Joel Plaskett Emergency, Bidiniband and Jim Guthrie perform
The beautiful and acoustically divine River Run Centre welcomed with open arms three unique performances to kick off the 2013 Eden Mills Writer’s Festival. Dave Bidini and his Bidiniband opened the evening with a quirky blend of alt-rock, dark crooning and politically charged lyrics, followed by the densely layered orchestration of Juno Award-winning Guelph native Jim Guthrie and his band. The headlining act and final performer was acclaimed singer-songwriter Joel Plaskett and his band The Emergency, bringing an enthusiastic and varied audience
The occasion marked the 25th anniversary of the Eden Mills Writer’s Festival, an event celebrating voices in Canadian literature from regional and national levels. The event offered poetry slams, live readings and literary workshops, and a sold-out talk entitled Food for Thought, featuring food and agriculture journalists Michael Pollan and Sarah Elton on Sept. 14 at Rozanski Hall.
Bidiniband, led by Toronto-based journalist/writer/musician Dave Bidini formerly of the iconic alt-rock band Rheostatics, opened the night with a performance characterized by dramatic lighting and a sharply dressed Bidini hopping around the stage. Rheostatics are certainly channeled through the band’s music, but Bidini’s sardonic and satirical lyrics offer an interesting take on the Canadian experience while staying true to familiar rock styling. His work alternates between heartfelt, nostalgic Canadiana and a biting and sometimes vitriolic critique of the status quo. Although declining the initially scheduled live reading of a passage from his new novel, and opting for a favourite of his songs, Bidini nonetheless ended his set on a note to ponder on.
Guelph native Jim Guthrie took the stage afterwards with a richly orchestrated performance featuring an eight-piece band. Guthrie’s heartfelt and confessional lyric style worked harmoniously with his band’s dramatic orchestration featuring a violinist, baritone saxophonist and flautist among two drummers and guitarists.
The Joel Plaskett Emergency began after a short break, and Plaskett delivered his trademark Maritime charm, breezy stage humour and funky beats throughout his set, which consisted of classic tunes like “Natural Disaster” and “Nowhere With You” and some new ones from his 2012 record Scrappy Happiness. Backed by his band The Emergency, featuring Dave Marsh on drums and Chris Pennell on bass, the group kept the groove and sonics tight as Plaskett mused on topics like driving around, partying with good friends, and finding happiness doing nothing in particular. The songs off of Scrappy Happiness are characteristic of Plaskett – sometimes-obtuse lyrics (but nevertheless heartfelt), groovy rhythmic work and shimmering chord structures sum up to an exciting night of music. The band sent the audience off with a reggae-tinged medley of songs, featuring “Work out Fine” and a surprising and cheeky interpolation of the summer sleeper hit “Royals” by Lorde, among other bits and bites of songs.