Vancouver Folk Music Festival's third-day mainstage programming spans Five Alarm Funk July 17
SGaanaGwa explores the Haida worldview, while Shovels & Rope melds traditional folk, country, and rock
Post Sponsored by VANCOUVER FOLK MUSIC FESTIVAL
Five Alarm Funk
Alejandro Escovedo
On Sunday, July 17, this year’s Vancouver Folk Music Festival wraps up its programming with a bang.
Kicking the mainstage concerts off that evening is SGaanaGwa at 6 pm. The compelling collaboration explores the Haida worldview of a Supernatural landscape through traditional Haida music interwoven with influences from jazz, blues, folk, and rock. SGaanaGwa is a Haida culture and language project of award-winning singer, artist, and lawyer Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson, legendary musicians Bill Henderson and Claire Lawrence of the acclaimed rock band Chilliwack; Western Canadian Music Awards 2019 Jazz Artist of the Year bassist Jodi Proznick; and renowned vocalists Saffron Henderson and Camille Henderson. The band integrates ancient Haida knowledge and oral traditions and draws upon the magic that occurs in both traditional potlatches and jazz, which they bring to their live performances.
They’re followed at 7:20 pm by Shovels & Rope, Cary Ann Hearst and Michael Trent’s duo that weaves together the threads of traditional folk, country, and rock. Their debut album was O’ Be Joyful, and the past decade has seen six full length albums, three collaborative covers albums, a curated music festival in their hometown of Charleston, South Carolina, a musical film, a children’s book and countless dynamic live performances all over the planet. The songs and stories that make up their new album Manticore are visceral, bold, and at times deeply personal.
Beloved punk-rock troubador Alejandro Escovedo takes the stage at 8:40 pm, on tour after his last epic 17-song suite The Crossing. Ranging from sweeping orchestral numbers to classic rock to bursts of ‘70s punk, the collection finds Escovedo delving further into his lifelong musical journey across his most sonically diverse work yet. The Mexican-American kid with Texas roots appears with his Italian band, drawing on his vast experience, including his role in underground legends The Nuns, Rank and File, and The True Believers.
And Vancouver’s Five Alarm Funk closes the fest at 10 pm with its crowd-rallying mix of monster horns, crushing percussion, and shredding psych-rock guitars. Along the way they transcend genre by seamlessly mixing in elements of rock, Latin music, ska, and even prog-metal.
The Vancouver Folk Music Festival runs from July 15 to 17 at Jericho Beach, with several stages active throughout the day. You can find tickets here, and more information here.
Post sponsored by Vancouver New Music Festival.