Singer/Songwriter

Heather Rankin is a singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as the youngest member of the multi-platinum selling and multi-award winning musical group, The Rankin Family. Her 2016 debut solo album A Fine Line was nominated for a Juno Award for Adult Contemporary Album of the Year and two East Coast Music Awards, for Folk Recording of the Year and Fans’ Choice Video of the Year for “We Walk As One.” Heather has performed in venues and at festivals across Nova Scotia, including headlining the Lunenburg Folk Harbour Festival, the Kempt Shore Festival and Harmony Bazaar. She has hosted Songwriters’ Circles at ECMA Week and the Deep Roots Festival, performed at the Grand Opening of the Celtic Colours Festival, and co-hosted the ECMAs with Ashley MacIsaac. She has also taken her music to venues in Ontario, Alberta, and Kansas City, Missouri.

Heather Rankin’s Christmas Show, Picture Perfect Christmas, includes a mixture of traditional and original songs from her 2017 seasonal album Imagine, as well as favourites she performed with her sisters, Raylene and Cookie, on their Christmas record over twenty years ago. She mixes in songs from her 2016 Juno nominated album, A Fine Line, some Rankin Family classics, and some special surprises, along with stories that are equal parts funny and endearing. Picture Perfect Christmas is sure to leave you full of the spirit of the season, wrapped up in warm, cozy memories, with some rollicking East Coast charm and a thoughtful wish for Christmas future.

After over twenty-five years of performing with her siblings Heather Rankin comes into her own with A Fine Line, her debut solo record. This is Heather Rankin like you have never heard her before, breaking away from The Rankin Family’s signature sound, and forging her own musical legacy with her poetic, intimate original songs, and an eclectic mix of others.

A Fine Line is an exploration of the balance between grief and joy, love and loss, and life and death. While the sound is distinctively Heather’s own, songs like “We Walk As One” conjure evocative imagery from the past she shared with her siblings, and with fans all over the world. Other songs showcase a more upbeat and contemporary side of Rankin, like her rendition of Tears for Fears’ 1985 hit “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” which features Hip Hop Artist Quake Matthews. It is a social commentary with a Dance Club vibe. A song like David Tyson’s “Valentine” is a heart-felt love song, poignant in its simplicity, where Rankin’s soaring, angelic voice is all that is needed to hit straight to the heart.

It is clear that A Fine Line is a personal record for Rankin, who co-wrote seven of the eleven tracks with David Tyson. “We Walk As One,” the song that her siblings, Cookie and Jimmy, sing backup vocals for, is the album’s most obviously autobiographical track. It speaks to the idea that, although physically separate, those who love and care about one another, continue to move forward together in spirit. Similarly, “I’ve Got Your Back” expresses a sense of unconditional love and support amid a cold and tumultuous world. “Titantically” is the record’s most poetic and ephemeral, the personification of a violin that is rescued from the wreckage of the Titanic, and ripped from the grasp of the person who loved it most in the world. There is a deeply emotional acknowledgement of an inherent sadness to life in A Fine Line, but what is most prominent is Rankin’s resolve to continue to move forward in spite of it.

It’s an impressive feat that one album can include a myriad of songs that are individually so different from one another and yet, they come together to create deeply affecting variations on a common theme. When played separately, each track stands assuredly on its own, revealing different aspects of Rankin’s immense talent and her vibrant, complex perspective on life and music. Taken together, one begins to see rich thematic and lyrical intersections, often between the most disparate songs. She begins with laying out the struggle of the human condition, our quest toward finding, and then living as our authentic selves, and then as the album progresses we are plunged into the depths of that struggle. She leaves us, undeniably, with a pure testament of hope and gratitude.

This is an exciting record and an exciting musical departure for Heather Rankin, who sold more than a million records as part of The Rankin Family, sang backup vocals on Carly Simon’s album The Bedroom Tapes and has been featured on the recordings of such artists as The Chieftains, Johnny Reid and Will Ackerman. Perhaps the most dramatic sense of balance in A Fine Line is Rankin’s own graceful sense of balance between her own musical past, present and future.

