Edmonton pop/ folk/ rock band Owls By Nature played to a very busy Slice, March 1.
They played a more rock infused set compared to their last Lethbridge visit, which was reminiscent of the Gin Blossoms, but with lots of banjo and keyboards.
they played a couple brand new songs including “Walking Over Burning Coals,” and “I’ll be Coming Home,’ plus several tracks from their previous album including “Heartbreaking ways which ended the set.
They hand most of the audience on their feet through most of their set including on some “really, really new songs.”
In addition to incorporating many different instruments, they incorporated some excellent vocal harmonies.
James Renton of the band Fire Next Time played a solo set of energetic folk/ rock music to open the show. His set included solo material as well as a couple Fire Next Time songs including one of the shows’s highlight “Rosewood Jesus,” which he said was “about horrible things that happened on the railroad.”
Jolene Draper and her new band followed that up with their first gig.
Draper and guitarists Rick Kowalski and Brian Wayling played a set of covers including Neil Young’s ‘Old Man.” It was a more straight ahead rock flavoured set compared to her previous band Dalliance Elixir. She still has an enjoyable, distinctive, thin, reedy voice reminiscent of Macy Grey.
She picked up an acoustic guitar to play a couple originals, and Wayling sang lead on one of his own original blues songs. She sang a pretty version of Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m on Fire.” She sand her song about Mother Earth which she played with Dalliance Elixir and performed for the South Country Fair songwriting competition last year.
