Grateful band Sloan headlines free music at Sesquifest party

--taken from: The London Free Press

by Joe Belanger

Pride is not a word Chris Murphy prefers on Canada Day. No, the bass player and vocalist from one of Canada’s most respected rock bands, Sloan, performing Sunday for free as part of the city’s downtown Sesquifest celebration, Murphy prefers another word. “Gratitude,” Murphy said.

“I feel people should feel more gratitude than pride,” he said. “The real heroes are few and far between in Canada. I think we’re extremely lucky to be born here or live here.”

Sesquifest continues Saturday with a full slate of activities, including London Symphonia, a dance, a choir and bands on the Trillium Stage from 1 p.m. until a Headphone Party begins at 10:30 p.m. where you’ll be given illuminated headphones on site to listen to a DJ duel.

On the Carolinian Stage, there will be multicultural performances from noon until 5 p.m., music from 6:30 p.m. with the Jack Richardson Orchestra and local singers perform from 8:30 p.m. until 11 p.m.

The orchestra, presented by the Jack Richardson London Music Awards, includes some of London’s finest musicians, vocalist and guitarist Tanya Lovell, guitarist and vocalist Doug Varty, lead guitarist Jim Nestor, drummer Fil Beorchia and saxophone great Noel Lesperance. Singers taking the stage include Scott Bollert, Casper & Kehmak, Alan Charlebois, Laura Gagnon, Sonja Gustafson, Sarina Haggarty, Brent Jones, Jenn Marino, Darla Stratton and Amanda Lynn Stubley.

“The band will blast through 24 Canadian hits from The Guess Who and The Tragically Hip to Jann Arden, from BTO to The Weekend and along with other Canadian hit compositions by Bryan Adams, k.d. Lang, Nelly Furtado and Michael Bublé,” said JRLMA’s Mario Circelli.

Sunday, Centennial ‘67 Day, the fun continues with a musical lineup that includes a variety of acts from Montreal, including the stilt drumming group, MaracaTall, on the Trillium stage, and, on the Carolinian stage, a line-up featuring London Multicultural Community Association at noon until 2 p.m., Howzat at 2:35 p.m., Texas King at 3:30 p.m., Kman & The 45s at 4:20 p.m., Julia Haggarty at 5:20 p.m., The American Rogues at 6:30 p.m., Carly Thomas at 7:30 p.m., The Weathered at 8:30 p.m. and Sloan at 9:30 p.m.

Sloan is a Canadian band that’s never quite got the international attention it deserved, but has maintained a strong Canadian following since they formed in 1991 in Halifax.

Since then, they’ve released 11 albums, two extended play albums, a live album and a greatest hits album and more than 30 singles.

They’ve received nine Juno award nominations, winning one for best alternative album for One Chord to Another.

Their second album, Twice Removed, released in 1994, has been heralded as one of the greatest Canadian albums of all time in various polls, including one in 2005 that placed the album at the top.

Twenty-five years after forming in Halifax (they’re now based in Toronto) the band includes the same line-up, Murphy on bass and vocals, Patrick Pentland on lead vocals and lead guitar, Jay Ferguson on rhythm guitar, Andrew Scott on drums and multi- instrumentalist Gregory Macdonald on keyboards since 2006.

“I love doing this,” said Murphy. “I have a fantastic life. We’re one of those bands who are beloved in Canada but didn’t really make it elsewhere. But there have been years where I’ve been home with 340 days off and I’m still able to make some money, although I’m not rolling in dough.”

Murphy said the band has managed to stay together for two specific reasons: “We encourage everyone in the band to write and contribute songs and we split the money evenly.

“We’re very lucky,” said Murphy. “We come from a place (Halifax) that supports the arts, but now with mortgages and kids (Murphy has two, seven and nine) we take less risks than we used to.”

Murphy said the band has been recording new material “but I don’t know when it’s going to come out.”

He said the London show will be loaded with “familiar” tunes from a songbook that includes such hits as Underwhelmed, Sugartune, Coax Me, People of the Sky, Everything You’ve Done Wrong, Money City Maniacs, Losing California and Unkind.

“A show like this we’ll play a lot of familiar tunes,” said Murphy. “We have the good fortune of having songs from a good body of work.”

