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Ep. #123: Bahamas

Afie Jurvanen is a gifted musician and songwriter who works under the tropical moniker Bahamas. Jurvanen has been an in-demand guitarist who has worked with Feist, the Weather Station, and Zeus among others. He has released three records of his signature folk-tinged rock over the past five years, earning a broad fanbase and award nominations and critical acclaim along the way. His latest album is called Bahamas is Afie, which is out now via Universal Music Canada, and it’s prompted him to tour across the U.S. and Canada over the coming months including a stop at Riverfest Elora on Friday August 22. Here, Afie and I discuss wearing shorts on stage (S.O.S.), Thrush Hermit rules and Joel Plaskett’s legs, the assertively explanatory title of his new album, the lush production of Bahamas is Afie, Don Kerr and the Rooster, distinctive musical chameleons like Bob Dylan, David Bowie, and Beck, that moment where you think of an idea, hope in sad songs, Willie Nelson, wanting to name your hypothetical unborn child Owen, choosing music over sports, social hobbies, going your own way when pushed by your parents, moving to Toronto from Barrie and making friends in a music community, grade 13/OAC, the Miami Heat, Chris Bosh, Fantastic Pop festival in Windsor, Afie’s early band Paso Mino with members of Zeus, Jason Collett, competition and ambition in music, contemporary cultural consumption and metrics, how artists are adapting to the new face of the music business, we are the product, Peter Elkas is under-appreciated, the Aretha Franklin chugging Diet Coke in a golf cart before kicking ass at the Grammys story, playing in a rainstorm at a festival in PEI, the pros and cons of making and promoting music, opening up a laundromat, how to do your laundry, Michael P. Clive’s cooking show and Afie’s unreleased instrumental music for it, making the Weather Station’s new album in France, being added to Riverfest Elora at the last minute, Jason Tait of the Weakerthans, the song “Waves,” and then the heat is off.

Related links: bahamasmusic.net riverfestelora.com vishkhanna.com

Bahamas_BiA_photo_credit_ReynardLi

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Ep. #81: Doug Paisley

Doug Paisley is a very gifted singer, songwriter, and musician based in Toronto and specializing in country and western tunes. His latest album is called Strong Feelings and beyond containing some lovely love songs, it features a glorious guest list, including Mary Margaret O’Hara, Garth Hudson (The Band), Emmett Kelly, Colin Stetson, and members of Blue Rodeo, Zeus, Bahamas, the Weather Station, One Hundred Dollars, and many more. Strong Feelings is available now via No Quarter Records and Doug is playing select shows over the next few months. Here Doug and I discuss parental hair pressure, FaceTime and non-electronic electronic issues with technology, self-absorption, metrics, and social media, @RingoStarrMusic, why Doug won’t be listening to this interview, challenging people’s perceptions of him and his music, being self-aware but also insulating oneself from external considerations, the fine art of banter and avoiding self-effacement, stand-up comedy, home renovations, Gord and Dave Tough, Strong Feelings’ stacked guest list, Mary Margaret O’Hara and filmmaker Jem Cohen, working with visual artist Shary Boyle, the saga of recording music using Glenn Gould’s piano with the Band’s Garth Hudson, naming your kids, music that is timeless but of a time, being a teenaged reggae musician and country fan, Kenny Chesney in Jamaica, growing up in Toronto in a musical family, writing love songs in a world full of love songs, how Hamilton might be the new Toronto and the divisiveness of municipal politics, Stompin’ Tom Connors as a Canadian role model, working on new songs, an upcoming Record Store Day 7” with an outtake from Strong Feelings featuring the Weather Station called “Lies Lead to Lies,” the song “Old Times” and more.

