Venues are back open, but some artists are continuing to take an innovative outdoor approach to pandemic-era touring. Case in point: Yukon folk songwriter Joey O'Neil, who has announced plans to tour dog parks.
The so-called Unleashed tour has actually already begun, as O'Neil has played surprise dog park shows in Fort St. John, Prince George and Edmonton in the last few days. The rest of the tour has now been unveiled, and it includes shows throughout the summer months.
O'Neil said in a statement, "My last two tour plans had gone to the dogs... So I figured I'd give them a show. I want to honour the canine themes of my album, Ever Ahead. As an avid cross-Canadian tourist, I've sampled quite a few of these canine havens. The sense of community in the spaced-out, fenced-in realms has encouraged me and my dog to return to certain parks, making them a must-stop on our roadmap. Planning a socially distanced tour was made easy with the idea that dog parks could be listening gardens — ones where you don't have to leave your pup at home to go see a concert. This tour is for folk music lovers and for the dogs who are happy to come along for the ride."
See the schedule for the Unleashed tour below; below that, see a tour trailer filmed by O'Neil's dog Oblio and featuring a cover of Terry Bush's "Maybe Tomorrow," the theme song from The Littlest Hobo (which appears on Ever Ahead).
Joey O'Neil 2022 Tour Dates:
06/29 Red Deer, AB - Three Mile Bend Off Leash Park (12 p.m.)
06/29 Calgary, AB - Sue Higgins Off Leash Area (6 p.m.)
06/30 Medicine Hat, AB - Saratoga Dog Park (6 p.m.)
07/01 Moose Jaw, SK - Moose Jaw Off-Leash (6 p.m.)
07/02 Brandon, MB - East End Paw Park (6 p.m.)
07/03 Kenora, ON - City of Kenora Dog Park (4 p.m.)
07/06 North Bay, ON - North Bay Dog Park (6 p.m.)
08/14 Toronto, ON - Trinity Bellwoods Dog Bowl (2 p.m.)
08/20 London, ON - Pottersburg Off Leash Dog Park (4 p.m.)
08/21 St. Catharines, ON - Burgoyne Woods Dog Park (4 p.m.)
09/04 Guelph, ON - Peter Misersky Park (4 p.m.)
09/10 Burlington, ON - King Road Leash Free Park (4 p.m.)
09/18 Cobourg, ON - Cobourg Dog Park (4 p.m.)
The so-called Unleashed tour has actually already begun, as O'Neil has played surprise dog park shows in Fort St. John, Prince George and Edmonton in the last few days. The rest of the tour has now been unveiled, and it includes shows throughout the summer months.
O'Neil said in a statement, "My last two tour plans had gone to the dogs... So I figured I'd give them a show. I want to honour the canine themes of my album, Ever Ahead. As an avid cross-Canadian tourist, I've sampled quite a few of these canine havens. The sense of community in the spaced-out, fenced-in realms has encouraged me and my dog to return to certain parks, making them a must-stop on our roadmap. Planning a socially distanced tour was made easy with the idea that dog parks could be listening gardens — ones where you don't have to leave your pup at home to go see a concert. This tour is for folk music lovers and for the dogs who are happy to come along for the ride."
See the schedule for the Unleashed tour below; below that, see a tour trailer filmed by O'Neil's dog Oblio and featuring a cover of Terry Bush's "Maybe Tomorrow," the theme song from The Littlest Hobo (which appears on Ever Ahead).
Joey O'Neil 2022 Tour Dates:
06/29 Red Deer, AB - Three Mile Bend Off Leash Park (12 p.m.)
06/29 Calgary, AB - Sue Higgins Off Leash Area (6 p.m.)
06/30 Medicine Hat, AB - Saratoga Dog Park (6 p.m.)
07/01 Moose Jaw, SK - Moose Jaw Off-Leash (6 p.m.)
07/02 Brandon, MB - East End Paw Park (6 p.m.)
07/03 Kenora, ON - City of Kenora Dog Park (4 p.m.)
07/06 North Bay, ON - North Bay Dog Park (6 p.m.)
08/14 Toronto, ON - Trinity Bellwoods Dog Bowl (2 p.m.)
08/20 London, ON - Pottersburg Off Leash Dog Park (4 p.m.)
08/21 St. Catharines, ON - Burgoyne Woods Dog Park (4 p.m.)
09/04 Guelph, ON - Peter Misersky Park (4 p.m.)
09/10 Burlington, ON - King Road Leash Free Park (4 p.m.)
09/18 Cobourg, ON - Cobourg Dog Park (4 p.m.)