Heather Rankin is a singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as the youngest member of the multi-platinum selling and multi-award winning musical group, The Rankin Family. Her 2016 debut solo album A Fine Line was nominated for a Juno Award for Adult Contemporary Album of the Year and two East Coast Music Awards, for Folk Recording of the Year and Fans’ Choice Video of the Year for “We Walk As One.” Heather has performed in venues and at festivals across Nova Scotia, including headlining the Lunenburg Folk Harbour Festival, the Kempt Shore Festival and Harmony Bazaar. She has hosted Songwriters’ Circles at ECMA Week and the Deep Roots Festival, performed at the Grand Opening of the Celtic Colours Festival, and co-hosted the ECMAs with Ashley MacIsaac. She has also taken her music to venues in Ontario, Alberta, and Kansas City, Missouri.

Heather Rankin’s Christmas Show, Picture Perfect Christmas, includes a mixture of traditional and original songs from her 2017 seasonal album Imagine, as well as favourites she performed with her sisters, Raylene and Cookie, on their Christmas record over twenty years ago. She mixes in songs from her 2016 Juno nominated album, A Fine Line, some Rankin Family classics, and some special surprises, along with stories that are equal parts funny and endearing. Picture Perfect Christmas is sure to leave you full of the spirit of the season, wrapped up in warm, cozy memories, with some rollicking East Coast charm and a thoughtful wish for Christmas future.

After over twenty-five years of performing with her siblings Heather Rankin comes into her own with A Fine Line, her debut solo record. This is Heather Rankin like you have never heard her before, breaking away from The Rankin Family’s signature sound, and forging her own musical legacy with her poetic, intimate original songs, and an eclectic mix of others.

A Fine Line is an exploration of the balance between grief and joy, love and loss, and life and death. While the sound is distinctively Heather’s own, songs like “We Walk As One” conjure evocative imagery from the past she shared with her siblings, and with fans all over the world. Other songs showcase a more upbeat and contemporary side of Rankin, like her rendition of Tears for Fears’ 1985 hit “Everybody Wants To Rule The World,” which features Hip Hop Artist Quake Matthews. It is a social commentary with a Dance Club vibe. A song like David Tyson’s “Valentine” is a heart-felt love song, poignant in its simplicity, where Rankin’s soaring, angelic voice is all that is needed to hit straight to the heart.

It is clear that A Fine Line is a personal record for Rankin, who co-wrote seven of the eleven tracks with David Tyson. “We Walk As One,” the song that her siblings, Cookie and Jimmy, sing backup vocals for, is the album’s most obviously autobiographical track. It speaks to the idea that, although physically separate, those who love and care about one another, continue to move forward together in spirit. Similarly, “I’ve Got Your Back” expresses a sense of unconditional love and support amid a cold and tumultuous world. “Titantically” is the record’s most poetic and ephemeral, the personification of a violin that is rescued from the wreckage of the Titanic, and ripped from the grasp of the person who loved it most in the world. There is a deeply emotional acknowledgement of an inherent sadness to life in A Fine Line, but what is most prominent is Rankin’s resolve to continue to move forward in spite of it.

It’s an impressive feat that one album can include a myriad of songs that are individually so different from one another and yet, they come together to create deeply affecting variations on a common theme. When played separately, each track stands assuredly on its own, revealing different aspects of Rankin’s immense talent and her vibrant, complex perspective on life and music. Taken together, one begins to see rich thematic and lyrical intersections, often between the most disparate songs. She begins with laying out the struggle of the human condition, our quest toward finding, and then living as our authentic selves, and then as the album progresses we are plunged into the depths of that struggle. She leaves us, undeniably, with a pure testament of hope and gratitude.