--taken from: The London Free Press

Art joins song at NLFB

--taken from: The Sudbury Star (read more here)

There'll also be a rock 'n’ roll boat cruise featuring members of iconic Canadian rock bands like Sloan, The Inbreds and The Pretty Lights. NLFB has partnered with local indie show presenters Party Cannon to present this one-of-a-kind musical cruise aboard the William Ramsey. Indie rock supergroup TUNS will play on board this party vessel, accompanied by local all-girl garage-punk outfit The Ape-ettes. The Party Cannon Pirate Cruise will depart from the Science North dock on July 8 at 3 p.m. Special tickets are available at nlfb.ca.

Sloan’s Chris Murphy has become known as one of the finest writers and performers in Canadian rock 'n’ roll. TUNS are a supergroup that brings Murphy together with his friends and brothers in rock, Mike O’Neill of The Inbreds and Matt Murphy of The Super Friendz and The Pretty Lights. Combining 90s indie rock with power-pop and straight-up rock 'n’ roll, their debut album boasts some of the catchiest rock songs of the last year, and was recently nominated for the Polaris Prize long list.

NLFB is Canada’s longest continually running outdoor music festival. Over the years, NLFB has grown into a seasoned presenter of roots and modern music, and a lightning rod for the energy of northern Ontario’s artistic community. Tickets and information are online at nlfb.ca.

--taken from: The Sudbury Star (read more here)

Sloan hits birthday bash

--taken from: The London Free Press

Sloan is joining the Forest City’s five-day party celebrating Canada’s 150th birthday.

Sesquifest announced Tuesday the full lineup for the festival that kicks off in just over a week.

The Carolinian Stage in the heart of downtown London at Dundas Street and Talbot Street will be the site of festival headliners Hollerado on June 29 and Fefe Dobson on June 30.

The London Multicultural Community Association will kick off the Canada Day action at the Carolinian Stage from noon to 5 p.m while Londoners can carry on their Canada 150 celebrations past midnight with a headphone party at the Trillium Stage at Market Square.

On July 2, The Bettys play Trillium Stage’s final show just before Sloan closes out the festival’s musical lineup on the Carolinian Stage.

Talent from all across Canada will be on both stages from as early noon to as late as 1 a.m. throughout the first four days of Sesquifest.

--taken from: The London Free Press

Music News Digest, June 19, 2017

--taken from: FYI Music News (read more here)

Survival as a national Canadian music magazine for 25 years is a milestone reached by few publications. Monthly freebie Exclaim! turns the corner this year and celebrated the fact with a party in Toronto on Friday. Held inside and out at Henderson Brewery, the event included a fascinating exhibit from the archives, DJ sets from Ian Blurton and Sloan's Jay Ferguson, and the usual schmoozing, eating and drinking. Many Exclaim! contributors past and present showed, while notables spied included Moe Berg, Tonni Maruyama, Terra Lightfoot, Andy Stochansky, Radio Starmaker's Jerry Leibowitz, Six Shooter's Emily Smart, and Jeff Rogers. Congrats to publisher Ian Danzig and his team.

--taken from: FYI Music News (read more here)

Odds in Tburg for 30th anniversary concert - June 16

--taken from: Tillsonburg News (read more here)

by Chris Abbott

It's the 30th anniversary for the Juno nominated band Odds, and you can celebrate with them Friday, June 16th at Sammy Krenshaw's in Tillsonburg.

The Vancouver alternative rock band, which formed in 1987, first hit the Canadian charts in 1991, and continued to produce hits throughout the 90s. After taking a hiatus roughly from 1999-2007 - although they continued to play individually and together during that span - three of the group decided to reform in 2008, and they've been performing as a four-member band with one new addition since.

"We're writing another record," said lead vocalist and one of the founding members, Craig Northey, from Vancouver last week. "We just keep forging ahead into the future. We are on the current Stephen Page (Barenaked Ladies) release, myself and the band, so we've been playing with him. I've been playing with him as a band member a little while now, too. Lately I've also been playing with Trans-Canada Highwaymen, which is myself, Stephen Page, Moe Berg and Chris Murphy from Sloan."

--taken from: Tillsonburg News (read more here)