ARTS
Matthew and Jill Barber play Courtnay and Sidney
ibling revelry will be the spirit of the proceedings next week for two Vancouver Island performances by Matthew and Jill Barber.
The singer-songwriters, who were raised in Toronto, co-wrote and co-produced The Family
Album, their first outing together as artists. The album features originals and covers, all with ties to their upbringing.
Both Barbers wrote material for the album, including Matthew’s song about their grandfather, but the album is marked by its choice of Canadian folk songs: Gene MacLellan’s Song to a Young Seagull, Ian Tyson’s Summer Wages, Leonard Cohen’s The Partisan and Neil Young’s Comes a Time.
Roots music fans have embraced the recording, which should certainly be in the running for a Juno Award nod when the nominations are announced in the coming weeks. As a result, tickets to their concerts Monday at Courtenay’s Sid Williams Theatre and Tuesday in the Bodine Hall at Sidney’s Mary Winspear Centre will be in short supply.
Tickets for the Sid Williams Theatre concert are $29 at tickets.sidwilliamstheatre.com, in person at 442 Cliffe Ave., or by phone at 250-338-2430.
Tickets for the Bodine Hall performance are $26 at tickets.marywinspear.ca, in person at 2243 Beacon Ave., or by phone at 250-656-0275. The Sidney show will feature assigned cabaret seating, according to organizers.
Showtime for both events is 7:30 p.m.
Hair-metal fans wanting to see next month’s Sebastian Bach concert at Upstairs Cabaret will need to purchase tickets soon, before they are gone for good.
The word from promoters is that ticket sales are moving fast. The show is already at 70 per cent capacity and is assured of being sold out before the doors open Nov. 1. Victoria rockers Ellice Blackout will open Bach’s city debut.
The Canadian-born former frontman of New Jersey rockers Skid Row has no new music to promote, but has been busy of late. He has had TV appearances on The Trailer Park Boys and Gilmore Girls that will air in the coming weeks. His memoir, 18 and Life on Skid Row, is due in December.
Tickets are $45 at Lyle’s Place and Ticketzone.com.
Toronto-based songwriter Lindy Vopnfjörd will release his fourth solo album, Frozen in Time, on Friday.
The album was recorded in the studio with Metric producer Todor Kobakov. Lead single Melting was written during a trip to Iceland, where Vopnfjörd’s family has roots. News of Vopnfjörd is always of interest to Vancouver Islanders, who likely remember his popular Victoria group Northern Junk.
The singer-songwriter was born in Winnipeg, but lived with his family in Victoria for the better part of a decade. Vopnfjörd left Victoria in 1996 for Toronto, where he still lives.
For more information, visit lindymusic.com.
A performance by rapper Nef the Pharaoh could be the sleeper pick of the coming week, as the 21-year-old California rapper sees his stock continue to rise in the underground rap world.
Pharoah — who records for Sick Wid It, the record label run by legendary Bay Area rapper E-40 — will perform Tuesday at Upstairs Cabaret with DJ Low, Filthy Clean Professionals, Euphorik Music and the Wiseguy. The concert will mark his first Victoria appearance.
Tickets are a steal at $10. They can be purchased at Complex, Lyle’s Place or ticketzone.com.
The annual Song and Surf Festival is still four months away and not a single performer from its roster has been announced, but tickets are selling well and organizers expect them to be gone before the year is out.
The popular Port Renfrew music festival, produced by the same team that organizes the Tall Tree Music Festival in June, is already 50 per cent sold out. Get yours at talltree.tickit.ca before they disappear for good. The event runs Feb. 10-13 at various venues in Port Renfrew. For more information, visit songandsurf.com.
It appears Lake Cowichan country music festival Sunfest is another event that requires careful planning from attendees months ahead of time.
Organizers of the second annual festival announced Thursday that certain levels of camping have already sold out. Mellor, the quiet area of the site, no longer has spots available and the same goes for Big Boys Toys, the area reserved for buses and large RV units. The Tractor Pull section, where truck campers are permitted, is also nearing capacity.
The event, which runs Aug. 3-6 at Laketown Ranch Music and Recreation Park near Youbou, will be headlined by U.S. stars Little Big Town and Toby Keith. For more information, visit sunfestconcerts.com.
A Broadway variety show presented by a group of well-known local talents kicks off its run Friday, the first of seven upcoming dates at the Ambrosia Event Centre (638 Fisgard St.).
Dinner-theatre performances of Broadway Nostalgia: Bob LeBlanc’s Variety Fare will be preceded each night by a threecourse buffet dinner. Songs featured during the event include selections from Les Miserables, Guys and Dolls, My Fair Lady and A Chorus Line.
Performances take place Oct. 28-29, Nov. 4-5, Nov. 11-12 and Nov. 23. Tickets are $69 at selectyourtickets.com, by phone at 250-220-7777, or in person at the Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre (1925 Blanshard St.).