Whitehorse jazz singer and songwriter Fawn Fritzen recently returned from Toronto and is ready to get back to business. While in Toronto, Fritzen participated in Coalition Music’s ten-week Artist Entrepreneur program, learning more about business aspects of the musician’s life, as well as finding opportunities to write, perform and record her music. Fritzen found out …
Brenda Berezan was an aspiring songwriter when she moved to the Yukon wilderness. Having taken a break from music to run a business and raise her family, she has recently returned to performing and recording. She’s now releasing her second album, called Blue Through the Trees. It’s an indie-folk album that veers away from her …
Homegrown singer-songwriter Gordie Tentrees is releasing his sixth album, Less is More, with a Northern tour this month. Tentrees is playing in Skagway, Dawson City,Keno City, and two shows in Whitehorse. This Northern tour follows his recent tours through British Columbia, the United States and Australia. In the next six months he plans to tour …
The Midnight Sons Band is fresh off a tour and ready to rock. On Saturday, October 3, the band is presenting – and performing at – Rock the North, which is an all-ages dance at the Yukon Convention Centre featuring the rockabilly/psychobilly band Ryan McNally and his Red Hot Ramblers, and Victoria bluesman Jesse Roper. …
A recent arrival in Whitehorse, Patrick Jacobson is already making waves. Having moved from Vancouver just a couple of months ago, Jacobson has released his self-titled debut solo EP of melodic indie guitar rock. Fans of the genre can see him in Whitehorse on July 26 and August 15. You may already be familiar with …
Paris Seymour, better known by her stage name Paris Vagabond Gypsy, is one of a kind. In the year-and-ahalf since the pirate-costumed, bass-playing, ukulele-strumming, singer-songwriter (and one-time burlesque dancer) arrived in the Yukon, she’s formed the Ukes of Hazard and is releasing her first full-length album, Mine to Creep. Born in Vancouver but raised in …
Nicole Edwards was raised on the Muppet Show, and she dreamed of duetting with Kermit since she was a kid. As an adult, she decided to make her puppet dreams a reality. She debuted her new video, Lychee Martini, to a packed house at Epic Pizza last month. Diagnosed with scleroderma, an autoimmune disorder that …
Katie Avery is a classically trained violinist, but folk and traditional fiddle music is in her blood. She’s just recorded her first solo album, which she describes as being, “inspired by all the beautiful people I have known in my life.” Avery grew up in Guelph, Ontario, surrounded by traditional and folk music. She’s performed …
The Midnight Sons Band is making a mark on the Whitehorse music scene and is now looking to build a national fan base.
Cancer Fundraiser produced by Brandon Isaak with performers Hank Carr, Ed Isaak & The Midnight Sons Band is a tribute to Johnny Cash.
The best album I heard last summer, and probably all year, came out of Dawson City. Hope, the debut album by The Naysayers, totally rocks. Led by singer-songwriter Drea Nasager, the band fuels its folk rock songs with a heavy punk edge. Nasager’s lyrics are sung, snarled, and spat; they mix with Jonathan Howe’s lead …
For Yukoners who miss having a music festival in February, the Yukon Film Society has stepped up. This year, the Available Light Film Festival (ALFF) has expanded to include musical performances. Andrew Connors, ALFF director, explains: “It’s twofold. We realized that the way we configure the Yukon Arts Centre for cinema, we move the screen …
Building on last year’s boot camp for musicians, this month Music Yukon is offering its two- part Music Survival Camp 2.0, focusing on entrepreneurial and artistic development. The boot camp begins with a showcase on Friday, January 23, followed by a two-day intensive workshop, called the Artist Entrepreneur Boot Camp, offered by Coalition Music, one …
Matthew Lien’s new album, Headwaters: Music of the Peel River Watershed, isn’t a protest album. “ What I felt about this project from the very beginning is that we’re not protesting anything , we’re celebrating,” he says. “We’re celebrating phenomenal Yukon, Canadian, North American, global, wilderness. We’re celebrating that country.” To celebrate the pristine wilderness …
Listening to Kate Weekes’ new solo folk album, Frost on Black Fur, is like mushing around the vastness of the world at great speed as the scenery constantly changes, from Irish islands, to mountain villages in China, to remote rivers in the Peel watershed. Frost on Black Fur will be released on October 1 at …
