I'm sure it comes as no surprise to anyone reading this that we here at Sdm headquarters are huge fans of Julie Doiron and many wonderful indie venues across Canada....so last year, when our good friends at All Citizens declared June 7th to be Julie Doiron day in their small town of Bruno, Saskatchewan, we were excited to stop in and celebrate with them. Now one year later, we figured it would be great to commemorate that day with a Julie Doiron tribute show/fundraiser for All Citizens.....so without further ado, let me announce Julie Doiron Day 2010 in Bruno, Saskatchewan!!!
Join us for Julie Doiron Day, a celebration of Canadian independent music and one Canada's best songwriters, on June 7th 2010 in Bruno, Saskatchewan.... and maybe in your town too!
History: In 2009 All Citizens (art gallery/café/community hub and soon to be legendary music venue) declared June 7 to be Julie Doiron Day in Bruno. The occasion was aptly marked by a performance by the women herself, playing a remarkable set to a capacity crowd of 21 Bruno locals and a few Saskatoon residents. The town’s Mayor was on hand to unveil a plaque dedicating All Citizens' front bench, on the town's main street, to Julie in commemoration of the event. The Mayor's husband opened the show with a set of old-tyme accordion tunes.
The event was one of those quintessential only-in-Saskatchewan (or maybe only in Canada) moments affirming how an amazing music & cultural scene can build up around a few dedicated, talented individuals and a small, perfect little cultural space.
Despite it likely being the smallest show Ms. Doiron played that year, it was the ideal way to reaffirm her status as "Canada's Indie Queen". Where else would you find one of the most celebrated songwriters in the country going out of her way to play in a small town of 600 people, a few kilometers off the main highway in one of the least populated parts of the country? If anything it just helps explain why people are so drawn to the music of Julie Doiron and why she has become a symbol of everything that is great about Canada's independent music scene. She's toured the country from coast to coast countless times, co-founded her own music label (Sappy Records), co-founded one of the Canada's most charming festivals (Sappyfest, which brings world renowned musicians to her small town of Sackville, New Brunswick, pop. 5411), collaborated with everyone from Gord Downie and the Tragically Hip to Attack in Black to French anti-folksters Herman Dune and released albums on celebrated indie labels Jagjaguwar and Subpop... all this while raising three children and remaining one of the most approachable, kind people you'd hope to meet.
The inaugural Julie Doiron Day was celebrated in a tiny town, but it received an enthusiastic response across Canada and abroad. Our hope this year is for it to spread beyond Bruno's borders. On June 7, 2010, Julie Doiron Day will be honored at All Citizens, this time with a tribute to Julie Doiron featuring performances by members of Slow down, Molasses; The Seahags; Jeanette Stewart; Pearson; All Citizens' co-owner/operator Tyler Brett (a.k.a. The Department) and more. The event will be a benefit concert with all money going to All Citizens to help keep it alive and able to present some of Canada's finest bands while acting as a unique cultural outpost in the middle of the prairies. What better way to celebrate the work of one of Canada's favorite independent artists than by supporting and celebrating the independent cultural spaces that provide a place for their music to be heard?
In a perfect world every town and city would have a space like All Citizens. Maybe June 7 could be the day everyone gets together and plays some Julie Doiron songs to celebrate Canadian independent music and the spaces that nurture it. If your town has a great indie arts space or indie record store or tiny, perfect venue it would be amazing to see Julie Doiron Day shows happening all across Canada in support of such spaces.
Sincerely,
Tyson McShane
Slow down, Molasses
http://slowdownmolasses.
(306) 381-4772
For more information about All Citizens:
For more information on Julie Doiron:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
For more information on the bands playing:
The Seahags - http://www.seahags.ca
Pearson – http://www.myspace.com/
Jeanette Stewart – http://www.myspace.com/
Tyler Brett - http://www.myspace.com/dept
Slow down, Molasses – http://slowdownmolasses.