This is an exciting record and an exciting musical departure for Heather Rankin, who sold more than a million records as part of The Rankin Family, sang backup vocals on Carly Simon’s album The Bedroom Tapes and has been featured on the recordings of such artists as The Chieftains, Johnny Reid and Will Ackerman. Perhaps the most dramatic sense of balance in A Fine Line is Rankin’s own graceful sense of balance between her own musical past, present and future. She harkens back to her childhood in Mabou, Nova Scotia and honours her roots in that community, and in her family, but she does so in her own authentic voice. This voice has been shaped by the Gaelic traditions of her home, and by the years she spent singing the songs of her brothers and sisters, but her voice is set free here, and often euphorically so, in a way previously unheard. Proving eloquent songwriting runs in the family, Rankin takes us to more private places in her lyrics, and this mixture of vulnerability and exhilaration makes for a powerfully compelling record. After more than twenty-five years in the business, A Fine Line suggests that we are only just now getting to know Heather Rankin. She has always been known as the youngest of The Rankin Family, but now, as a solo artist, in some ways, she sounds younger, and more timely, than ever.

With an undeniable voice and an arsenal of powerful songs, Martha Wainwright is a beguiling performer and a refreshingly different force in music. Martha began building a buzz with her well-noted EPs, prior to her 2005 critically and commercially successful debut LP, ‘Martha Wainwright’. London’s Sunday Times included the song, “Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole” in their songs of the year and Rolling Stone called it “a blistering prelude to her debut album.”

In 2008, Martha followed with her sophomore album, ‘I Know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings Too’, which showed her great musical maturity and talent as a songwriter. In 2010 she toured the world promoting her third album, ‘San Fusils, Ni Souliers A Paris: Martha Wainwright’s Piaf Album’. This extraordinary album, an homage to the great Edith Piaf, was received with glowing reviews, leaving audiences stunned by Martha’s incredible range and talent. Her last album, ‘Come Home To Mama’, produced by Cibo Matto’s Yuka Honda, was heralded by Mojo Magazine as a “substantial and brilliantly sung career best.”

Now, four years later, ‘Goodnight City’ is poised to be her best record yet. This album returns to the rawness of her first release and includes songs by Martha, as well as songs written by notable artists to highlight her incredible voice. These songs are written by her friends and other great songwriters such as Beth Orton, Glen Hansard, her brother Rufus Wainwright, Michael Ondaatje, and Merrill Garbus of tUnE-yArDs.

‘Goodnight City’ was produced by Thomas Bartlett (Sufjan Stevens, Glen Hansard) and Brad Albetta (Angus and Julia Stone, Teddy Thompson) to create a poignant album that covers a dynamic spectrum in a fluid and cohesive manner. The album was recorded in Montreal, where Martha and her husband have resided for the last couple of years with their two children. ‘Goodnight City’ will be released November 11th worldwide.

Martha was born in New York City to folk legends Kate McGarrigle and Loudon Wainwright III. She is Rufus Wainwright's sister and they often collaborate in shows and on records. Martha is also half-sister to Lucy Wainwright Roche and they recently made a record together, ‘Songs In The Dark’ to much acclaim including a JUNO nomination. Martha tours her music around the world to sold out audiences on several continents. She has spent time on the silver screen playing characters in Martin Scorsese’s “Aviator” and more recently in the HBO special “Olive Kitteridge” alongside Frances McDormand. Currently Martha is finishing up a book titled “Stories I Might Regret Telling You” which, like her songs, is a window into her life without artifice, pretension or fakery.

Success is a mystical pursuit; a blend of timing, talent, good fortune, dedication and hard work. A break in the schedule of award winning roots-rockers The Bros. Landreth offered Joey Landreth a chance to step forward and test the creative waters with is 2017 debut solo album Whiskey.

It proved to be a very potent recipe.

Whiskey was an extension of the kind of eclectic, aurally pleasing, and deeply meaningful songs produced by the band, but accentuated and amplified by Joey Landreth’s dynamic guitar stylings as well as his passionate vocal performances.

The album and subsequent touring earned rave reviews from critics and fans, showcasing Joey Landreth as a songwriter, vocalist, musician and performer in his own right.

With his one-of-a-kind guitar prowess, charming on and off-stage demeanour, the sincerity and authenticity of his words and music, every piece of music Landreth composes with carry with it his unmistakably evocative and melodic hallmarks.

