FLYING FOX AND THE HUNTER GATHERERS

For local rock sextet Flying Fox and the Hunter Gatherers, it’s all about the number three.

You have three chances to see them play live in the coming week-and-a-half and they’re releasing their third CD this coming Tuesday, March 15.

And the title track of that CD, Hans My Lion, is a song with three parts to it.

Hans My Lion is something of a concept record, exploring male sexuality via the story of Hans, a lion born to a human family.

“It could be listed as one piece of music in three parts, but we divided it into the beginning, middle and end of the album,” says singer, guitarist and primary songwriter Jesse Krause.

“They sort of keep this narrative thread going through the whole thing, but it’s not a strict narrative that is continuous through all the other pieces. (The other pieces) sort of touch off on emotional tangents, so the story outlined in the Hans My Lion pieces is reflected thematically and emotionally in the other pieces.”

Musically, people can expect a progression of what they heard on Flying Fox’s two EPs – adventurous pop-rock music that incorporates a horn section and borrows from folk, gypsy, jazz and classical music to create something truly unique.

See Flying Fox live on Friday, March 11 when they open for The Fugitives at the Park Theatre, or on Saturday, March 12 when they play the West End Cultural Centre.

On Saturday, March 19, they’re at Music Trader for a performance at 1 p.m.

Then they head on tour, followed by an official CD release show Saturday, April 16 at the West End Cultural Centre.

Visit www.flyingfoxandthehuntergatherers.com for details.

-Aaron Epp

West Central Women Rock! & Craft Show

With a bigger building comes bigger costs, and so the West Central Women’s Resource Centre is again turning to the community to help keep its doors open.

The West End-based organization, which sees more than 15,000 visits from women each year who want to help themselves and their families lead safer, healthier lives, will host a fundraising concert Saturday, March 12 at the West End Cultural Centre.

Juno nominated singer-songwriter Romi Mayes (pictured) and orchestral funk band Flying Fox and the Hunter Gatherers will perform. Local artists also will be selling their goods. Proceeds will help the centre raise money to pay for ongoing programming, as well as continued renovations and bills.

The goal is to raise $5,000, said WCWRC executive director Jackie Hogue.

“That’s pretty close to a month or two of keeping the lights on, heat on and the doors open. It’s pretty huge in the scheme of things,” she said.

The organization’s first concert last year sold out, raising $7,000.

“Everyone was there because they believe in our project,” said Hogue. “It was something people really wanted to be a part of.

“Asking people to come out again and show their support for helping this building open is what we’re doing now. We’ll be grateful for every single ticket that is sold.”

Tickets are on sale now for $20 (general) and $10 (low income) and can be purchased at McNally Robinson Booksellers, Organic Planet, the WECC, the WCWRC, or at the door. Doors open at 7:15 p.m. and the show starts at 8:00 p.m. 

Visit www.wcwrc.ca.

– Matt Preprost

BIRTHDAY BOYS

The last time Birthday Boys toured across Canada, they wrote and recorded 30 songs in 30 days — not just to keep them occupied on the long drives between shows, but to keep their fans engaged.

“It was a month long and we had the thought that we can just wake up everyday and do art while everyone else bitches and complains about their jobs,” co-lead vocalist Jordan Mack said in a phone interview from his home in Peterborough, Ontario.

“With the Internet now, you need to keep a steady connection with your fanbase going on. If you can constantly keep attaching and identifying yourself with them, it keeps you interesting and keeps people interested.”

Though none of those tracks made it on the band’s latest EP, Tin Head, it was an exercise in modern day music philosophy — much like how the six songs on Tin Head were never originally intended to be release.

“I think that (the songs) may be something that further on, maybe on the next record, we pull and use them,” said Mack. “It’s something we’ve tried to do, to not hold onto tracks and continuously write (and release).

“Instead of saying ‘This would be good for the next album,’ we might as well record it and get it out to people.”

The band will be recording 10 rockumentary webisodes as they tour western Canada in March.

Catch Birthday Boys perform live Wednesday, March 16 at the Pyramid Cabaret. Electric Six will also perform. Visit www.birthdayboysmusic.com.

– Matt Preprost

Published in Volume 65, Number 22 of The Uniter (March 10, 2011)