ATHABASCA – The Athabasca region is an inspiring place — so much so that the scenic views of the little town by the river will provide the backdrop for five upcoming music videos by 25 Cigarettes, a two-piece rock band that includes local musician Frederic Minville.
For Minville and his fellow band member Dennis Jr. Habel, Athabasca was the perfect place to shoot the videos for songs off their new album 2021, and that is exactly what will be happening during the final week of August.
“I’m just in love with Athabasca,” Minville said. “I think it’s so pretty ... it’s got a lot to offer as a town, so anything I can do to help promote our little town is cool with me.”
The two decided to get the band together because of the fun they had playing with each other in high school.
"We met up again after 20 years of being apart, last summer, and we recorded our first album in three days,” Minville said.
“Then I came back home, set up my own recording studio, and we spent eight months recording 2021.”
The album focuses heavily on the events that transpired over the course of 2021 and the effects these events had on the world around them.
25 Cigarettes also hopes to share the new music with the community during their week of filming through two live shows they have planned, including a show at Neighbours Pub on Aug. 28 with Magnificent River Rats Festival alum and local product Stony Creaser and the Moose Mountain Boys. They will also be performing at the Nancy Appleby Theatre on Aug. 31.
Minville said he and Habel have not played a live show together since their days in high school, so these will act as their live debut as a band as well.
“We're going to play our first shows in Athabasca, (Habel) is flying in from Ontario — 3,000 kilometres away.”
After 25 years of developing their musical talents, the two decided it was finally time to put themselves out there for the world to enjoy. You can find the new album on iTunes, and songs and videos from their first album on YouTube. Everything done by the band is self-produced rather than being under a label, meaning they are the ones responsible for both making the music and developing it for public presentation.
“I play drums, I play guitar, and I do some of the vocal work on this album,” Minville said. “(Habel) does the guitar, producing, the vocals. We self-produce, so he does the artwork.”
Overall, Minville said it has been a long time coming, and he’s happy to get the town some exposure through the band’s music.
“I've been playing drums for 25 years; he’s playing guitar for 25 years. You can't fake that. Twenty-five years' experience and now we can capture it, it's awesome.”