Seeking a new creative challenge, Landreth recently stepped out of the proverbial comfort, writing a great deal of music completely on his own, as well as alongside the precociously talented young songwriter/producer Roman Clarke. It is a bold step, but one that he has approached with great relish and excitement.

“I would often write on my own, even for The Bros. Landreth, but I would usually get about 50 to 75 per cent of the way through a song and bring it to my brother and we would work on it together from there. For this new project, I am trying not to do any of that, because I wanted to know what it was like to push through that barrier when I got stuck on my own. What does the song sound like when I try to learn on my own, if I pushed myself through and so far, the result is songs that sound a bit different, which is kind of interesting,” he said.

“I am also writing with Roman, who is producing the record with me. I truly believe he is a rising star because he is young, but an insanely talented multi-instrumentalist. His band opened for us and I was inspired by his work ethic and his musicianship and just his whole vibe. His sensibilities are totally different than mine. He has taken me places I might not normally go.”

But fear not, it’s not a radical departure, simply a broadening of horizons and an opportunity for personal and creative growth. The results of Landreth’s labours are going to be road tested during upcoming touring and an upcoming album release.

When Landreth is on the road, he is doing what he does best, entertaining audiences with his soulful musical storytelling and infectiously emotive melodies. As engaging a performer as you will ever encounter, it took a little while for Landreth to overcome the trepidations of touring solo or with new bandmates.

The Whiskey tour took Landreth across Canada, USA, and Europe.

Landreth has said that there will be a new The Bros. Landreth album coming out later in 2019. In the meantime, fans of Joey Landreth will not have to wait long to bear witness to his stirring solo shows as he embarks again on a full touring schedule, and he finishes off the final touches on his yet to be titled new album.

It promises to be a wonderful opportunity to hear the next stage in the evolution of a truly remarkable artist, one who possesses the rare ability to connect to people through his melodies, through his lyrics, and through his riveting performances.

The songs on Phase Of The Moon were conceived in a tiny studio apartment in the quaint Paris neighbourhood of Montmartre where Matthew and his wife spent a month in early 2017.  It came with a small upright piano and had thin walls, which could explain why piano songs sung in deeper, hushed tones feature prominently on the record.  The winter sojourn in Europe provided a welcome respite from the all-consuming media madness back home, and coupled with a steady diet of existentialist reading material, served to foster a mood of almost contented melancholy that seeped into the songs and runs throughout the record.  This mood is at times manifested in the form of a solitary searcher reflecting on what’s come before and wondering what lies ahead, and at other times through words of support addressed to a concerned partner that reveal a commensurate plea for reassurance that everything’s going to be ok. The quiet storm is punctuated by necessary and at times exuberant affirmations of love, hope and wonderment, and a spirit of embracing life in all its complexity endures.

“‘The Painter’ was written after a moving visit to a nearby art museum,” says Barber.  “‘Hanging On The Line‘ begins as a paean to modest values and morphs into a loose commentary on our wayward modern civilization.  The title track ‘Phase Of The Moon’ is probably the most personal song on the record about the struggle to overcome setbacks beyond our control.  ‘All In A Dream’is how I sometimes feel when I’m traveling, putting reality on hold for a little while.”

The performances that make up the record were captured over three days in the historic Almonte Town Hall in eastern Ontario, with its ghosts, high ceilings and Steinway grand piano setting the scene for the recording.  Starting with the solo vocal and piano or vocal and guitar as the centre, the tracks were built outwards and took on different shapes as other instruments were added at Friesen’s studio in Almonte, as well as back in Toronto where the exquisite string parts were arranged and performed by Drew Jurecka. The record was thoughtfully mixed by Darryl Neudorf (Blue Rodeo, Neko Case, Sarah McLachlan) at his barn in Mono, Ontario, and the album art was created by Toronto artist Heather Goodchild.

Barber is a two-time Juno nominee, has sold over 100 thousand albums worldwide, 10 million streams and earned countless praise for his work.

Kalle Mattson is a Juno & Polaris Music Prize nominated singer-songwriter based in Canada.