Amelia Merhar, better known in the Yukon music scene as Big Mama Lele, ended her Graduation Tour on May 10 in Fairbanks. The occasion? She’s finally graduated university. Those familiar with her “FOMO Song” know why her graduation warrants an international tour. “I’ve been changing the major of my bachelors since 2004,” she jokes. “Ten …
From the Scottish Highlands to the Dawson City Music Festival (DCMF), 22-year-old folk singer-songwriter Rachel Sermanni has been sharing her craft throughout the world. Sermanni grew up in Carrbridge, a small village in the Scottish Highlands, where she learned the fiddle and traditional music in school, and Radiohead and Bright Eyes from the local boys. …
They got together in February, and now The Midnight Sons are heading out of the territory to spread their style of minimalist, rootsy folk-rock across western Canada. Consisting of vocalist and guitarist Alex Johnston, drummer Patrick Docherty and bassist Ian MacIntyre, the trio have been performing steadily around the Yukon since forming The Midnight Sons. …
Son Rise: The Midnight Sons get ready to rock Western Canada Read More »
Vegetarians beware. Whitehorse’s groove-rocking quartet Meat the Vegans has just released their first album, 100% Fat. With a raw punk-inspired sound and graphic artwork to match, it is definitely not Morrissey approved. Consisting of vocalist/guitarist Mike Anderson, guitarist Simon Charles, bassist/vegetarian Alex MacKay and drummer Steve Jacobs, Meat the Vegans plays a combination of punk …
Speed Control is developing a reputation as the hardest working band in Whitehorse. After spending much of the winter performing multiple shows per day, the post-hardcore band has started another tour. These guys have recently quit their jobs – they are committed to making a living in playing their music, a combination of pop punk, …
Andrea Burgoyne has only been in Whitehorse since August, but she’s already made her mark here. She’s worked as the theatre programming intern at the Yukon Arts Centre, produced the last Longest Night concert and thrilled the crowd at Flipper’s Pub with her performances at Whitewater Wednesday Jam Night, with her wild guitar strumming and …
Rob Hunter, also known as Roxx Hunter, has been abroad a few times, traveling to Finland, Mali and Oman. Most recently, the globetrotting guitarist spent six months in Shanghai, China, playing in a five-star hotel’s house band.”I first heard about this overseas work from this cool hippie-ish singer named Alex who was working at Unitech,” …
Yukoner Roxx Hunter Lived by his Guitar in China Read More »
Ummagma is a strange combination — a Yukon-Ukrainian collaboration of uplifting ethereal pop vocal mixed with rock guitar. Their music crosses genres between electronic dance music, shoegaze and dreampop and is gaining attention around the world. Ummagma’s music is being played in more than 30 countries, has charted in Scotland and is on the rise …
Everyone at Whitewater Wednesday (and its spin-off Saltwater Saturday) knows that any band with Rick Sward is guaranteed to be fun … and The Sophisticated Cavemen is no exception. They prove this by switching from jazz standards like All of Me, to bluegrass like Johnson Grass Farm, to reggae, The Israelites, and finally to Stan …
Ben Hermann stuffs his pipe, his new vice, with natural tobacco. His dog, a German shepherd named Sussa, lies down on the sidewalk beside us outside Baked Café on a rare, dry, summer Sunday afternoon. “I got her from the pound, I’ve had her since New Year’s, not long after she’d been dropped off there.” …
Joe Bishop is more than a reality TV subject. The former stampeder of History Television’s Klondike: The Quest for Gold is returning to the Whitehorse music scene, playing a mix of songs from his CD with Kendall Sullivan and cover songs like Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean. Bishop and Sullivan were the first musical act I …
The thing I like most about Baked Café is it has the most-talented baristas on staff. Miriam Cook is no exception. As a singer-songwriter in Fire Escape (formerly The Secret Project) and as a solo artist, Cook stands out from the Whitewater Wednesday crowd. “I love Miriam,” Peggy Hanifan says, “she’s got the nicest voice.” …
