February 18th

Daniel Champagne

Daniel delivers one of the most impressive one-man shows out there, reaching to musical depths far beyond his years. He has a way with the guitar that has to be seen to be believed and often sounds closer to a three-piece band than a 20-year old singer/songwriter/guitarist.  His playing runs from the instruments soul to way outside the box. A signature explosion of two-hand tapping, body percussion and fiery runs in a swag of different tunings can be expected, as can the jazzy fingerpicking and tasteful improvisation of someone that first picked up the instrument at seven years and as it would seem, hasn't put it down since.  "Proof that the acoustic guitar's only limit is our imagination" (Lloyd Spiegel);

"Probably the best young guitarist in Australia" (IFC President).

The same versatility can be found in his writing and choice of material. Pulling off sets from intense blues-driven crowd-pleasers, experimental compositions and bags of originals, to century-old Folk or Blues songs.

As for the voice: 'He sings with a wonderfully pronounced and proud Aussie twang, howling here, hushed there, always confident, fearless and knowing' (Jamie Forbes)

www.myspace.com/danielchampagne89.

March 18th

The Beez

Look What They’ve Done To My Song

The Beez have furnished their house with musical bric-a-brac from around the world – a potpourri of moving, silly, deep and sometimes meaningless pop and rock songs. These songs are, however, anything but common or garden variety. The four tonal interior decorators from the Beez rearrange and craft a song until a certain stylistically unmistakable Beez Feng Shui emerges.The Beez are at home on any stage and travel light-four voices, two acoustic guitars, an acoustic bass and an accordion and, it has to be said, more than a few costumes…The Beez are renowned as excellent hosts, serving lavish lashings of humour and musicality guaranteed to charm every audience. Their programme ‘’In the House” is (with or without electricity) like a luxury penthouse on the roof of pop and rock history in which everyone finds a sunny room with a view.

http://www.thebeez.de

+++ MONDAY +++

April 19th

James Keelaghan

James 11th CD, House of cards was released on October 12 2009 by Borealis records. 10 new originals, some of them co-writes with such folk luminaries as David Francey, Karine Polwart and Rose Cousins make it one of his best yet.

Called Canada’s finest singer-songwriter by one of the most respected music journalists of the last 50 years, James Keelaghan is an artist who has proven to be a man for all seasons.

As the calendar pages have turned, for almost a quarter of a century now, this poet laureate of the folk and roots music world has gone about his work with a combination of passion, curiosity intent and intensity.

His masterful story telling has, over the course of nine recordings, been part of the bedrock of his success, earning Keelaghan nominations and awards - including a Juno (Canada's Grammy) - and acclaim from Australia to Scandinavia.

Possessed of an insatiable appetite for finding the next unique story line, Keelaghan forges his pieces with brilliant craftsmanship and monogrammed artistic vision, making him one of the most distinctive and readily identifiable voices on both the Canadian and international singer-songwriter scenes.  

 His journey has attracted fans of literate and layered songwriting to join him on his artistic expeditions, some of which weave their way through marvelously etched historical stories with underlying universal themes, others of which mine the depths of the soul and the emotional trails of human relations.

His songbook has enlightened, enthralled, and been embraced, by audiences around the world.

http://web.me.com/jameskeelo/Keeloweb/KEELOWEB.html