Earlier this year, Astral Swans toured large Canadian theatres as Dan Mangan's opening act. This fall, however, the Calgary folk-noir songwriter known as Matthew Swann will be travelling across Canada to play some much humbler gigs: house shows.
The outing runs from coast-to-coast, stretching as far east as Fredericton and a far west as Vancouver. All told, there are 15 currently scheduled shows, all of them in October and all them in the comfort of fans' homes. In order to attend a gig, you'll need to reserve your spot here; the shows have a limited capacity, based on the amount of people that the house can accomodate.
See the schedule below; more shows will be added. At the bottom of the page, check out a video for Astral Swans' starkly minimal, newly unveiled Willie Nelson cover "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain."
The tour, which is in support of this year's All My Favorite Singers Are Willie Nelson, is said to be the first instalment in the "Madic Records House Concert Series."
In a statement, Madic boss Mangan extolled the virtues of house shows, saying:
House concerts can be incredibly intimate and memorable experiences for artists and audiences alike. Sometimes it doesn't make sense for an emerging band to play to 20-50 people in an empty club. If you put those same 50 people in a living room, everybody leaves with a smile on their face. They buy albums instead of beer. And bands can make life-long supporters because they become a part of peoples' lives and help facilitate unique gatherings in local communities. The bands keep costs low by billeting with hosts and can actually make a little bit of money, instead of doing what most bands do on their first few tours, which is go further and further into debt.
Mangan previously made a call for supporters to host house shows and received over 100 submissions in 48 hours. The label now has a 200-house database of possible house venues. Those who would like to volunteer their own home for a house show can sign up here.
There will evidently be future instalments of the "Madic Records House Concert Series," perhaps even featuring artists who aren't actually signed to the label.
Tour dates:
10/01 Calgary, AB - house show
10/02 Edmonton, AB - house show
10/03 Regina, SK - house show
10/04 Teulon, MB - house show
10/09 Montreal, QC - house show
10/11 Fredericton, NB - house show
10/15 Montreal, QC - house show
10/16 Kingston, ON - house show
10/17 Bancroft, ON - house show
10/18 Toronto, ON - house show
10/19 Keswick, ON - house show
10/23 Saskatoon, SK - house show
10/25 Chilliwack, BC - house show
10/26 Vancouver, BC - house show
10/30 Aldersyde, AB - house show
The outing runs from coast-to-coast, stretching as far east as Fredericton and a far west as Vancouver. All told, there are 15 currently scheduled shows, all of them in October and all them in the comfort of fans' homes. In order to attend a gig, you'll need to reserve your spot here; the shows have a limited capacity, based on the amount of people that the house can accomodate.
See the schedule below; more shows will be added. At the bottom of the page, check out a video for Astral Swans' starkly minimal, newly unveiled Willie Nelson cover "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain."
The tour, which is in support of this year's All My Favorite Singers Are Willie Nelson, is said to be the first instalment in the "Madic Records House Concert Series."
In a statement, Madic boss Mangan extolled the virtues of house shows, saying:
House concerts can be incredibly intimate and memorable experiences for artists and audiences alike. Sometimes it doesn't make sense for an emerging band to play to 20-50 people in an empty club. If you put those same 50 people in a living room, everybody leaves with a smile on their face. They buy albums instead of beer. And bands can make life-long supporters because they become a part of peoples' lives and help facilitate unique gatherings in local communities. The bands keep costs low by billeting with hosts and can actually make a little bit of money, instead of doing what most bands do on their first few tours, which is go further and further into debt.
Mangan previously made a call for supporters to host house shows and received over 100 submissions in 48 hours. The label now has a 200-house database of possible house venues. Those who would like to volunteer their own home for a house show can sign up here.
There will evidently be future instalments of the "Madic Records House Concert Series," perhaps even featuring artists who aren't actually signed to the label.
Tour dates:
10/01 Calgary, AB - house show
10/02 Edmonton, AB - house show
10/03 Regina, SK - house show
10/04 Teulon, MB - house show
10/09 Montreal, QC - house show
10/11 Fredericton, NB - house show
10/15 Montreal, QC - house show
10/16 Kingston, ON - house show
10/17 Bancroft, ON - house show
10/18 Toronto, ON - house show
10/19 Keswick, ON - house show
10/23 Saskatoon, SK - house show
10/25 Chilliwack, BC - house show
10/26 Vancouver, BC - house show
10/30 Aldersyde, AB - house show