Watching Ivan Zenovitch play is as exciting as listening to him. His fingers dance across the neck and strings of his guitar in amazingly complex patterns of notes and chords. It’s all the more amazing since Zenovitch is hard of hearing. “My parents are deaf-mutes,” Zenovitch explains over coffee at Baked Café, speaking almost as …
Adam Cripps is a “leet” bass player. Best known as the bass player and the “C” of CHS, Cripps can lay down a furious heavy-metal bass line, drive a classic rock song like Foxy Lady or accompany Yukon Jack’s Clint Carpenter.But metal is his true love, in an almost geek-like sense (explaining the “leet” version …
Sarah MacDougall, who was born and raised in Malmö, Sweden, began her first band at 11. “My friend Sarah and I had a duo called Sarah and Sarah,” MacDougall says, laughing. In 2000, the 19 year-old MacDougall moved to Vancouver and began to take her career more seriously, recording her songs and touring. While playing …
Fawn Fritzen‘s first album, Bedroom Voice, demonstrates what can happen when a talented artist meets an engaging producer. It’s what happened with The Beatles and George Martin, Talking Heads and Brian Eno, or brigs and Jordy Walker. Fritzen is a vocalist, pianist and songwriter who had been performing for eight years when her husband Michael convinced …
Yukon Women in Music (YWIM) have released their fourth album, which is as musically diverse as their membership. Founded in 1998, the YWIM collective brings together female singer-songwriters who pool their talent and resources for concerts and recording opportunities. To date, it has released a live album, a sampler of pre-recorded tracks and a more …
Whitewater Wednesday isn’t just a night for tour-seasoned musicians. It’s also for people who are just starting to play their first songs. Lisa Vollans, a close friend of mine, is one of those. She’s starting to relax and enjoy performing songs like MGMT’s Time to Pretend, and The Moldy Peaches’ Anyone Else But You. And …
It’s a strange time to start a music label. With the challenges of Internet piracy, online sales on sites like iTunes, and artists offering their music for free or directly marketing their wares to the public, the business of selling physical records could seem obsolete. However, two Yukon entrepreneurs are riding a vinyl renaissance and …
Back on my 40th birthday, earlier this summer, I had a pleasant surprise: celebrating at Flipper’s Pub, on a Saturday afternoon, I heard a fabulous new jammer and a newcomer to Whitehorse, Jasmine Netsena. Singing some folk-country songs, she took over the stage and held us in amazement. “I started playing guitar and singing four …
Jordan Schmidt hasn’t been playing guitar for very long, but it doesn’t show. He’s moved from a few house jams and informal functions to the Whitewater Wednesday stage, and he owns it. “I’ve only been playing two years,” he explains, leaning on his arm and pushing his curly mop up off his eyes. “I was …
Home-schooled in an outfitters camp, in Swift River, raised in a fundamentalist family and painfully shy, Trevor Dolhan may seem like an unlikely rock star. But listening to him perform on Whitewater Wednesday, singing soulful acoustic folk or “out-Axling” Axl Rose, and you know Dolhan is the real thing. “I’ve come a long way,” he …
Lovers of old-style country music will gather together this month to recreate the golden age of country radio. Singer-songwriter Kim Beggs and music fest organizer Dale Harnish have rustled up country and folk musicians from inside and outside the Yukon for two Grand Ole Northern Opry concert performances on Dec. 20 and 21 at the …
Northern Opry Project takes the Yukon back In time Read More »
Hank Karr‘s music is a part of the Yukon landscape. It’s only natural that he would present his music on a DVD, where it can be accompanied by images of the landscape and the Yukon culture that he sings about. Following his DVD, Hank Karr‘s Book of Yukon Memories, Karr has released Long Gone to …
New venues, new jammers. Since Whitewater Wednesday moved to the Gold Pan Saloon in the Gold Rush Inn, we’ve been impressed by both the veteran jammers who’ve followed the show to its new stage, and with the new ones just finding it. Among the most impressive newcomers is Angi Fraser, both in the strength of …
Kim Beggs returned to the Yukon between touring, with a bunch of new songs and a new CD, Blue Bones. In January, Beggs went to Vancouver to record at Black Hen Studio with producer/musician Steve Dawson. “My songs are are based on truth of emotion,” she explains, referring to a marked-up lyric sheet for Firewater …
