Blues, Bliss, and Blab
It’s a double-header of country-blues-rockin’ tall tales delivered by two of the scene’s beloved yarnspinners. Anders Drerup and Brock Zeman anchor the Bluebird North bill, along with songwriter Annabelle Chvostek (ex of the Wailin’ Jennys), and spoken word poet Q the Romantic Revolutionary — she of the luscious sighs and ruminations on the power of passion.
Drerup, who has been busy portraying Gram Parsons in the musical play Grievous Angel, steps out of his Nudie suit for a solo performance. Zeman, meanwhile, is fresh off his recent release, Ya Ain’t Crazy Henny Penny.
The Bluebird show, presented each year with a new cast, aims to bring a certain intimacy to the stage by presenting songwriters in the round. Sitting together on the stage at the same time allows the musicians to feed off each other by offering a guitar-slapping impromptu back beat, say, or even shooting over a few encouraging looks and nods mid-song. Each artist has the chance to showcase the nuances of their craft by discussing the process and the back-story of each song they play.
Bluebird North—produced by Ottawa songwriter Amanda Rheaume—is a show for fans, artists, and anyone seduced by the subtleties of songwriting. Thursday, Feb. 3. 7 p.m. $15. Live Lounge, 128 York St. www.songwriters.ca
Where to be this weekend
Ottawa trio Friends on Friends will play the Beach Boys’ cult classic record Pet Sounds in its entirety. Hear the instrumental bliss made by Steve Boudreau (keys, melodica, backing vocals), Philip Shaw Bova (percussion), and Matt Ouimet (guitar, lap steel, backing noise). Friday, Feb. 4. 10 p.m., $8. Irene’s Pub, 885 Bank St.
What else?
Soak up the fuzzed-out weedhead whimsy of Ottawa punks Garaga, playing Raw Sugar Café Saturday, Feb. 5. Roots-rocking siblings Matthew and Curtis rev up their barroom to backwoods tunes as Brothers Chaffey. They’re at the Elmdale Tavern Friday, Feb. 4.
Sound Seekers is published weekly at OttawaMagazine.com. Read Fateema Sayani’s culture column in Ottawa Magazine. Subscribe to the print edition here http://ottawamagazine.com/subscribe.