Related links: dougpaisley.com noquarter.net vishkhanna.com

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KYEO/CSA Present: THE BONFIRE BALL: JASON COLLETT – ZEUS – BAHAMAS – MARCH 11

Thursday March 11, 2010
KYEO & The CSA
Present:

THE BONFIRE BALL

STARRING:


JASON COLLETT


ZEUS


BAHAMAS

Toronto, Ontario artists Jason Collett, Zeus and Bahamas have announced a North American revue tour featuring all three artists performing together and alone during a night long set of incredible music. The three acts have a long history of collaboration, as intertwined as their musical lineage. Instead of the typical show in which each act plays its own set, Collett, Zeus and Bahamas will all take the stage together, playing songs by all three. At times you will find Collett strumming softly on the guitar alone; Zeus pounding out their rich pop numbers; or Bahamas melting the rocks in your glass; then find them all back together again in full force. The energy, the creativity, the inherent knowledge each musician brings to the stage, of their fellow musician, will make for a unique and exciting night, each and every night along the tour. The Bonfire Ball will kick off first in March at Canadian Music Week in Toronto and reaches Guelph the next night, before heading to Austin for the SXSW Music Festival. The tour continues west from Seattle across Canada and the U.S. midwest, wrapping in Ontario, April 17.

Broken Social Scene member Jason Collett will see the release of his fourth full-length, Rat A Tat Tat, March 9 on Arts & Crafts. Produced by Mike O’Brien and Carlin Nicholson of Zeus, Collett began writing the album last summer in rural Ontario with Afie Jurvanen aka Bahamas. Those bare-bone recordings made there in the cabin would spawn what is Collett’s most inspired album to date.

Zeus will release their debut full-length, Say Us, on February 23 through Arts & Crafts. Featuring three songwriter/vocalists, Mike O’Brien, Carlin Nicholson and Neil Quin, who swap between guitar, bass and organ, with drummer Rob Drake, Zeus emerged having performed as Collett’s backing band, then supporting band, in Fall 2008. Zeus released their debut, the Sounds Like Zeus ep, in June ’09, quickly building a loyal fanbase in Toronto and beyond. Exclaim! Magazine called them, “One of the best live acts around.” The track, “How Does It Feel?” was featured in a nationwide Nissan commercial and Zeus spent the Fall ’09 supporting Cuff the Duke in Canada before making their U.S. debut at the CMJ Music Marathon.

Bahamas is the solo project of Afie Jurvanen, whose debut, Pink Strat, was released in July of 2009 on Nevado Records. His previous band, Paso Mino, consisted of Zeus members Rob Drake and Mike O’Brien and was Collett’s backing band for 2005’s Idols of Exile release. Following Collett’s touring cycle, he was asked to join Feist‘s band, whose lengthy tour schedule forced Paso Mino into hiatus (leading to the eventual formation of Zeus, which took over as Collett’s backing band). During the years he was on tour with Feist, Jurvanen continued to write songs, and upon his return spent a week in a cabin in rural Ontario recording Pink Strat. Response to Pink Strat has been excellent–Jurvanen was asked to play solo directly before Elvis Costello at last year’s Winnipeg Folk Fest, he stole the show at the recent Hillside Inside event, and was chosen as support for select dates of the current Wilco tour. You can hear his guitar work on albums by Hayden, Jason Collett, Amy Millan, The Stills, Buck 65, Feist, and many others.

Special Guest:


DJ Charless

Thursday March 11, 2010
The Ebar 41 Quebec St. Guelph
Doors at 10:00 PM
All-ages/Licensed

$12 with non-perishable food item
$14 without

Tickets Available:
The Bookshelf – 41 Quebec St. – Guelph
Orange Monkey – 005 Princess St. – Waterloo
CSA Office – University of Guelph – UC Room 274
(non-perishable food items will be accepted at ticket outlets)

All proceeds benefit Out on the Shelf
All food items collected will benefit the Guelph Food Bank.

musicprogramming [at] gmail [dot] com

UPCOMING KYEO/CSA SHOWS:

THURSDAY APRIL 15: OLD MAN LUEDECKE – JESSY BELL SMITH – PAT LEPOIDEVIN @ Ebar – 10:00 PM – $8 w/food donation /$10 – AA/LIC benefit for: www.outontheshelf.ca