WESTLOCK – The upbeat, energetic swing and jazz music of the 1930s and ‘40s will take centre stage when the Misery Mountain Boys come to Westlock Nov. 4.
The Edmonton-based band will make its debut in Westlock as part of the 2022-2023 Cultural Arts Theatre Society performance series. Misery Mountain Boys were featured at the Alberta Showcase last year, which is where they caught the attention of CATS members.
“They reached out and wanted to include us in their 2022-2023 season,” said band manager and musician Steven Gevenich. “The timing was perfect as we have this new record coming out. It’s our first time coming to Westlock.”
Gevenich plays guitar and is lead vocals and is joined by Sam Toms (clarinet and saxophone), Lindsay Bueckert, (upright bass) and Ethan Markwart (drums). The Alberta-raised musicians celebrated their 10th year as a band this past June and have released two Eps and three, full-length albums in the past decade, including their latest CD Full Moon Shuffle, which saw a physical release Sept. 10 — a digital version is expected this coming week.
“We’ve been on a bit of an album release tour, that started in early September,” said Gevenich, noting stops in British Columbia and Alberta. Gevenich calls their music “timeless” and said it’s as fun to play as it is to listen to.
“I’ve always loved at festivals when there were bands where you could get up and dance to and boogie to, that was always my favourite thing and that was definitely a huge influence in what I wanted my band to be,” he said, noting musical influences include Merle Travis, Django Reinhardt, Louis Jordan, and a more modern influence in Pokey Lafarge. “It’s pretty up-tempo, lighthearted, and it’s instrumentally and rhythmically driven.”
Gevenich said he hopes to see people out for the band’s Westlock debut, to enjoy the “easily-digestible music” a few stories and share some laughs.
“That’s really the essence of this music is that if you want to get up and boogie that’s totally fine, but also if you want to just sit back and enjoy, I think it’s music that you can enjoy from your seat just as easily.”
Season or individual tickets, priced at $35 per show, can be bought in person at MTech Printing and Signs, 10039 - 107th Street, or by visiting www.WestlockCulturalArtsTheatre.com, then following the links.
The third, and final show CATS show of 2022 goes Dec. 2 and features Horizon Ridge, a group of accomplished multi-instrumentalists and seasoned singers known for their intuitive tight harmonies and polished a cappella whose music covers the range of traditional and contemporary folk, country, blues and gospel.
