Category: Columns

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Hillbilly Highway – Zachary Lucky makes a stop in town

Zacharylucky2012-credJIsaac

by Sheldon Birnie

Zachary Lucky is one tireless performer. The talented songwriter, from Saskatoon, SK, travels endlessly back and forth across the Hillbilly Highway here in Canada, stopping in Winnipeg more than a few times each spin around the sun. Lucky’s just rereleased his beautiful 2012 album Saskatchewan on vinyl, and to celebrate he’s making a pit-stop at the Rose N Bee on Sunday on his way to Ontario. Lucky had some time last Sunday to chat about it. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Zachary Lucky makes a stop in town”

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Hillbilly Highway – Pure Manitoba Gold

uncle smoky

 

by Sheldon Birnie

I was over at my pal JP’s place the other night, interviewing him about his show, “Destination Moon,” on CKUW for the upcoming issue of Stylus. After going over the process he uses to assemble his shows from his extensive LP collection, he dug into some country music for me as we enjoyed the last of our beverages. It has to be said, during the 1970s and early 1980s, with the proximity of K-Tel records and other pressing plants in Winnipeg, that a lot of pure gold was pumped out into the world, the bulk of which has either been destroyed, is sitting in peoples’ basements or thrift stores, or assembled piecemeal into collections like JP’s. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Pure Manitoba Gold”

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Hillbilly Highway – Jeff Stuart & The Hearts

by Sheldon Birnie

Jeff Stuart & The Hearts are a six-piece indie roots band out of Edmonton. Two albums deep, and with a bunch of festival gigs and big-time opening spots behind them, Jeff & The Hearts are taking to the Highway to spread their sound across Canada. With a stop in Winnipeg tonight with local lovelies The Sweet Alibi, Jeff took some time out of last-minute tour prep to chat with Stylus about their latest record, Equal Parts Reason & Moonlight, and touring and writing with a large band.

Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Jeff Stuart & The Hearts”

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Hillbilly Highway – Lower Companions drop new disc

by Sheldon Birnie

Since the 2009 release of their debut LP, Jason Maas & The Lower Companions have been grinding it out in Winnipeg’s roots scene. Now, on the eve of the release of their latest record, the six song Lock & Step, at the Times Change(d) this Saturday, singer, songwriter, and band leader Jason Maas got on the phone here to Stylus to talk about the band, the record, and what comes next for the Lower Companions. Continue reading “Hillbilly Highway – Lower Companions drop new disc”