The Whitehawk Arts Council will be featuring Pretty Archie in its second concert in the Stars for Saskatchewan series for the 2018/19 season.
Pretty Archie will be in concert on November 17 at the Sturgis Community Hall. The Canadian band hails from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, stated the band’s website.
Long time friends Brian Cathcart (Lead Vocals, Guitar), Matt McNeil (Mandolin, Guitar), Colin Gillis (Harmonica, Bass, Vocals), Redmond MacDougall (Banjo, Percussion, Vocals) and recently-added Scott MacLean (Guitar, Mandolin) make up the band.
Always jamming together growing up, the guys decided in 2012 to form a band. The band chose the name Pretty Archie after a local (Cape Breton) character known for playing with two strings outside shopping malls in any weather and not always (or ever) in key. The guys thought the name Pretty Archie embodied the love of playing and performing music along with representing their hometown, according to the website.
Pretty Archie's latest release Sing Alongs and Love Songs was released in September 2016. Bringing on Jamie Foulds to produce this project, Pretty Archie continues to push the genre lines of folk, bluegrass, country and blues to create a uniquely Pretty Archie sound. The 10-song album is a collection of their strongest song writing to date, addressing themes of love, loss, life and the forces that drive all three. Sing Alongs and Loves Songs is nominated for ECMA's Country Recording of the Year and was also nominated for Music Nova Scotia's 2017 Americana Album of the Year. We Don't Live Forever the first single from the record, was nominated for Music Nova Scotia’s Music Video of the Year.
Pretty Archie released North End Sky in January of 2015. The highly anticipated album was featured on CBC Radio 2's East Coast Music Hour as an album to look for in 2015. The album was nominated for ECMA's Country Recording of the Year and for Music Nova Scotia's Americana/Bluegrass Album of the Year (2015.) The group’s first full-length album was recorded in January 2013 at the famed Grant Avenue Studios in Hamilton, Ont. with well known producer/engineer Bob Doidge. The debut 11-song LP Steel City was released in March 2013 and was nominated for Music Nova Scotia's 2013 Country/Bluegrass Album of the Year.
Pretty Archie has played some of Canada’s best events festivals and venues including: The Grey Cup Festival (Ottawa Ont.), Rogers Hometown Hockey (Dartmouth and Sydney NS), Sudbury Festival of Lights Boreal (Sudbury, Ont.), Stan Rogers Folk Festival (Canso, NS), Roots Night at Royal Botanical Gardens (Burlington, Ont.), The Ironwood (Calgary) and The Dakota Tavern (Toronto.) 2018 marks the group’s first international shows including Denmark's storied Tonder Festival.
Pretty Archie has developed a loyal following built from their entertaining, high energy, foot stomping shows, said the information.
Pretty Archie’s genuine, heartfelt writing connects listeners with a saltwater perspective on modern living. The fun loving and at times heartbreaking music finds common ground in the blurred genres of country, folk, bluegrass and blues. The group’s unique sound and energetic shows leave listeners with a lasting memory, according to the website.
