ECMA 2023 IN HALIFAX MOST AMBITIOUS EVER

Photo by James West

With just a few days to go until the start of the East Coast Music Awards week in Halifax (May 3 - 7), it's about the time that ECMA CEO Andy McLean pauses for a moment and realizes just how big a job the group has ahead of it. McLean feels this is the most ambitious ECMA ever.

"Thirty full-time and contract staff, 320 volunteers, just the number of pieces, I think we all kind of went, wow, that's a lot," says McLean. "My main thing was to not underdeliver for the 35th anniversary, so I'm pretty confident we have achieved that."

That's taken a lot of ramping up in the Covid era, to get back to the pre-pandemic heights. Last year's event in Fredericton, the first in-person after two years of virtual activity, was a bit smaller as people were still weary of close quarters. 

ECMA CEO Andy McLean

"Ten weeks before the event, I still wasn't sure what public health measures were going to come in," says McLean. "We had to plan for online as well as in person, and there was a little bit of hesitancy for people to gather again. But after the first mixer and glass of wine, the masks seemed to come off and everybody had a great time."

Halifax always holds the biggest ECMA's, and 35 is a pretty impressive birthday, so the goal for the organization was to take it all one step further, with more events, more special programming, and more music opportunities for those going, and those watching at home.

As usual, the main event is near the beginning, with the Awards Gala happening Thursday night, May 4, at the Scotiabank Centre. The show is being hosted by This Hour Has 22 Minutes' Trent McLellan, and features performances by Natalie MacMaster, Neon Dreams, Fortunate Ones, City Natives, and lots more.

"We have two stages running, so we can cram as much music in as possible," says McLean. "There are going to be 13 performances and 15 awards given out, so I'm going to claim that we have the most live music of any awards. And there are some special moments that haven't been announced yet too, which look back on the ECMA's."

ECMA Gala Host Trent McLellan

The entire Awards Gala is also available to stream at ECMA.com, and is also being broadcast nationally on the Rogers platform, along with the pre-show Red Carpet, which starts at 6 PM. Then it's full-on live music all over Halifax and Dartmouth until Sunday.

"Over 200 individual showcases this year, in 11 official venues," says McLean. "And we've added these partnered stages, regular venues in Halifax that are not official venues but want to book music, so they are on board and booking ECMA artists that aren't official showcases. So that makes 24, 25 venues that are going to have live music."

The second batch of trophies get handed out on Sunday at 11 AM, which includes the honorary and industry awards. That show is also getting more attention, and with the recent addition of The East Pointers now features five performances. Plus the other daytime hours are filled up, especially in downtown Halifax. Saturday afternoon sees Argyle Street blocked off for the Dairy Farmers of Canada ECMA Fan Fest, a free event featuring JRDN, DeeDee Austin, Kellie Loder, and Neon Dreams.

Photo by Michael Bourgeois

There's also a daytime start to the whole event on Wednesday, with the official kick-off happening at noon at the Grand Parade. It's an opening blessing at the Wije'winen (Come With Us) Cultural Circle, a special partnership with the Mi'kmaw Native Friendship Centre. That's a big, ongoing part of the week each day on the Grand Parade, with lit teepees, a sacred fire, on-site Elders, and drumming, dance, and song.

"It's going to be an amazing opportunity for our international delegates to witness the rich Indigenous culture," says McLean. "That started with St. Mary's in Fredericton, we had that partnership, and that's going to be something that the ECMA will continue to develop as we move through the regions, and moving forward."

Anyone who recalls the humble beginnings of the ECMA 35 years ago in the Flamingo Pub in Halifax definitely knows how the awards and the entire East Coast music industry have moved forward in that time. All the schedules, ticket info, and the mobile App can be found at ECMA.com.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: A'COURT, SPIEGEL & VINNICK

Some things you know are just going to work great, even when it's still just an idea on paper. A'Court, Spiegel, and Vinnick are three of the most enjoyable roots/blues players traversing Canada these days. Vinnick and A'Court need no introduction to blues and festival music fans, as multiple award winners and excellent songwriters and performers. Spiegel's a relatively newer name, having been introduced to Canadian audiences just a few years back, from his native Australia. There he's a blues icon and one of the country's very top guitar players and has been wowing crowds here of late with his dynamic stage shows.

