The Town Heroes
They’ve toured the world, released three critically acclaimed albums and won an array of industry awards. Anthemic choruses, 3-part harmonies, tender falsettos and big drums highlight their riff driven, dirty-yet-nuanced barrage of sound. On stage they move like intense caricatures – soaked in sweat, pushing every chord, note and beat to the limit. A structured wall of sound emerges; familiar yet distinctive. Camaraderie shows in their musicianship, their songwriting highlights what they are: friends playing music for the love of it, in it for the long haul.
Musically, TTH are reminiscent of the 90’s Alt-Rock bands they grew up listening to. Lyrically, at the root of every song is a passionate exploration of the things that make us all human. Whether good or bad, they’re the things that make us who we are: heartache, longing, society in the modern age, dreams and family.
Through comedic videos, social media hi-jinks, blogs, unexpected wardrobe, late night sandwich stands at music festivals, amusing acceptance speeches and interviews, the band has earned a reputation for making people laugh.
Though vastly different, the band has found a way to balance these two sides in a seamless, cohesive manner. They see it as a crucial, necessary part of what they do. In a world where so much negativity fills the news, where the media endlessly focuses on the bad, The Town Heroes want to bring something positive into it all – as small as it may be. They see it as necessary because it is – it’s who they are. That’s something they’ll never change.
For the past 6 years, TTH have played as a duo – Mike Ryan (guitar, vocals) and Bruce Gillis (drums) – captivating audiences with their remarkably full sound and energetic performances. With a desire to push the envelope even more, in November 2016 the band expanded to become a 4-piece, adding Aaron Green (guitars) and Tori Cameron (bass) to the band. The new lineup reflects and effectively captures the growth, vision, and musical progression of the band.
Ages: 19+
Songwriters Cirlce at The Frolic
NOTE: For those who weren’t refunded for the previous songwriters show that was postponed due to covid, your tickets are valid for this event. Please call/text Dan at 1-902-412-8888 to confirm
An evening of songs and stories featuring:
Mike McKenna Jr.
Dreamy, introspective songwriting with a backdrop of Americana and indie-folk soundscapes. Inspired by true stories and common folklore of isolated, working-class island life in the North Atlantic.
Jordan Musycsyn
Jordan is a hard working singer/songwriter, is a masterful storyteller writing songs about life and love with pathos and humour in a Folk-Country style. A dynamic performer, Jordan moves the audience from laughter to tears and back again.
Wayne Bedecki
Wayne is a singer/songwriter from Glace Bay, Nova Scotia on Cape Breton Island who now resides in Halifax. Currently working on his debut album. His songwriting touches audiences with honesty and vulnerability, along side a smooth Indie Folk sound to create a melodic connection.
Kitchen open till 9PM, and full bar service till midnight. Ages 19+
New Year’s Day Levee
Come celebrate the new year at the Frolic and Folk Pub & Grill.
Music from 2-5PM (TBA)
$5 cover charge for adults at the door.
Cheers!
Brandon Collier at The Frolic
Join us Sunday night for an evening of sing along songs.
Brandon is an up & coming talent, with a wealth of songs.
Kitchen open till 8PM, bar 12AM
Cheers!
Tap Takeover Songwriters Circle
Come sample some of Breton Brewing & Garrison Brewing’s famous offerings, whilst being entertained by Cape Breton’s own Jordan Musycysn, Mike McKenna Jr, & Carmen Townsend, in an intimate setting where they will reveal the mystery behind the process of turning stories into songs and music.
Prizes to be won as well!
Villages
Villages is an indie folk group heavily inspired by the spirit of the Maritimes. However, creating music inspired by their Cape Breton roots seemed like a long shot when the members first started performing together. Back in the late aughts, Matt Ellis, Travis Ellis, Jon Pearo and Archie Rankin formed the indie rock group Mardeen and fled Cape Breton Island for Halifax. Aiming to participate in a music community with a penchant for melodic indie rock, the group strove to carry on the torch of their heroes in Sloan, The Super Friendz and Thrush Hermit.
After releasing several acclaimed albums and EP’s, there was a turning point in that endeavour. “One late night, a few years back, a singalong of Rankin Family tunes broke out” says vocalist Matt Ellis. “I remember saying to the rest of the band that we need to write something that evokes the sound of home.” Soon after that night, Ellis wrote just that song. It was called “Hymn After Hymn” and it captured the Maritimes musically and lyrically in a new and authentic way. This song was followed by a burst of creative output and the group quickly jumped into the studio to record these songs with east coast stalwart and producer Joel Plaskett. “Joel has such a strong knowledge of folk music from the UK and Ireland, he really brought our songs to life”. The problem was, these new songs had nothing in common with the edgy indie rock that Mardeen is known for. These songs needed their own home.
Inspired by an essay that comic artist Kate Beaton wrote about her hometown in Cape Breton, the project was named Villages. The group released their first single in October 2016 and have been writing, recording, and touring in the time since.
In February 2019, Villages will release their self-titled debut album. Recorded at their home studio in rural Nova Scotia with producer Thomas Stajcer (Joel Plaskett, Erin Costello), and mixed by Kevin Ratterman (My Morning Jacket, Basia Bulat), Villages solidifies the group’s vision in capturing the spirit of the Maritimes in a fresh, yet familiar way. Combining Celtic and British folk music influences with the atmospheric arrangements of groups like the War on Drugs and Fleet Foxes, Villages’ debut record is just the first step of a journey into rediscovery and reinvention.
