Aerialists + Emily Millard

  • September 26, 2017
    7:30 pm - 10:00 pm

The Carleton is very pleased indeed to bring international prog/trad stars Aerialists along with the wonderful Emily Millard to Halifax – while they are in the province performing at the excellent Deep Roots Festival in Wolfville (go, you’ll LOVE it) – for what will be a very special performance on Tuesday, September 26th. Show time is 7:30 PM and admission is only $10 at the door. This will be an amazing show folks, acts like these do not come our way often enough…

In a world where hyphenated genres are becoming the norm, all kinds of monikers are available for a contemporary folk band – post-folk, trad-core, alt-roots. File under World, or file under Celtic? Aerialists fits best with the beautifully contradictory term prog-trad, melding their ferociously creative harmonic sensibilities with a deep love for folk traditions. The quintet draws from the wells of Nordic and Gaelic music, adding expansive post-rock textures and meticulously sculpted arrangements to create captivating, genre-defying new music.

“A veritable (prog-trad) folk super-group whose next moves promise to be extraordinary” Folk Radio UK

Aerialists formed in early 2014 when long-time collaborators Adam Iredale-Gray (Fish & Bird) and Elise Boeur (Jenny Ritter) joined Mairi Chaimbeul (Darol Anger & The Furies) at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Their eclectic musical sensibilities and intuitive instrumentation create an engaging tapestry of sound packed with depth, emotion and history. Their debut EP was released in 2016 on Fiddlehead Records, and their upcoming full-length album Group Manoeuvre will be released on September 19th 2017, accompanied by Canadian and European album release tours.

Raised in a family of artists and musicians on the remote Isle of Skye, and now in-demand in throughout Europe and North America, award-winning Scottish harpist Mairi Chaimbeul combines a deep-rooted sense of Gaelic tradition with a distinctive improvising voice and honed classical technique.

A founding member of critically acclaimed Canadian indie-folk band Fish & Bird, Adam Iredale-Gray has been touring hard for the past 9 years. His writing style draws on the formative Irish sessions of his youth in Victoria, as well as contemporary folk, jazz and pop influences such as Oliver Schroer, Brad Mehldau, and Bon Iver. His tunes have become part of the standard repertoire in Western Canadian fiddle circles.

Vancouver-born fiddler Elise Boeur immersed herself in traditional music in Ireland as a youth, later moving between jazz schools in North America and Norwegian folk music college deep in the mountains of Telemark. She has brought her sonic sensitivity and passion for folk traditions to a staggering variety of projects, from alt-folk Canadiana to prog metal.

Working with an array of exceptional bassists (Nate Sabat, Wynston Minckler) and drummers (Jake Jenne, Sean Trischka and more) who share their fascination with craft and harmony, Aerialists create an imaginative, evocative and wholly original sound.

Emily Millard is a Canadian singer/songwriter whose unique blend of art-folk has been called “inventive,” “haunting” and “beautifully ethereal.” Alchemically combining poetry with vintage keys, steel strings and found- instruments, Emily braves the space between silence and sound with her unmistakable voice.

Over the past ten years, Emily has released four records under the moniker Miss Emily Brown. Her new album By Heron & By Season is her first release under her birth name. Produced by Sandro Perri, the album features some of Canada’s most innovative instrumentalists including violinist Jesse Zubot (Tanya Tagaq), cellist Peggy Lee (Veda Hille), drummer Dan Gaucher (Fond Of Tigers, Woodpigeon) and bassist Colin Nealis (Andy Shauf).

From the wildly percussive “Snake Charmer” to the magical musical forest of “Hunter,” By Heron & By Season is an intimate and courageous exploration of inner and outer nature.

Millard’s complex sonic world is all her own. We are lucky to take part in the trip.Exclaim!

“‘Art-folk’ is certainly an apt handle for Millard’s work, as this is a greatly artistic recording, carefully crafted like the considered brushstrokes of a painting.Folk Radio UK