After crossing paths and hanging out, strong bonds were forged between Ontario, Nova Scotia, and Australia, and the idea of joining forces was judged a perfect one. A national tour resulted, which hit the East Coast this week, as well as a new album, combining all their talents. Vinnick's bass playing has won her a Maple Blues Award in that category, she's that good, so she handles that as well as acoustic guitar duties, while Spiegel and A'Court trade off lead and rhythm duties, and all three sing and write. That's the stage show, and the album, no need for anything else other than this super-talented trio.

The album is all original, aside from one lone cover song, "Sunshine Blues" by Bahamas, sung by Vinnick. She also contributes the dynamic "Better Angels," a heartfelt play for compassion in our messed-up world. It features beautiful harmonies from the trio and reminds me a lot of, say, a great Jann Arden single. I'm singling out songwriting first because this is far more than simply a guitar player's album, which it easily could have been. These people are grand writers and singers too, and that really makes the collection strong, from fun foot-stompers such as Charlie's "Dancing at the Dirty O" to Lloyd's classic acoustic blues, "Alligator Shoes." And yes, there's grand guitar too of course, found on two riff-happy instrumentals, A'Court's Latin jam "El Fuego," and the group co-write "Bo Jinx," full of true guitar-hero playing.

There are lots of East Coast dates, there were sold-out shows across the rest of the country, so grab your chance to see this trio, the energy will be great heading into these final concerts.


Apr. 20 - Saint John, NB - Imperial Theatre
Apr. 21 - Florenceville-Bristol, NB - Weldon Matthews Theatre
Apr. 22 - Annapolis Royal, NS - King's Theatre
Apr. 26 - Pictou, NS - deCoste Theatre
Apr. 27 - Liverpool, NS - Astor Theatre
Apr. 28 - Lunenburg, NS - Opera House
Apr. 29 - Windsor, NS - Mermaid Theatre
Apr. 30 - Truro, NS - Marigold Theatre
May 1 - Fredericton - The Playhouse
May 3 - Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL - Lawrence O'Brien Arts Centre
May 7 - Torbay, NL - Jack Byrne Arena

ANASTASIO, GOV'T MULE, TROMBONE SHORTY & MORE TAPPED FOR SEPTEMBER'S HARVEST FESTIVAL IN FREDERICTON

I keep reading about how live music will never be the same, after Covid and thanks to ridiculous Ticketmaster prices. Well, I think people gotta forget about their mega superstar shows in cities and look at how we do it out in Festival Land. One of North America's very best (and it has been for a couple of decades), Fredericton's Harvest Music Festival, has just announced its lineup for September, and it's like Covid never happened. It's back to the size and high quality of before the pandemic, featuring a finely-curated lineup of big live music stars, reliable favourite veterans, and well-chosen newer acts that are making waves with their festival sets.

Harvest is going with a "getting our Mojo back" theme, thanks to the return this year of the well-loved Mojo tent, missing in the downsized Covid era. That means there will be a full 23 ticketed shows this year, the same number as 2019, after only 16 last year. Plus, there will be about twice as many free sets on various side stages, and all the extra events at all sorts of pubs and pop-up venues.

Taking a look at all the other music festivals in the wider area, including the Maritimes, Quebec, and New England, seriously, I can't find a reason to travel elsewhere. Harvest pretty much equals or betters everyone else's lineup on a night-by-night basis. Each venue, all within a couple of blocks of the next, has two or three excellent acts, from opener to headliner. Take a look at the fourth, fifth, and sixth lines of the above poster, the fine print.. These aren't the headliners, but there are names there that I'm sure many music fans will be excited about seeing. So, it's top to bottom top quality.

Let's look at some highlights. Harvest gets the first show of a new tour by what is called Trey Anastasio with Classic Tab. That's Anastasio going back to the sound and band configuration of the classic Trey Anastasio Band (TAB), a four-piece including keyboards, and very much in the Phish style. And Harvest gets it first, jam fans. Kaleo, best known for its huge hit "Way Down We Go," has become a big touring act thanks to a fantastic live show featuring its heavier blues-rock mixed with surprisingly sensitive tunes. Plus, they're all from Iceland, which is just cool. Trombone Shorty is simply one of the greatest New Orleans performers of any generation. Gov't Mule continues its huge popularity, and Matt Andersen ... well, we'll just consider that a sell-out right now.

