Ok, let’s go outside heavy music again. Blues-rock/reggae inspired band STONE IRIS have announced their Canadian dates. The band is also streaming a new song from their upcoming EP. Check it out below.
For the blues, rock and reggae inspired sounds of Edmonton based STONE IRIS, there’s just no replacing that feeling of commiseration and unity that comes from a group of friends gathered around at the stage, soaking up the night together and raising a glass to good times.
It’s exactly that kind of feeling that STONE IRIS taps into on their newly recorded EP, “Illuminations”, which is set for release on Tuesday, May 15, 2012. Like a lost night in a smoky bar, its songs feel easy to slip into and even easier to get lost in, using laid-back but propulsive grooves to create a mood that feels at once nostalgic and promising, familiar enough to get your guard down but restless enough to let you know that the best times are on their way. It builds off their previous releases, 2011 twin-EPs The Boo Box and Serene Machine, the 2010 Silhouettes EP and 2008 debut Ezperanza, by revealing a band that is at once more assured and more expansive than it’s ever been.
“We are all really excited to be releasing the new EP Illuminations. The new songs really represents the direction we are taking with our music and careers, it’s a great addition to our growing catalog. Plus, playing shows in Edmonton is always a great time, our local fans are awesome and supportive. And as we hit the road, it is equally gratifying but in a different way. It is cool to hear and see new fans reaction to fresh material that can only be brought to them by our traveling circus we call Stone Iris.” comments drummer Jeff Burwash.
Recorded with Stew Kirkwood at Sound Extractor Studio, Illuminations captures Stone Iris as they’re starting to truly come into their own. It all began as Monzmeg, a basement project in the Calgary home of brothers, songwriters and guitarists Garret and El Niven. Stone Iris didn’t fully begin to take shape until they recruited drummer Jeff Burwash, who had been banging the skins with blues outfit Straight Jacket before he was even legally allowed in bars. It was the move to Edmonton to attend Grant MacEwan’s music program that solidified the group, though, first with the addition of Regina-born and Grant Mac-trained bassist Ryan Ast (ex-Without an End), and then adding Trail, BC-bred percussionist Juice Jensen in early 2010. in 2011, keyboard player Stephen Robinson and vocalist Kari James joined the ranks of the band, completing what is the current roster of Stone Iris.
Blending their disparate musical backgrounds–everything from hooky pop music to sunbleached reggae to hip-hop and rap–the influence of seven minds has created a mature sound that isn’t easy to pin down, but is very easy to love.
STONE IRIS will be on tour for the month of May in Western Canada in promotion of “Illuminations” and can be seen performing live in the following cities:
May 3, 2012 – Lydia’s Pub – Saskatoon SK
May 4, 2012 – TBA – Brandon, MB
May 5, 2012 – Distrikt Niteclub – Regina
May 6, 2012 – 23 Main Street – Moose Jaw SK **ACOUSTIC SHOW**
May 11, 2012 – Rockwater Grill – Golden, BC
May 12, 2012 – Lanalou’s – Vancouver, BC
May 13, 2012 – Cuppa Joy Coffee House – Vancouver, BC
May 15, 2012 – O’Flannigan’s – Kelowna, BC
May 16, 2012 – Caribou Hotel – Quesnel, BC
May 17, 2012 – Nancy O’s – Prince George, BC
May 18, 2012 – The Valley Zoo – Hinton, AB
May 25, 2012 – Canmore Hotel, Canmore, AB
May 26, 2012 – The Blind Beggar, Calgary, AB
STONE IRIS:
