Hypnotist
8:15 – 9:15 – Kool Ray and the Hip Kats

Saturday, June 5th

11:30 – Amy Nelson
12:00 – Walk a Mile in her Shoes
12:30 – Amy Nelson
1:00 – Medicine Hat’s Got Talent
2:00 – Dance Connection
3:00 – Master’s Extreme Makeover
4:30 – 5:30 – The Straight Jackets
5:30 – 6:30 – Blacksmith Jones
6:45 – 7:45 – The Magic of Trevor Moore
8:00 – 10:00 – Jazz – Lyle Rebbeck

Sunday, June 6th

12:00 – Gas Town Riot
1:00 – Medicine Hat’s Got Talent
2:00 – Dance Connection
3:00 – Quintet

Besides performances, there’s also a ton of other activities and events to keep you busy: THE JUMP – Read the rest of this entry »

Erin Ross will be playing the Ottoman Lounge Saturday, April 24th live at 9PM. $5 cover at the door. Her music can be described as Blues and Acoustic (with a little bit of Country on the side). She has been quite busy lately in support of her recordings – she plays on average over one hundred shows per year!

http://www.myspace.com/erinross
http://www.erinross.ca/

Erin Ross is an accomplished recording artist and performer. Having spent many years honing her skills and refining her craft, Erin delivers something that is energetic, dynamic and fresh.

In 2008 Erin released a vinyl single “Sweet Thing.” It charted on CJSW for 6 weeks, peaking at #10 overall. It also won attention from CKUA Alberta Public Radio, CiTR in Vancouver, CJSR in Edmonton and CKXU in Lethbridge. Erin’s music has also been featured regularly on the CBC in Calgary and has found its way onto Mountain Radio in Blairmore and CIDO in the Creston Valley.

Mojave will be playing live at the The Ottoman Lounge Thursday September 17th. The show will have a $5 cover charge and will start at 9:30PM (even though the poster says 8PM). They are currently touring to promote their latest album, “Crows Funeral”, so you can expect to hear quite a few songs off of it. Thanks for supporting the Live Music at The Ottoman Lounge.

Mojave at Ottoman Lounge – Medicine Hat News article by Gillian Slade
Facebook Event
Official Website

Blurb About Mojave:

Officially formed in early 2007, Mojave started as a side project from two members of Vancouver hard rock bands, Damsel Fly and Latitude. Having already spent a few years writing songs together, LJ and Paul had an entire album ready to record by the time their bands called it quits. Mojave’s sound draws from the bands previous rock background, but is softened with classical elements like viola and violin. Bringing the sound together is an eclectic mix of percussion. At the forefront are female vocals with delicately intertwined acoustic guitars – weaving melodies, telling stories.

Ben Disaster, an Edmonton-based acoustic-punk artist is currently seeking a gig in the Medicine Hat area from the 19th to the 20th. Ben’s music can be described as what punk music would sound like with no other instruments besides a good ol’ acoustic guitar; that, and slower melodies. His music reminds me much of Justin Sane’s (of Anti-Flag) solo work. Ben’s message to us on MySpace as follows:

Hi guys and Girls, My name is Ben I am a folk singer from Edmonton. I have been booking a tour through out western Canada will be leaving in less then a week. I had some problems with some pending shows and now i have a few days open. I am touring with my friend Dylan Thomas from Vancouver.

We are touring together and playing separate set and also combining sets. We are both pretty mellow guys and keep a positive atmosphere.

We will be in the Area of Medicine from the 19th to the 20th. I am wondering if you might know of any places that would book us last minute or if there are any open mikes that we could check out. at this point we are just looking for something to do even if it’s playing a back yard BBQ. If you could get back to me I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Cheers
-Ben

Dylan’s stuff is a little bit more indie-rock-ish with a folk twist but they suit each other quite nicely. Please contact Ben via his MySpace.

Ben Disaster @ MySpace
Dylan Thomas @ MySpace

James Murdoch Band will be playing Live at The Ottoman Lounge tonight on Friday, July 3rd starting at 9:30pm.  Thank you to everyone for supporting the Live Music at The Ottoman Lounge.

Check out James Murdoch at www.myspace.com/jamesmurdoch

A little bit about James Murdoch:

Western Canadian Music Award winner and four time nominee, James Murdoch has performed across North America. His forthcoming CD, “Wondering Where The Rush Has Gone”, will be released June 9th, 2009. Murdoch’s previous release, “In Transit”, which was produced by Hawksley Workman, won Best Album Design and was nominated for Album of the Year and Video of the Year at the 2008 WCMA’s.

Kirby, also known as John Kirby, is a talented Canadian folk artist and will be playing at The Ottoman Lounge, March 19th, and again on April 17th. Kirby has toured Canada solo three times in 2008 in support of his second release “The Good Fight EP”. Now, on this tour, he has 32 separate dates all across Canada.

The Good Fight EP Cover

Listening through some of his online stuff and even downloading his full set of releases; yes that’s right, you can legally grab all of his music (including demos and other stuff) in good ol’ MP3 form right off of his website here – he seems to be a very talented folk artist in the traditional acoustic singer-songwriter fashion, reminding me of John Mayer in my limited scope. Lots of his music seems depressing or more introspective on a basic level, but as one commenter put it, Craig Webster, on his blog,

“On the surface, you might think songs like “Defeat” and “Lost Loved Ones” are songs of sorrow and despair, but you’d be wrong. Instead, they are songs about overcoming your obstacles, and they show the listener that no matter how bleak life and its situations might look, there is an optimistic way to look at it.”

I think I would tend to agree with him, especially when viewing his first video single “The Good Fight” (shown below).

Videos and links after the jump!

THE JUMP – Read the rest of this entry »