Singer-songwriter Susie Ross knows about weird dates, so much that she wrote a song about them, First Date, a fan favourite at Whitewater Wednesday Jam Nights. “There is a lot of exaggeration in that song,” she says as we sit down to lunch. “I don’t actually pierce myself for kicks. “I’ve had incredibly weird first …
Often Whitewater Wednesday Jam Night attracts musicians who are just passing through or are in the Yukon for only a short time, but want to share their talent. Adrienne Levay may only be here until the end of the summer, but her singing and guitar playing is leaving an impression. Originally from Edmonton, Levay is …
Sasquatch Prom Date is the great dance party band in Whitehorse. It’s a must for any festival looking for a high-energy closer, and (full disclosure) I’ve been a fan since it started playing. So it was with excitement that I found out I get to review its first CD, A Chilling End to a High …
I’ve had the pleasure of watching Kim Beggs develop as an artist from the beginning. From her first performances supporting Kim Barlow and Anne-Louise Genest, and a few solo sets at the Whitewater Wednesday Jam, Beggs has grown as a songwriter and singer into a national and international talent. Her new CD,Blue Bones, recorded in …
As Bryan Adams said, “Everywhere I go, the kids want to rock.”Solid Fuel’s first recording is proof of that. Solid Fuel is a band of Yukon middle- and high-school students consisting of Logan Frasher, Ale Peters, Madison Dixon and Ragnvald Royle, and their teacher, the multi-talented Graeme Peters. Having shown the kids how to rock …
I first heard Andrea Burgoyne at the Whitewater Wednesday Jam about two and a half years ago. Since that time, I’ve had the privilege of watching her develop her indie folk style, trying out new songs and adding them to her repertoire. This effort has culminated in her first solo EP as brigs, One Step, …
It’s About the Words / It’s About the Bass and Drums Read More »
Recently at Whitewater Wednesday Jam Night at Foxy’s Cabaret, there was an extra excitement in the air. People crowded inside in eager anticipation, all of them asking, “When is Uncle Touchy getting here?” That particular Wednesday was the first ever public performance by Uncle Touchy, Whitehorse’s latest rock sensation. Fronted by lead electric guitarist and …
Jude Waldman may be a relative newcomer to the Yukon music scene, but as a singer-songwriter he’s already a veteran, playing his folk blues at open mic and songwriter nights. He even wrote and recorded a song a day for 100 days, and released them on his blog. Waldman has toured extensively with the likes …
In the cold of February, Whitehorse is due for some well-deserved warmth from Bahamas. Not from a misdirected trade wind, but from the musical act of that name that’s blowing into town for this weekend’s Frostbite Music Festival. Bahamas is the brainchild of Toronto guitarist and singer Afie Jurvanen, who comes with solid credentials playing …
There’s a small rebellion brewing at this week’s Battle of the Bands, sponsored by Bringing Youth Towards Equality (BYTE) in partnership with the Frostbite Music Festival. After the youth bands (30 and under) square off, JJS3 will close the proceedings with a metal set. “By letting us headline after the Battle of the Bands, that …
One of the characteristics of the Whitehorse music scene that I love is the amount of collaboration that goes on. Almost all artists have worked together in one form or another at some time. I love the way they can combine completely different genres than they normally play, experiment and produce something absolutely amazing. Old …
Gordie Tentrees doesn’t stand still for long. Hot on the end of his Scandinavian tour (captured live on Naked in Scandinavia), Tentrees is heading on the road again, this time in support of his new album, North Country Heart. With that constant touring, Tentrees hones his skill, becoming a sharper songwriter and observer of life, …
Foxy’s All Star Musical Food Drive includes a line-up established and up-and-coming bands of diverse musical styles.
With the release of his new album, Rich in Every Way, Daniel Halen shows just how much a musician can accomplish on his or her own. Recorded largely by himself in his home studio, the CD features Halen performing all instruments and vocals on all but one track. Most of the songs have a soft, …
Home Sweet Home is a new band with an old sound. Made up of three very talented Yukon musicians, Boyd Benjamin, Keitha Clark and Kate Weekes.