J.P. Cormier
J.P. Cormier is a man with many musical talents. He is a skilled songwriter, a gifted singer, & an extraordinary musician who has accomplished success with more than one instrument. During his long career, he has won many competitions, including the Canadian Open Guitar Championship, the Southern U.S. Fiddle Championship, & the Southern U.S. Banjo Championship. He has also worked with a number of big-name artists and appeared on the ever-popular Grand Ol’ Opry over 24 times. His debut album, Out of the Blue, was released when he was only 16 years old.
Cormier was born in London, Ontario, Canada. When most kids were just starting kindergarten, he was already showing a strong interest in music. Soon that interest proved to be an impressive natural talent. He taught himself to play the guitar. It would only be the first of many string instruments he would master in the coming years.
Not long after Cormier’s ninth birthday, he won his first guitar competition, holding his own against musicians of all ages. He landed his first steady professional job when he was only 14. It was a weekly bluegrass television show called Up Home Tonight. Two years later came the release of a debut album filled with instrumental bluegrass music that showcased his guitar skills. After some time appearing at a number of festivals, Cormier became the mandolin player for the famous bluegrass-gospel group the Sullivan Family. He spent a number of years afterward touring with the group, and with other major artists.
In 1997, Cormier, all grown-up, finally finished a sophomore offering, Another Morning, for his fans. The award-winning recording was followed by a third full-length album, Heart & Soul. Along the way to making a name for himself, Cormier has performed with countless artists, the list reading something like a who’s who in music, including Alan Jackson, Marty Stuart, Bill Monroe, Waylon Jennings, Travis Tritt, Vince Gill, Kitty Wells, and many others. If his musical career had crashed to an end with the start of the new millennium, Cormier would still have touched enough parts of the music world to ensure that his legacy lasted long after.
Port Cities
Stellar songs, dynamic vocals, and superior musicianship marks the emergence of Port Cities onto the Canadian music scene. An exciting new group from the east coast, Port Cities brings together the award winning talents of Carleton Stone, Breagh Mackinnon, and Dylan Guthro.
The trio began writing together when they met at the Gordie Sampson Songcamp in Ingonish, Cape Breton. The result was a strong friendship and ongoing collaboration as they each released and toured solo albums.
Port Cities has now surfaced as the result of a genuine connection and a shared belief that the music they make together has endless possibilities. The outcome is a rootsy pop sound with an emphasis on powerful harmonies, outstanding songs, and an engaging camaraderie onstage and off.
The members of Port Cities are no strangers to great music, with six [solo] albums released collectively to date and collaborations with the likes of Juno award-winning duo Classified and David Myles, along with Hawksley Workman (Tegan and Sara, Serena Ryder, Great Big Sea), Howie Beck (Feist, Hannah Georgas, Hayden) and Jason Collett (acclaimed singer/songwriter and member of Broken Social Scene).
The band worked with mentor and friend, Gordie Sampson (Carrie Underwood, LeAnn Rhymes, Rascal Flatts), writing and recording for their debut release Port Cities, which just came out.
Hillsburn
Still riding high in the wake of a well-received self-titled EP released last October, folk-pop group Hillsburn is, like many of us, looking forward to a spring and summer of festivals. Plus a full-length album in the fall.
Made up of brother and sister Clayton and Rosanna Burrill, Jackson Fairfax-Perry and main songwriter Paul Aarntzen, the band started playing together after a health scare of Aarntzen’s. A prolific songwriter, he ended up writing a selection of songs for a yet-unformed band at his house in Hillsburn, NS after a hospital stay. Recruiting some friends, the evolution of the band was easy. “It was something that felt really natural, and we all had a lot of fun with it,” says Clayton. “All four of us were sort of in transitional periods, evaluating what we wanted to spend our time doing, and Hillsburn really just presented itself to us.”
Hillsburn’s thoughtful, melodic songs come from Aartzen’s literary background. “Lyrically, [Paul] makes up a lot of first-person stories. He’s also writes fiction, so a lot of our songs end up sounding a little like short stories set to music.”
Though rooted in folk, the band prefers to dodge genres in favour of just doing what sounds best. “We don’t necessarily think of ourselves as working within the folk tradition. I think we adopted the folk-pop label because we play mostly acoustic instruments, many of which are staples of folk and bluegrass—acoustic guitar, mandolin, fiddle, banjo,” says Clayton. “But really these were just the instruments we had kicking around when we started trying to arrange some of Paul’s songs. We also use saxophone, keyboard and ukulele. We’re certainly not folk purists. We have one song that’s just a Rhodes keyboard and three-part harmony. So we tend to use whatever instrumentation sounds best, regardless of what genre the song sounds like as a result.”
Painting with Patricia
Come discover your inner artist with a night of creativity, conversations, and maybe a few cocktails! Patricia MacNeil is lending us her expertise for a funfilled night. $45 includes canvas, paints, brushes, aprons, palette – everything you need to create your very own masterpiece. Space is limited.