And just like that, it’s that time again: another year, another anniversary show. It almost feels like we’re still recovering from last year’s! But some things, sufficiently repeated, grow into custom — almost tradition. We’ve still got a crack squad of sharp acoustic players with demented musical tastes, and again we’ve managed to bolster them with opening sets from some of our favourite acts: in this case, Prince George’s philosopher-king of the singer-songwriters, Raghu Lokanathan, as well as Vancouver’s accordion-queen-in-absentia, Ana Bon-Bon taking a rare tour of the colonies from her new seat in London, England! And as with last year, this year we also congregate to celebrate with this show at the Railway Club, upstairs at 579 Dunsmuir Street. The show should be rolling by 8:30 pm, and again, admission is $8, or $6 for Railway Club members.
We’re learning some new songs (at least one of which is not only new to us but to the world!) and exhuming other lost and forgotten works from the great 20th century popular songbook… and of course polishing up the favorite of the discriminating Heineken fan, Jaan Pehechaan Ho. It should be a great time (the only thing going downtown on a Wednesday night!) that we won’t see the likes of until, well, January 2013, so we hope to catch you out Wednesday, January 18th, 2012!
Many thanks to Daisy-Jones Locher for the amazing poster artwork; you should be seeing it on some of a new run of buttons, and who knows what other goodies we’re going to come up with for the merch table of the damned?
This performance is a presentation of CFRO 102.7 fm’s Accordion Noir radio show.
Bonus!
We got to play with Raghu at the show, on his anthemic “theme song”, and here’s proof:
Blackbeard Squeezebox has been several years running with his bit on the side, the Joey Only Outlaw Band, but finally this year he gets to reconvene with his old Living Closet cronies with the jug band of the damned in tow! ArtsWells, BC’s biggest little indie arts festival takes place over the BC Day long weekend in the little town of Wells, BC (and neighbouring historical Barkerville) in the Cariboo, from Friday July 31st through Monday August 3rd. Sharing various stages with us at various times are a whole bevy of buddies both accordion-slinging and non-; a partial look at the stellar line-up this year includes such friends as Ana Bon-Bon, Blackberry Wood, Geoff Berner, Jess Hill and Raghu Lokanathan (we’ll be playing a show with him in town the following week) and luminaries such as Fish & Bird, Linda McRae, Rae Spoon and the Tequila Mockingbird Orchestra!
We’re slated to be performing an afternoon set at the Barkerville venue Saturday (2-3 pm) and in the downstairs of the main hall Monday afternoon (3-4 pm) but you’ll be finding various and sundry Planks all over the festival grounds, nosing out jams and sating our hunger for knowledge at workshops like the accordions in the round session Saturday at noon or Dr. Steelhand’s slide guitar workshop Sunday morning (11 am-1 pm) in the school classroom! (Our regular hunger will be sated by Martin in the kitchen, no doubt!)
It ain’t Portland, but sometimes us Planks don’t have to travel quite so far afield to find friends to hang out with on New Year’s Eve. We’ll be sharing the stage at Chapel Arts (304 Dunlevy Avenue at Cordova) with our pal Petunia and the Vipers as well as the Highballs. All that plus appetizers, champagne at midnight and a chance to get an eyeful of the Galatians 3:19 group show currently hanging there!Admission is $40 in advance, $50 at the door and $20 after midnight. For further information, you can go right to the source!
