Acrpost: A Project of the Pacific Association of Artist Run Centres

Event Description

ART BERGMANN with special guests Couch Thieves and Awkward a/c.

THE EMPIRE LOUNGE (Victoria Event Centre) 7:00 doors, 8:15 start, finish by 1 AM.

Tickets available at Lyles Place and ticketweb: http://goo.gl/5hnu9w

Art's touring band for the BC dates include:

Art Bergmann - Guitar, vocals
Steven Drake - Guitar
Paul Rigby - Steel guitar and other strings
Owen Owen - Basses
Adam Drake - Drums
Murphy Farrell - Percussion and sound effects
Nicole Scoffield - Violins
Shauna Meloche - Vocals


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ART BERGMANN INFO (for opening bands - scroll down):

The legendary ART BERGMANN is back with a new tour, a new album, and one of the most intense live shows that you'll ever see.

Bergmann began his musical career with an Abbotsford band called the Mount Lehman Grease Band in the early 1970s. After Mount Lehman folded, he founded his own band, called the Notorious Smorg Brothers, which he stocked with a myriad of different support artists.

Bergmann was later the lead singer and songwriter for Vancouver punk stalwarts Young Canadians (formerly The K-Tels). Although the Young Canadians only recorded two independent EPs and a single before breaking up, their song "Hawaii" (co-written with Ross Carpenter) is one of the classic Canadian punk anthems. Although long out of print, the EPs, along with some unreleased live material, were reissued in 1995 as the album No Escape.

In the 1980s, Bergmann played with Vancouver independent bands Los Popularos and Poisoned before the latter band signed to Duke Street Records in 1988. Due to confusion with the popular American band Poison which had marred the band's most recent tour, however, the label decided to bill the band's releases as solo albums by Bergmann.

He released his debut solo album, the John Cale-produced Crawl With Me, that year. 1990's Sexual Roulette, produced by Chris Wardman, became Bergmann's mainstream breakthrough, spawning the rock radio hit "Bound for Vegas" and garnering him a deal with Polygram Records.

He followed up with a self-titled album on Polygram in 1991, again garnering significant radio airplay for the singles "Faithlessly Yours" and "Message From Paul". He moved to Sony Records for 1995's What Fresh Hell Is This?, which won that year's Juno Award for Best Alternative Rock Album. However, his record sales, while solid, were not spectacular, and Sony did not renew his contract. Bergmann quit the music business for a period, following his release by Sony, performing sporadically between 1995 and 1998.

The 1998 Design Flaw, produced by Peter J. Moore and released on the independent label Other People's Music, was a reworking of tracks from his first three albums, plus a cover of Gram Parsons' "Sin City". The songs featured Bergmann on acoustic guitar, with backing by Chris Spedding on electric. Bergmann then re-released 1984's Vultura Freeway in 2000, with helpful liner notes from Pointed Sticks front man Nick Jones. In 2009 Poisoned bassist Ray Fulber issued the CD Lost Art Bergmann, which featured early demo versions of most of the songs that appeared on the 1988 John Cale produced album. These demo recordings served as a tonic to many fans as they have a more guitar driven sound than the keyboard heavy Cale produced sessions.

Bergmann covered "Prisoners of Rock and Roll" on the Neil Young tribute Borrowed Tunes, and contributed a song for the soundtrack to Terminal City Ricochet.

On August 26, 2014, Bergmann released a "comeback" EP Songs for the Underclass through the independent label (weewerk).

The Apostate is Art Bergmann’s first full-length album in 18 years, and for that reason alone should be considered a triumph in the face of his once-debilitating health issues, and a music industry that seemingly no longer held a place for him.
Art Bergmann’s voice has been missing from our national consciousness for far too long, but it is back with a vengeance on The Apostate. Now residing in Airdrie, Alberta, Art worked with Calgary-based producer Lorrie Matheson and a stellar group of multi-instrumentalists to craft sound suited to the subject matter of each song—the hazy Americana of “Atheist Prayer,” the mesmerizing North African majesty of “Mirage (The Apostate),” the ragged Stones-y groove of “Live It Up,” the epic sweep of the 12-minute “Pioneers,” and the stark intimacy of “The Legend Of Bobby Bird.”
Punk rock was a sound, but above all it was an attitude. Art Bergmann’s attitude has never changed, even as his sound inevitably evolved. After so long in the wilderness, The Apostate is the album he needed to make, and all of us now need to hear.
Mesmerizing and masterful, The Apostate displays a rejuvenated singer songwriter who at the top of his lyrical game, has pushed his sound significantly, creating some of his most dynamic songs ever recorded. More country and eastern folk flavored then previous albums, Art is forging new ground and claiming his forthright place amongst his contemporaries, while continuing to re-establish his brilliant and eclectic past body of work.

The atmosphere featured on this release is at times moody and desperate, but in the best possible way. The use of discordant sounds and instruments nontraditional to cliché rock music helps to create a vast soundscape of impressive scope. It is true art, beyond classification, and evidence of a growth in Art’s song writing, musicianship as well as performance.

The Apostate will be released on independent label (weework) on May 13th, 2016.

Web: http://artbergmann.com/

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/Art-Bergmann-1419077358314563/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ArtBergmann?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

(weework) website: http://www.weewerk.com/

itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/artist/art-bergmann/id14677278


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COUCH THIEVES

After playing in several bands together from one side of the country to the other, guitarist/singer Philly and bassist Gordo have built a strong musical bond over the past 8 or so years. Drummer Jackson Yauck added the final element for this exciting power trio. Playing numerous hows in bands ranging from beach pop to full on punk, the members of Couch Thieves are well versed in hyping up a crowd with their stage shenanigans and sheer talent.

During a great first year, Couch Thieves had the pleasure of sharing the stage with bands such as, D.O.A, The Stockers, SpaceBoots and more. CouchThieves also released their debut EP in October 2014.

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/couchthieves
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/couchthieves/
Bandcamp: http://couchthieves.bandcamp.com/releases


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Awkward a/c

Awkward a/c are an explosive 4-piece Nanaimo-based band that describe themselves "GARAGE ROCK + PUNK = GRUNK!!!!"
No need for a bio, Awkward a/c have been playing key shows over the past couple years up and down Vancouver Island and gathering a dedicated fanbase.

Awkward a/c released their self-titled debut album late last year. Available on Bandcamp.

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/Awkward-ac-243440082532984/info/?tab=page_info

BANDCAMP: http://awkwardac.bandcamp.com/releases
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