I'm especially pleased with the solid lineup of Canadian acts from several different fields, from the alt-rock of CanRock faves Broken Social Scene, to the Brandi Carlile-approved folkie Allison Russell. Plus there are more great names such as Daniel Lanois, Joel Plaskett, Big Sugar, Wide Mouth Mason, and David Myles. Heck, I'd go to a festival with those five names alone. And as usual, there's a huge commitment to East Coast artists as well, great pairings such as Slowcoaster featuring Carmen Townsend, and Wolf Castle with Olympic Symphonium.

You know, I've been going to this festival since its very first year, when I stumbled into a downtown bar by accident, and discovered Holly Cole singing Marvin Gaye songs just for the fun of it. Every year I expect to be jaded (my natural inclination) and not care a whole lot when the lineup is announced. But every year, I take a look and shake my head in wonder of what Fredericton accomplishes with its festival. Tickets go on sale April 20.

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MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: ENGAGE - THE TIME HAS COME

Energize! is a roots combo that plays all over southern N.B., comprised of singer-songwriters Carla Bonnell and Rick Bartlett (ex-Howard Brook Band, for those with verryyy long memories). But when they're not a duo, they expand to a full band, adding in drummer Larry Steele and bass player/singer Ray Dunham. With Carla also covering keyboards, that gives them a big lineup, with three vocalists and three songwriters, called Engage. That project has taken over their activities for the past several months, resulting in the group's first album, The Time Has Come. With that many writers and singers on board, well, it's a luxury, and they make the most of it. There are a full 15 songs on the album, all three contributing their efforts, with the lead vocals shared, and lots of group backup singing too.

The album moves back and forth between folk, rock, and country, and a little bit of each in every track. The themes will be instantly recognizable to most Maritimers, including hard work, hard times, and getting past all that and enjoying life anyway. It's the kind of songwriting that reflects everybody in the hall or bar on a Friday night, the audience and the band, happy to be there, but acknowledging life can suck sometimes. "Nothing in the wishing well but dust," sings Bonnell in "No Wishes In The Well," but Bartlett has the anecdote to that in the very next song, "This One," an uptempo, positive blues. In it, he acknowledges not everything went great, he hasn't made a fortune, but he wouldn't have it any other way, screw the money and fame: "I must admit it sure sounds nice/But who would I have become?/Maybe in another life, but I really like this one." That's a pretty great attitude, and it rings throughout the whole album from each writer.

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Don't expect major league recording sounds and samples here, these are working musicians, probably with day jobs as well, and they've made it themselves, grabbing time when they can, getting together over two provinces, recording in "Carla's Kitchen and Larry's Basement (NB and NS)." So, rough but certainly ready, and you can feel the hard work and happiness that went into the project. The folks that come out to see either Energize! or Engage on those Friday nights will hear their stories reflected back in the album. Speaking of gigs, Engage will be part of the upcoming Living Roots Festival, coming up in Fredericton June 8 to 11.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: IAN FOSTER - CLOSE TO THE BONE

Newfoundland singer-songwriter Ian Foster has had a parallel career in the film world for the last few years. After composing for films, he took an interest in the nuts and bolts of that art as well and has added director and screenwriter to his resume. His Keystone, from 2016, was named one of the top ten short films of the year by the Calgary International Film Festival. In the past, his album projects have remained separate from the film work, but that's all changed with the new Close To The Bone, both a short film and an album of original songs.

It developed from a period when Foster was unhappy with the direction of his songwriting, and instead started working on an idea that could be told in both film and song. The result is a 22-minute film that explores identity and big changes that can happen to people along life's journey. It's partially inspired by a story his mother told him from her earlier days. The film shows a family over several years, at first in good times, and then through a long struggle as the mother becomes an invalid, the father turns to drink, and the daughter is left to care for both as they all become isolated in their new reality. Without dialogue, the story is told through acting, dance, mood, a few subtitles, and Foster's songs.

The accompanying album stands alone as a song cycle, the 12 songs extended to full length. It sees Foster moving into a different style of narrative than he's used in his past work, mostly modern folk and storytelling. You can feel the mood of the film, the journey of its characters, and the universality of life's struggles as we move on. Foster has incorporated the atmospheric and evocative style he's learned in film composing, joining it with his already-skillful songcraft. It's a more moody and modern sound than he's had before, giving the feeling of floating outside and examining the people in the story. Like we're watching a movie, in fact. 

