Pooled talent
A group bigger than the sum of its musical parts, Port Cities is coming to Glasgow Square May 18
They were raised on the wild shores of Cape Breton and nurtured by a Grammy award-winning musician at a songwriting camp.
More than three years after they formally banded together as Port Cities, musicians Carleton Stone, Breagh MacKinnon and Dylan Guthro are performing at Glasgow Square on May 18, just days ahead of their upcoming Germany tour.
“As we travel and get more involved in the global music community, we realize what a special community we have on the East Coast of Canada,” said Stone.
He described their music as a roots-pop mix and each of the three musicians brings a different influence to the band.
Stone’s contribution is a rock n’ roll style, while MacKinnon brings an infusion of jazz and Guthro has a mixture of hip-hop and R and B.
The three band members met for the first time courtesy of Grammy award winner Gordie Sampson, from Big Pond, N.S.
Stone, MacKinnon and Guthro instantly connected at his camp and stayed in touch even as they pursued their own careers at first.
However, they were slowly drawn together as they played in each other’s solo bands and collaborated on albums.
After some time, they decided to make it official and become a band, pooling their musical talent.
“It was a gradual process to get to that point,” recalled Stone.
Today, Guthro and MacKinnon live in Halifax. Stone is the only one who remained in Cape Breton and lives just outside the village of St. Peter’s.
However, all three come together to deliver their band’s formula: self-written and meaningful songs, skilfully prepared musical arrangements and an enduring connection and friendship among Port Cities’ members.
Having toured all over Canada in hotels and pubs, Port Cities is set to take their East Coast spirit to Germany and Luxembourg in late May and June. They have concerts booked for 12 German cities before they hit Luxembourg, a tiny duchy nestled between Germany and France.
However, this is not their first time in Europe. Port Cities has amassed over 1.5 million streams internationally, been showcased at The Great Escape, Focus Wales, and the Reeperbahn Festival and will be releasing their debut album in Britain and Germany this year.
The band also has five Nova Scotia Music Awards, a SOCAN No. 1 Award for their song “Back to the Bottom,” and stints at No. 1 on CBC and Spotify charts.
Tickets for their Glasgow Square show can be purchased online at https://ww3.ticketpro.ca/search.php?S=glasgow+square&date=TODAY.
For more information, please call Glasgow Square at 902752-4800 or visit http://www.glasgowsquare.com/index.php/on-stage.
People can learn more about Port Cities on their website at http://www.portcities.ca.