鈥淪weet Saturday鈥� is looking forward to performing at the Cugnet Centre for the Communithon Concert Jam on Saturday, October 21. The Moose Jaw-based vocal trio is a folk and roots band, which consists of Jaimie Atkins, Mandy Canning and Annie MacLeod.
鈥淲e play guitar, mandolin, ukulele, bass, and we鈥檙e always toying with new instrumentation. We don鈥檛 have a percussionist anymore so we just got a stomp box and we鈥檙e always experimenting with different shakers and things to add depth and texture to our sound,鈥� said Annie.
鈥淎 lot has happened over the last year. We鈥檙e right in the middle of recording our first full-length album of original songs and we can鈥檛 wait to play a couple of new ones in Weyburn.鈥�
Their biggest influence and inspiration as musicians are the beautiful and often underrated Saskatchewan landscape. 鈥淲e鈥檙e actually just finishing up a brand new song about the prairies that we can鈥檛 wait to unveil in the next few weeks. I think this place is often overlooked because it鈥檚 not as in-your-face as mountains or a rocky Oceanside but there鈥檚 so much beauty and inspiration to be found right here in Saskatchewan,鈥� said Annie.
The best part of performing for 鈥淪weet Saturday鈥� is seeing the familiar faces that keep coming back to see the band as well as seeing the surprise on the faces of those who have never seen them perform live before. 鈥淭hey often seem shocked and you can often hear, 鈥榃ow, they鈥檙e really good!鈥� from the audience in between songs. I鈥檓 not sure why they鈥檙e so surprised, but it鈥檚 still really nice to hear,鈥� Annie laughed.
鈥淪weet Saturday鈥� loves the support they receive from Moose Jaw, but consider it a pleasure to travel to other communities. 鈥淪ometimes it鈥檚 nice to branch out for a bit of a challenge and to see if we can win over other communities who don鈥檛 know us as well. Each town in Saskatchewan is so vastly different from the next, and each one offers a whole new perspective. It鈥檚 awesome leaving a new place knowing that we鈥檝e made some new fans and the word is getting out,鈥� said Annie.
The band members all listen to different kinds of music, to feel inspired about the different genres that are available to them. 鈥淚 listen to a lot of folk music, of course, but I still have a soft spot for the music of my youth, like Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Lauren Hill, so some very non-folk music has influenced me over the years. I like a little bit of country, pop, jazz and I鈥檝e never been able to stick to one genre, nor would I ever want to,鈥� said Annie. 鈥淏etween the three of us I don鈥檛 think there鈥檚 a single genre of music that hasn鈥檛 had some influence on us.
When 鈥淪weet Saturday鈥� heard about the Community Concert Jam, they were very excited to perform and help raise money for the Weyburn and District United Way. 鈥淚t was kind of a no-brainer. We get to do what we love most and help raise money for a great cause and what could be better than that? I understand it鈥檚 the first event of its kind and hopefully it鈥檒l be the first of many,鈥� said Annie.
The Communithon Concert Jam costs $50 and there will be food and liquor offered during the event. Tickets are sold online at www.weyburnunitedway.com.
