If you are looking for a little peace, love and good music , join most of Lethbridge’s folk and roots music community at the South Country Fair this weekend. At this time of year, a cadre of Lethbridgians head west to Fort Macleod every summer for the annual fair which takes place this week July 16-18. In addition a good chunk of Lethbridge’s folk community attending the fair, it is also a place where local musicians go to not only hang out and jam at the campground, but on the stage as well.
“We’ve played around the campfire before, but this is the first time we’ve played on stage,” said Nicole Hembroff, vocalist and violinist for local jazz influenced indie rock band the Record Holder who play on the East Stage, Saturday afternoon at 5:30 p.m.
“We’re definitely looking forward to it. There’s definitely this sense of community at the South Country Fair of people who really appreciate musical expression,” Hembroff continued, who can usually be found volunteering at the CKXU, 88.3 tent at the fair.
“People there come from a variety of different musical, philosophical and religious backgrounds and you can strike up a conversation with any of them and they’ll say ‘isn’t this amazing.’”
To appeal to a variety of different people, there is also a variety of music (many form southern Alberta) offered from country like the Fabulous Ginn Sisters, to world music with Delhi 2 Dublin and pop/reggae/hip hop from the Wassabi Collective. In addition to a lot of traditional folk, there are a variety of popular singer-songwriters like Lorrie Matheson, Jay Crocker and Jenny Allen. There is also jazz from Calgary trio Heather Bush and the Uppercuts, blues from David Essig and a lot of spoken word poetry at the Lotus Land stage throughout the week.
“It’s such an honour to be asked to play,” Hembroff enthused adding the band will be playing most of their new CD as well as crowd favourites which didn’t make it onto the CD.
George Arsene, best known as frontman of local alt country band the Skilletlikkers, has been going to the fair for the past 13 years.
“We played it a couple years ago. We dedicated a song to (Canadian mandolin and songwriting icon who played with Fred Eaglesmith) Willie P Bennett. And his mom was in the front row because she lives in Picture Butte now,” he said.
“We were on the east stage at 11:30 and we had the biggest crowd there,” Arsene recalled.
“ I like a lot of different things about the fair. I think their music choices are excellent, but they need to book Dave McCann,” he continued adding he likes the camaraderie everyone shares at the Fair.
“The Saturday night at South Country Fair is like New Year’s Eve for me,” Arsene said.
“ I really like the South Country Fair. Maureen Chambers is an ideal artistic director for a festival. She’s always on the grounds, lending a hand where ever it’s needed and the audiences are great. People in Alberta really get it. Get all the nuances. People really know how to listen, but they know how to boogie too,” enthused Vancouver Island based folk bluesman Dave Essig who is excited to return to the fair this year with guitarist Rick Scott and stand up bassist Shelley Brown who play at 6:20 p.m. on Saturday night.
“It was such an amazing experience last year, I couldn’t wait to come back, so when they said they were looking for performers, I said ‘hey, look at me, I ’ve got something new,” enthused Lily Fawn who performed last year as part of the Hank and Lily Show. This year she is supporting her new solo CD ‘Brightest Darkest’, which explains Lily Fawn’s background before she met Hank. She remembered the heat last year and enjoying going into the river.
“I’m a forest creature, so I’m not used to that kind of heat. And I don’t swim in a fast moving river, but I went into the river and there was always someone to help me when I started to float away,” she chirped adding she will be performing on Sunday afternoon this year at 1:20 p.m.
Jesse and Tyler Freed look at the South Country Fair as a holiday, so they shut down the Slice so they can go to it.
“We stayed open one year, but a lot of our customers and most of the bands who play here are at the Fair,” Jesse Freed observed.
“So it’s a good opportunity to take a little time off. It’s a good place to go and just hang out with them as friends rather than employers. We create a lot of relationships with people but you don’t actually get to sit and hang out with them when you run a bar, because you are always running around looking after things,” Freed continued adding most of the bands playing South Country Fair this year have played the Slice at some time or another — 23 of the bands on this year’s bill.
“It’s an excellent chance to hang out with good friends and listen to great music. We got to go and just hang out with Elliott Brood,” he said.
“It’s a great time to spend with people as equals.”