As an album, it's a refreshing jump for Foster, different and surprising. The song "Middle Distance," for instance, feels more like a catchy Hey Rosetta track than anything you'd find on his previous albums. The use of other vocalists on some tracks, duets or leads, helps emphasize the scope of the project, as a larger story than each song. Knowing there is a thread helps put the lyrics into more focus and scrutiny, and "Edge of the World," with its day bed and barely-sleeping occupant, is full of visuals and memories that leap out. While it stands alone as a listening experience, I'd search out both the film and album for the full effect. Foster has succeeded in blending his parallel careers, with the music still standing strongly on its own.

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: ERIN COSTELO - TAPESTRY SHOW/WE CAN GET OVER

If you're a Fredericton-area resident (like me), give yourself a Valentine's treat Tuesday evening and take in Erin Costelo's show at the Playhouse. One of the region's top singer-songwriters and producers (Kaia Kater, Leanne Hoffman, Roxy & the Underground Soul Sound), Costelo is doing a show paying tribute to not one, but two albums. One of them is a big favourite and influence for her, and the other is one of her own, celebrated its tenth anniversary. 

For the past few years, Costelo has on special occasions performed a tribute show to Carole King's classic 1971 album Tapestry. The epitome of the singer-songwriter genre of the early '70's, it was for a time the biggest-selling album in history, and features such hits as "I Feel The Earth Move," "It's Too Late," and "You've Got A Friend." It was an album where fans knew every note, and it's fun to watch folks sing along with every word at Costelo's concert. She's the perfect interpreter for the album, not engaged in a slavish reproduction but rather, she's invested in the material, and you can tell how these classics helped her become the meaningful writer she is today.

I've seen her do the Tapestry show before, and while I'm looking forward to it again, I'm even more pleased that Costelo has chosen to feature her own album We Can Get Over as well. It's her third, from 2012, and was the one that won me over. As soon as I heard the vintage eloquence of opener "Oh Me Oh My," with its 60s soul/girl group vibe, I felt I'd found a kindred lover of emotional, highly-crafted pop music. The references are everywhere, from the electric piano ballad "I Don't Know Anything," surely an equal of a Roberta Flack number, to the Muscle Shoals Southern soul of "Down Down," to the Randy Newman grandeur of the title cut. I can't wait to hear these songs again.

The fact that her two following albums, Down Below, The Status Quo, and Sweet Marie, are even stronger is a testament to her obvious artistry, my only complaint being the lack of more releases. But of course, she's been plenty busy with production projects, and now her new job as the producer of CBC Radio's East Coast Music Hour. In the meantime, watch out for a vinyl reissue of We Can Get Over very soon, as well as a new video version of the song Hold Me, featuring one Matt Andersen. Meanwhile, the Tapestry/We Can Get Over tour continues:

Tuesday, Feb. 14 - Fredericton, The Playhouse

Thursday, Apr. 06 - Saint John, Imperial Theatre

Saturday, Apr. 08 - Annapolis Royal, King's Theatre

Saturday, Apr. 15 - Windsor, Mermaid Theatre

MUSIC REVIEW OF THE DAY: GRAHAM NICHOLAS - BLACK CREEK

An old hand in the downtown Toronto roots scene, Nicholas is now calling Kentville, N.S., home and hey, he fits in nicely in the Maritimes too. This is album #4 for Nicholas, who specializes in summing up life and love in plain-spoken, well-humoured stories. Sometimes there's a rural feel, like the title cut with a mountain fiddle, while others have a full roots-rock band behind, piano, organ, and guitar.

I love all the mixing of wit and wisdom. In the country twang of "Fell In Love and I Broke It," Nicholas lists all the things around the house that are placed out of reach, "family crystal and fine china plates, all the things you're not meant to touch, afraid you might enjoy such things too much."  Admitting he wasn't meant for such precious things, he jumps into a love he finds, and you know what happened next. He brings life to the old nursery rhyme in "Dish and the Spoon," which doesn't work out so swell after they run away, with the spoon stepping out with a bowl one fateful night: "Hey diddle diddle went that old nursery rhyme/Human hearts can be fickle most all of the time."

There's a little pearl of wisdom in each song, a little heartbreak, and a few laughs as well, a bit of melancholy, and lots of toe-tapping too. Nicholas is returning to his old haunts to launch the new album this month. He's going to be at the Dakota Tavern in Toronto on Saturday, Feb. 18, followed by a bunch of Ontario shows right through March, and then a month of gigs around the Maritimes in April. Find all the details at www.grahamnicholas.ca.