Cape Breton folk-rock quartet Villages celebrate the release of their latest EP with a show at the Charlotte Street Arts Centre on November 13.
Matt Carter
When the Halifax rock band Mardeen became the Cape Breton folk band Villages, I must admit the whole thing seemed like a bit of a put-on. Accents appeared where they hadn’t existed before and things became immediately different, both visually and sonically. It took me a while to accept that indeed, bands can change and musicians can try new things. If it wasn’t for experimentation, art of any form would have no value. Am I right?
As the band prepare to set out on their first tour of the Atlantic Bubble, they’ve got a new EP arriving on Friday November 13. With Upon The Horizon (Sonic Records), Villages settle deeper into the folk forward sound put forth on their 2019 self-titled debut, smoothing a few rocky edges to truly give this new direction an identity all its own.
While the Celtic influence on rock music from Nova Scotia directly contributed to the “east coast sound”, a controversial label that opened doors for a handful of bands while constructing numerous barriers of others during the MuchMusic generation of the 1990’s, Villages seem to have found a path forward without channeling our past failures. Good on ‘em.
Upon The Horizon is a beautiful trio of original songs.
Call it Folk. Call it Pop. Just don’t call it East Coast because that would just be wrong. Catch the band at the Charlotte Street Arts Centre this Friday. Tickets available at thecaplive.com
Upcoming Performances:
Nov. 13 | Charlotte Street Arts Centre | Fredericton, NB
Nov. 27 | The Union Street | Berwick, NS
Nov. 29 | The Union Street | Berwick, NS
Dec. 11 | Marriot Halifax Harbourfront | Halifax, NS
