Swain and Penner LIVE in Victoria: Trad & New Roots from a genuine musical partnership

Friday, June 4th, 2010: HERMANN’S JAZZ CLUB
Showtime at 8:30pm
$12 advance at Lyle’s Place or The Spiral Cafe / $15 at the door

Musical soul mates Oliver Swain and Jeremy Penner are together again! The two have remained close since their first award winning collaboration, nurturing their undeniable stage chemistry. After last summers western Canadian duo tour, they went back to their respective corners, Jeremy to welcome a new addition to his family and tour with The Wailin Jennys, and Oliver to tour Australia with Toni Childs, build the foundations for FolkWest, and focus on honing his craft in preparation for recording later this year. A big chunk of Swain’s upcoming recording will feature Penner, so the two are getting together to play a special show in Victoria in preparation for the studio. Join them for an evening of sometimes traditional, sometimes original, and always enjoyable roots fusion at Victoria’s premier listening room, Hermann’s Jazz Club!

Jeremy Penner…
Jeremy Penner developed his unique style, incorporating jazz, old time, bluegrass, Celtic, and Cajun music, in the rich musical community of Winnipeg. Over the years he’s toured, recorded and played with such noted acts as Scruj MacDuhk, The Bills, and Moody Penner and Swain, as well as his current spot with The Wailin’ Jennys, garnering Juno awards with more than one. In 2005 Jeremy took a hiatius from touring and left to study jazz and bluegrass with Casey Driessen (Nashville), Matt Glaser (Boston), and Stephane Allard (Montreal) through a Canada Council for the Arts grant. These days Mr. Penner is back playing and touring with the award winning Wailin’ Jennys, as well as with old friends, The Bills. Settled back at home in Winnipeg with his lovely wife and baby daughter, having come full circle, Jeremy is excited to be collaborating once again with his band mate and friend Oliver Swain.

Oliver Swain…
Oliver Swain is the lucky possessor of an infectious spirit, intense emotion and technical prowess, which combine to produce a magnetic presence and performance. Centered around the upright bass and his pure, wide ranged vocals, with a little open backed banjo added for flavor, Oliver stands out in any musical arrangement. The last two years have seen Oliver grow a solo career in addition to his work with many bands in and around Victoria. He’s toured all across Canada developing his solo performance, and 2010 will see the culmination of this work with his yet-to-be-titled debut recording. Oliver has enjoyed group success with his band Outlaw Social through their release “Dry Bones”, appearing at Vancouver, Winnipeg, Calgary and Edmonton Folk Festivals, teaching at the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes and topping it off with a 2008 WCMA Oustanding Roots Group nomination. A two time Prairie Music Award recipient and a Juno nominee, Oliver has performed with Canadian groups The Bills and Scruj MacDuhk, in addition to The Red Stick Ramblers out of Louisiana, his own solo work, and supporting such artists as Ridley Bent, Dustin Bentall, Toni Childs, and Marc Savoy. These days he splits his time between his burgeoning solo career and his position as Brainchild/Artistic Director with the newly formed Lower Island FolkFest Society, creators of the upcoming Victoria folk festival; FolkWest.