Liona Boyd returns to The Aeolian for two shows!  Tuesday, November 13th & Wednesday, November 14th. (click on the date for tickets)

Liona Boyd, since her 1975 debut performance at Carnegie Hall, New York, has enthralled audiences worldwide with her romantic and unique brand of classical, folk and world music. Tracing the timeline—Spanish-British heritage, emigrating to Canada in 1959, “falling in love with classical guitar at the age of 13”, graduating from the University of Toronto with a music degree in 1972—the traditional classical music path seemed quite clear. However, Liona embarked on a far more adventurous journey. In addition to her solo career, she began touring with and opening for Canadian folk legend, Gordon Lightfoot.  She went on to perform and record with many artists of diverse genres, a small sampling of whom include Chet Atkins, Canadian Brass, Eric Clapton, Olivia Newton-John, Yo Yo Ma and Al Di Meola. Also spanning a wide range of styles, Liona has released 28 studio, live or compilation albums, five of which went gold, and three platinum. No stranger to awards and accolades, her highlights include five Junos, the Order of Canada, five honorary doctorates and, in June 2018, the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award from the JoAnn Falletta International Guitar Concerto Competition.

“Exceptional sensitivity and an impressive sense of dedication” - Los Angeles Times

“Nothing short of fantastic. Liona takes one's breath away.” - Denver Post

“A quiet poetic brilliance” - The Plain Dealer, Cleveland

Following her 2009 diagnosis of focal dystonia, Liona tweaked her playing style, added singing to her repertoire and two years ago began touring with protege, Andrew Dolson, classically trained in both guitar and voice. Audiences can anticipate solo and duet classical guitar pieces, songs—both familiar and new, personal anecdotes from a storied career … all delivered with charm, humour and grace.

Don't miss An Intimate Evening with ‘the first lady of guitar’ … Liona Boyd!

Liona Boyd returns to The Aeolian for two shows!  Tuesday, November 13th & Wednesday, November 14th. (click on the date for tickets)

Liona Boyd, since her 1975 debut performance at Carnegie Hall, New York, has enthralled audiences worldwide with her romantic and unique brand of classical, folk and world music. Tracing the timeline—Spanish-British heritage, emigrating to Canada in 1959, “falling in love with classical guitar at the age of 13”, graduating from the University of Toronto with a music degree in 1972—the traditional classical music path seemed quite clear. However, Liona embarked on a far more adventurous journey. In addition to her solo career, she began touring with and opening for Canadian folk legend, Gordon Lightfoot.  She went on to perform and record with many artists of diverse genres, a small sampling of whom include Chet Atkins, Canadian Brass, Eric Clapton, Olivia Newton-John, Yo Yo Ma and Al Di Meola. Also spanning a wide range of styles, Liona has released 28 studio, live or compilation albums, five of which went gold, and three platinum. No stranger to awards and accolades, her highlights include five Junos, the Order of Canada, five honorary doctorates and, in June 2018, the inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award from the JoAnn Falletta International Guitar Concerto Competition.

“Exceptional sensitivity and an impressive sense of dedication” - Los Angeles Times

“Nothing short of fantastic. Liona takes one's breath away.” - Denver Post

“A quiet poetic brilliance” - The Plain Dealer, Cleveland

Following her 2009 diagnosis of focal dystonia, Liona tweaked her playing style, added singing to her repertoire and two years ago began touring with protege, Andrew Dolson, classically trained in both guitar and voice. Audiences can anticipate solo and duet classical guitar pieces, songs—both familiar and new, personal anecdotes from a storied career … all delivered with charm, humour and grace.

Don't miss An Intimate Evening with ‘the first lady of guitar’ … Liona Boyd!

1. The Woman
2. Girl's Gotta Do
3. Hooked Your Heart
4. Bigger Than You
5. Mercy
6. Clumsy Heart
7. Cage Without A Key
8. Love Is
9. Hold On

1. The Woman
2. Girl's Gotta Do
3. Hooked Your Heart
4. Bigger Than You
5. Mercy
6. Clumsy Heart
7. Cage Without A Key
8. Love Is
9. Hold On