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Evan Kennedy
Breaking onto the Vancouver music scene in 2006 as frontman, singer and songwriter for his band, The Sicks, Evan crammed a lot of success into a relatively brief period of time. Voted third-best unsigned local band in The Georgia Straight's 2009 Best of Vancouver, The Sicks feature Evan's vocals at his carefree best. The first song Evan ever wrote - We Need More Reggae (found on The Sicks' 2008 full-length debut studio album, Take It All In) has received airplay on 104.3 FM The Shore, where Evan has also enjoyed live, in-studio appearances.
Evan gigs his solo-acoustic at venues all over Vancouver and can regularly be heard at The Wolf & Hound and Mahony & Sons. Besides playing all his own original tunes, he avoids covering top 40 songs, in favour of more album songs that more serious music listeners would appreciate.
Evan categorizes his music primarily as roots/acoustic folk, though reggae and other genres can be found in the mix. Non-family influences on Evan's songwriting include Tom Petty, Neil Young and the vocal stylings of Ben Harper.
Read more: http://www.myspace.com/evankennedyacoustic
Roolya Boolya
This Vancouver based Power Celtic duo features local fiddler extraordinaire (Dangerous) Mary Brunner accompanied by Irish ex-pat Mark Downey on guitar, bodhran and vocals. They gallop across the landscape of music and song from Ireland and the Celtic world, both ancient and modern, and they are never happy til the roof is raised and the audience is givin' it loads with them. They perform regularly at many of Vancouver's Irish and Celtic venues and have featured at the Vancouver Celtic Fest over the past three years, but think of the Wolf and Hound as home. They were the featured entertainment at the Irish House for 13 performances during the Winter Olympics. They appeared on the NBC Morning Show and The Colbert Report, accompanying Stephen Colbert as he sang The Rocky Road to Dublin. They are the official entertainment for the Paralympic Athletes on Saint Patrick's Day 2010 at Whistler. For further info please consult: http://www.myspace.com/roolyaboolya
Watasun
Ronii Wata and Sunny Reid of Watasun are the new generation of DIY music artists. They have travelled from one side of Canada to the other with all their instruments and sound equipment in the car. At live shows it is not uncommon for them to be in charge of the P.A. and overall sound of the room. They even record their own albums along with the artwork, mixing, and mastering. They sell their own publishing and self-manage their private recording studios.
"We don't have any other choice," Ronii says, just before picking up his guitar to play us his new song, "If the only thing you know how to do is music, than you know that is what you got to do, and get it done the best you can. It keeps getting better with much fun and growth along the way."
Five years have flew by since this duo met at recording school in Ontario. Since that time they have relocated from their hometowns in southern Ontario to the west coast of Vancouver, B.C. The two members have recorded many albums along the way, some for themselves and other times they work independently as music producers. The name comes from "Water" and "Sun", two elements that work off each other to give life. They haven't always been a duo and they can switch into a full band for live performances and recording if it calls for it. There is no doubt that this two piece does come in handy for some of the more exclusive events. The energy and sound that comes from this compact yet charming setup is remarkable and memorable to all those spectating the performance.
Sunny Reid describes the creative vibe and it's development over the years. "Ronii had a song on the radio that was gaining a lot of attention when he started looking for musicians to perform live with. I was playing the Djembe at the time and I liked the songs and the style that we were playing with. We just kept getting more shows and it hasn't stopped since. I had the opportunity to get a steel pan, and that is when things became really exiting and we developed our own unique sound. The Cajon came later, when we needed a bigger drum sound."
Sunny Reid and Ronii Wata continue performing their own brand of folk music, celebrating a wide range of music and interacting with people of all ages. The duo is best known for working with the audience in sharing the best moods possible. Watasun is as young as ever with their fresh prospective and positive attitude toward the music world. A few highlights include placing second in a multinational battle of the bands contest (missing out on a one-million dollar prize), performing exclusive events for Wayne Gretzky, The 2010 Olympic athletes, and Factor Canada (A resource for Canadian DIY artists). These guys like to keep it simple but always remain open to change and is the possibility to new and exiting ways to get their feel good music to the people
Read more: http://www.myspace.com/watasun
