It's been nearly two years since Owen Steel's acclaimed full- length record smacked silly smiles upon our faces, but he hasn't really stopped moving since then. And he hasn't left us hanging either. Last summer he released a collection of B-sides and demos called Reel Ruffs & Other Stuffs and he's continuing to tide us over with a Dixieland-sounding two-track seven-inch recorded in single session with Charles Austin at Echo Chamber. It's a double hit of Steel's old-timey styles and narrative songwriting that'll introduce you to a scheming bootlegger and a loveable, poutine-eating lady. "The intention behind the song was to keep it loose, fun and simple..not take it too seriously, yet have the musicianship really shine through," says Steel, who just returned from eating fried chicken, riding street trolleys and playing intimate showcases at the Folk Alliance International Conference in Memphis. And back on the road he goes, spending March touring the Maritimes with the company of Mike Trask, and a limited pressing of the new release.
Thu March 8, The Company House, 2202 Gottigen Street, 8pm