Plays Vernon concert on April 28; Kelowna on May 3
(April 13, 2012 – Winnipeg, Manitoba) For the seventh time in two years, 23-year-old songwriter James Struthers will head out on a Canadian tour. But this tour is a little different. People are already familiar with his music thanks to some serious radio airplay.
James Struthers’ 50-plus date national tour stretches from Vancouver Island to Halifax. The Vernon & Kelowna concert dates are as follows:
Saturday Apr. 28 @ 7 pm Gallery Vertigo, Vernon, BC Tickets $10 in advance; $15 at door Thursday May 3 @ 7 pm Bicycle Cafe, Kelowna, BC Tickets $7 at door
After being selected as the Bell Media Emerging Artist for April 2012, James’ new tune What Are We WaitingFor went into rotation on Bell Media and CHUM radio stations across the country. All of a sudden, James’ Facebook profile was flooded with comments like, “Hey there rock star! Heard a plug for you on the radio in Vancouver this morning. ‘James Struthers is the next rising star’…Niiiice!!!! :)” And, “James! You were just on the radio in Burlington!! Amazing to hear you on the radio!! :)”
James, in his typical modest style, responded to the so-called “inflated comments” – but the radio charts prove his success. Prior to releasing What Are We Waiting For, James released a holiday-themed single, Blue Christmas, which hit the Top Ten in the national Adult Contemporary radio charts. Struthers’ cover version of the song popularized by Elvis Presley, peaked at #8 in December 2011, putting the Winnipeg musician in the radio charting ranks of artists like Jason Mraz, John Mayer and Jack Johnson – musicians James is often compared to.
Then, there are the YouTube fans that are drawn to James’ music. James’ recent video for his Transformers-inspired, self-written song You, Me and Optimus Prime has almost 200,000 YouTube views. The video was also recently featured by famed radio host Alan Cross, and gadget news site, Gizmodo (one of the Top 50 most visited websites in the world).
With his deep blue eyes, disarming smile and cool, calm demeanor, James Struthers may be a 23-year-old heartthrob; but his allure goes far beyond the sightlines. He’s also an incredibly gifted songwriter and guitarist with a soulful voice and a young, aspiring business man with relentless, DIY work ethic.
“Nothing worth doing in life comes easy, but it doesn’t feel like work to me,” says Struthers. “I feel very lucky that I’ve found what I love in life, and even more lucky that I wake up every morning and get to do it.”
James has released two EPs and four music videos in less than two years. James is managed by Western Canadian Music Awards “Producer of the Year” Arun Chaturvedi.
To learn more about James Struthers, please visit:
For the blues, rock and reggae inspired sounds of Edmonton basedSTONE IRIS, there’s just no replacing that feeling of commiseration and unity that comes from a group of friends gathered around at the stage, soaking up the night together and raising a glass to good times.
It’s exactly that kind of feeling thatSTONE IRIS taps into on their newly recorded EP, “Illuminations”, which is set for release on Tuesday, May 15, 2012. Like a lost night in a smoky bar, its songs feel easy to slip into and even easier to get lost in, using laid-back but propulsive grooves to create a mood that feels at once nostalgic and promising, familiar enough to get your guard down but restless enough to let you know that the best times are on their way. It builds off their previous releases,2011 twin-EPs The Boo Box and Serene Machine, the 2010 Silhouettes EP and 2008 debut Ezperanza, by revealing a band that is at once more assured and more expansive than it’s ever been.
After performing at Doc Willoughby’s last year for Pop Okanagan, the Oh Wells return to Kelowna! Check out videos from their current Canadian tour.
The Oh Wells began with acne, corrective dental wear, and the inability to look the opposite sex in the eye without panicking and/or falling in love. In other words, the Oh Wells began with high school. At sixteen, Sarah Jickling was your average super-shy suburban teen. She spent most of her time baking cupcakes, re-reading the Harry Potter series and quoting Meg Ryan. Then, one day, everything changed. Sarah and one of her super-shy friends decided to start a band.
It happened over the winter break of Grade 11. The girls recorded their very first songs with the help of Garage Band and made themselves a little MySpace page under the name “The Oh Wells”. That’s “oh well” as in: “The boy I wrote these songs about probably thinks I’m gross…oh well!”
Flash forward to one week later. The Oh Wells returned to school and suddenly people who had never talked to them before were stopping them in the hallways. The guy who sat in front of Sarah in math class turned around during a lesson and said “I love your band.” Even “beard guy”, Sarah’s biggest crush ever, had heard the Oh Wells’ tunes. Their lives would never be the same.
During the next few years, The Oh Wells went from playing the school’s Terry Fox run, to White Rock’s coffee shops, to venues where they had seen their own favourite bands play. These years contained some agonizing heartbreaks (see “beard guy”), a couple of equally painful line-up changes, and several boxes of “do-it-yourself” hair dye. But most importantly, these years gave way to a whole slew of catchy indie-pop songs that sound like they had been originally written in a diary. In a good way.
Now the Oh Wells are CITR Shindig winners, EMP Soundoff finalists, and made the PEAK Performance Project 2011 Top 20! Sarah is currently a blonde.
Nuuka’s aim is to provide a soundtrack for that road trip, dance party, walk in the sun, sleepless night, airport layover, Vancouver City bus ride, and of course, live show!
Known as Indie/Pop/Rockers with strong melodies, catchy hooks and harmonies, Nuuka will have your ears and maybe even your hands and feet.
Anthony Martens and Norrie Henderson, former bandmates from a noteworthy Indie/Folk project calledTreelight Room, have joined forces once again, along with accomplished and eclectic drummer Zac Gauthier and seasoned artist Jeremy Vautour on bass. You can expect to hear piano driven arrangements from Anthony, accompanied by soaring lead guitar lines and harmonies from Norrie, all ramped up by the undeniable percussion section.
“It’s music that explores off the beaten track, while still remaining accessible.”
Sunday, April 15th
Time: 7 -9
5$
1292 Ellis Street Facebook event
Newly formed indie super group Real Boys (Featuring members of Oh No! Yoko, You Say Party! We Say Die!, and GSTS!) is playing at Tweaked and Yummy. They will be joined by spoken word performance poet Nathan Hare.
Everett Morris – Vocals/Guitar
Drew Riekman – Guitar/Vocals
Stephen O’Shea – Bass
Liam Hamilton – Drums
Nathan Hare is a spoken word performance poet from Kelowna, BC. His topics range from his ex-girlfriend’s cat to homophobia, from faith to high school, to youth and love. Sometimes funny, sometimes sad, sometimes both. In his spare time he tries to be nice.
Formed in April 2011 as a side project for lead singer Everett Morris’ song writing, Real Boys arrive with fresh-faced enthusiasm and the bravery to wander on tangents. Their two guitar attack dispensing strong melodies against an air-tight rhythm section, these summery tunes will have you dancing through winter. Featuring members of You Say Party! We Say Die!, On No! Yoko, and GSTS!.
Watch the show live on the internet! Go to www.streamingcafe.net and watch live in real time at 7pm Pacific Standard Time. Interact with the artist live during the show via twitter – tweet your questions @streamingcafe
In Kelowna? Catch this show live in person at the Streaming Cafe. The show is FREE and starts at 7pm.
This German duo have toured as support for artists like Sufjan Stevens, White Stripes, Jose Gonzalez and The Flaming Lips.
Get your tickets at 
Kelowna Live Music Blog 