South Country Fair Schedule
Thursday Volunteer Party
7 pm Smoked Folk
Friday South Stage
6:00 pm The Glenny Jenny Band
7:00 Ryan Bourne
8:10 The Ginn Sisters
9:15 Poet -- TBA
9:30 Alpha Yaya Diallo
10:40 Cort Delano
(Songwriter Competition Winner)
10:50 Mauvais Sort
12:15 Wassabi Collective
Saturday South Stage (afternoon)
1:30 pm Poet TBA
1:40 Jenny Allen
2:50 Heather Blush and the Uppercuts
4:00 Jay Crocker
5:10 Dana Wylie
6:20 David Essig/ Rick Scott
Saturday South Stage (evening)
7:25 pm Poet TBA
7:40 Wendy McNeill
8:50 Lorrie Matheson
10:00 Mighty Popo
11:10 Robert Mulder
(Songwriter Competition Winner)
11:20 The Beez
12:40 NQ Arbuckle & Carolyn Mark
Sunday South Stage
11:50 am Poet TBA
12:10 pm Indio Saravanja
1:20 Lily Fawn’s Brightest Darkest Lullabies
2:30 Chad Vangaalen
3:40 Delhi 2 Dublin
Saturday East Stage
10:30 am Songwriter in the Round
Host: David Essig, Jenny Allen,
Ryan Bourne, NQ Arbuckle,
Carolyn Mark
11:30 Brenna Lowrie
12:30 pm Morlove
1:30 Greg Amundson
2:30 Marie Josee Houle
3:30 Daniel Moir
4:30 Low Flying Planes
5:30 The Record Holder
Sunday East Stage
10:30 am Songwriter in the Round
Host: Rick Scott, Indio Saravanja,
Lorrie Matheson, Wendy McNeill,
Dana Wylie
11:30 Magnolia Buckskin
12:30 pm Tequila Mockingbird Orchestra
1:30 Nancy Laberg
Sat/Sun
1:30 pm Family Show with Rick Scott
Friday Lotus Land
6:30 pm Dale Herrington
7:00 Ikenna Onyegbula
7:30 Zaccheus Jackson
8:00 Brent Schaus
8:30 RadaR Poet
9:00 Wakefield Brewster
Open Mic
Saturday Lotus Land
11:30 am Brandon Wint
12:00 pm RadaR Poet
12:30 Tola D.
1:00 Komi Olafimihan
1:30 Lori D. Roadhouse
2:00 Zaccheus Jackson
2:30 Brent Schaus
3:00 Wakefield Brewster
3:30 Chris Davis
4:00 Ikenna Onyegbula
4:30 Blaine Greenwood
5:00 Tribute to Steve (eatlardfudge)
7:00 Komi Olafimihan
7:30 Homage and DJ Freemoney
8:00 Brandon Wint
8:30 Fred Holliss
9:00 Idnami
9:30 Ghosts of the Highway
Open Mic
11:00 am Ian Keteku
11:30 Idnami
12:00 pm Chris Davis
12:30 Fred Holliss
1:00 Homage and DJ Freemoney
1:30 Tola D.
2:00 Ghosts of the Highway
2:30 The RECIPE
Open Mic
Saturday Awareness (schedule of sorts)
9:00 am Guided Meditation on Twin Hearts, Super
Brain Yoga and the 5 Tibetan Rites
10:00 am Hatha Yoga with Amend
11am-5 pm Rhythm Rising, Plant Awareness
Walk, Buffalo Stone Presentation, Laughter Yoga
and Hooping Session, Walking the Labyrinth, Open
Forum TBA
Sunday Awareness
9:00 am Guided Meditation on Twin Hearts and
the 5 Tibetans Rites
10:00 Hatha Yoga with Amend
11am-5 pm Rhythm Rising, The Work of the Sacred
Circle, Laughter Yoga and Hooping Session, Walking
the Labyrinth, Open Forum TBA,
Body and Energy Work available on site all weekend
Sunday South Stage
11:50 am Poet TBA
12:10 pm Indio Saravanja Indio Saravanja
1:20 Lily Fawn’s Brightest Darkest Lullabies Lily Fawn's Brightest Darkest
2:30 Chad Vangaalen
3:40 Delhi 2 Dublin
6:20 David Essig/ Rick Scott
A version of this story appears in the July 14 edition of the Lethbridge Sun Times
