Vancouver‘s The River & The Road, along with Ottawa-based Kalle Mattson, stop into The Carleton for what will be a killer show on Friday, August 28th. Show time will be 10 PM and admission is $5 at the door, which is damned near free for artists of this calibre.

The River and The Road is a band built on risking new beginnings and telling their stories along the way.
After crossing an ocean, leaving a hemisphere, and a long stint hitch-hiking across the American Southwest, singer/guitarist Andrew Phelan made his way to Chicago with the looming need to cross into Canada for work. He had two flight choices—Montreal or Vancouver—and flying west was cheaper.

Once there, he found singer/banjo player Keenan Lawlor, who had been playing around Vancouver for the previous eight months. In the beginning the two butted heads, seeing in each other the greatest competition for the attention of an East Vancouver open mic audience. Competition turned to collaboration, busking, and living on scraps together to make their musical existence possible. After several months as a duo, and experimentation with additional instrumentation, they recorded their debut eponymous twelve-track album.

In the spring of 2012, the band became a dynamic four-piece with the addition of drummer Cole George and bassist John Hayes. In their short history as a band, The River and The Road has grown from a busking duo to an internationally touring quartet. Winter 2013 saw the boys working to stitch their name into the musical fabric of Australia, most notably in Sydney and Melbourne. The band has toured extensively across Canada, completing two coast-to-coast tours among many other regional ones. They are currently filling their summer calendar with festival dates and preparing for their third Canadian tour in support of their second full length album –  through MapleMusic Recordings. Tenacity, heart, and above all else, a gripping live performance, the band has no plans of slowing down. Sincere storytelling mixed with strong harmonies, heavy percussion breakdowns and dynamic arrangements, embodies the sound of The River and The Road.

Sault Ste. Marie- born, Ottawa-based Kalle Mattson is one of The Carleton’s fave up-and-coming Canadian artists and has appeared on our stage a couple of times but it’s been awhile… He just released his latest effort, Avalanche (maybe you heard him featured on the CBC’s Q last week?) is out August 21st, and it’s every bit as good as we hoped it would be. He’ll be playing solo for this show so make sure you get there earlier enough to catch this remarkable songwriter!