I should start this off with a declaration of my prejudice: I don’t get heavy metal music. For me, bluegrass is faster, punk angrier, indie folk and rock edgier, Joy Division heavier, Nick Cave darker, and for pure noise, you can’t beat Sonic Youth and Throbbing Gristle. As for heavy metal, I can barely tell …
There’s a new sound on the Whitehorse folk recording scene: the august arrival. Formed in 2009, the band band consists of Sarah MacDonald on vocals, her husband Phil MacDonald on bass, Michael Vandermark on guitars and Dorothy Williams on violin. Together they form an acoustic-driven folk band with a unique sound. On their debut EP, …
As the temperature drops, Yukoners have to fight off the urge to either hibernate or escape to warmer climes. That’s why it’s good that Willie and Lobo, violinist Willie Royal and guitarist Wolfgang “Lobo” Fink, are bringing their high-energy world beat music to the Yukon Arts Centre. The two master musicians play Gypsy-inspired dance music, …
Kevin Quain is one Mad Bastard. That is, he’s the singer of the Toronto-based blues-jazz cabaret band The Mad Bastards, the resident band at that city’s landmark Cameron House for a remarkable 16 years. As a singer-songwriter, Quain performs husky-voiced, alcohol-soaked lyrics, ranging from Rain Dogs-era Tom Waits crossed with Celtic folk (“Mr. Valentine’s Dead”), …
Buddy Tabor, from Juneau, Alaska, is a great friend of the Yukon music scene. He’s performed at countless festivals, collaborated with local musicians and his songs are frequently covered live and on recordings. So when Tabor was recently diagnosed with lung cancer, local musicians jumped to help. A benefit concert was quickly organized where artists …
Royal Wood looks cool—hair slicked back, dressed in vest, tie, white shirt. He has a voice to match, a slick, smooth voice that’s soft, yet full. He’s also a versatile musician, moving between piano and guitar. Wood is an acclaimed songwriter who has been compared to Rufus Wainwright, Hawksley Workman and Ron Sexsmith. In 2010, …
After years of playing on street corners and in cafés and honky-tonks, Mikel Miller drifted into Whitehorse in the 1980s. With music inspired by Phil Ochs, Townes Van Zandt, Jerry Jeff Walker and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, he’s performed his variety of acoustic folk music through Canada and Alaska and found a home in the Yukon. …
The Kim Beggs and Natalie Edelson duo, The Blue Warblers, has landed the two singer-songwriters a West Coast Music Award nomination in an unlikely category: Contemporary Christian/Gospel Recording of the Year, for their album, Pretty Good. This nomination reflects the genre of music, not the inspiration. Most of the songs on the album are standards …
There used to be a band in Whitehorse called Scotch. It was a party band, centred around brothers Ryan and Declan O’Donovan. But in the natural course of bands and families, the members moved on. Declan now divides his time between Whitehorse and Montreal, and is about to release his self-titled solo album. But this …
“I’m going to play some songs Wayne Garrett has never heard before,” Angel Hall announces from the Whitewater Wednesday Jam Night stage, introducing her lead guitarist. “That way everyone can appreciate his musical genius.” And we do, as Garrett keeps up with her, effortlessly improvising riffs that match her songs perfectly. Garrett is simply an …
Regulars to Peggy Hanifan’s Whitewater Wednesday Jam Nights at Flipper’s Pub are familiar with her song, My Favourite Son. More recently they’ve also been able to see and hear the subject of that song, Patrik R.J. Lethbridge. As The Secret Project, Lethbridge has been performing regularly at the jam and recently at the Folk Society …
Nicholas Mah plays guitar with a grace that seems effortless. Although it might seem out of place that Mah is playing classical and Spanish guitar music in Flipper’s Pub on Whitewater Wednesday, he still captures his audience’s attention. Rick Sward of the Sophisticated Cavemen sits next to me, watching in awe. “He shreds on that …
It’s Brendan O’Donovan’s turn. He takes the Whitewater Wednesday Jam Night stage and plays a variety of genres, from Ween to Tom Waits, then invites his friend Steve McGovern to join him in a cover of The Flightof the Conchords’ Business Time, a true crowd-pleaser. O’Donovan, at 19, has just begun his musical career, playing …
Ben Mahony is on a roll. Backed by Rob “Roxx Hunter” Hunter on electric guitar and Ian March on drums, Mahony is cycling through an insane series of cover songs that includes Don’t Fear the Reaper, Whole Lotta Love, Prove My Love, Play That Funky Music and Sweet Child of Mine. He shifts into a …
