Outhouse races and other successes make up for rainy weather at Harvest Festival

 “Chic Gamine began in an unconventional way,” said Alexa Dirks, a member of this extraordinary musical group, whose concert is set for the St. Lawrence Acoustic Stage on Saturday, April 11, at 7 p.m. “And we have become more than just an a cappella group. In the musical world it is still perhaps unusual to have a woman-fronted band, but one of our goals has been to show the power of the female voice. We are not a ‘traditional girl band,’” Alexa added, with a laugh. “We’re not throw backs as some might think, but really, something very unique.”

And if by unique, she means providing audiences with an exciting, witty, toe-tapping, jaw-dropping, totally stunning musical experience, then, yes, this Juno award-winning band is truly ‘very unique.’

The current members of Chic Gamine, which was founded in St. Boniface, Manitoba, in 2007 (Ariane Jean left the group in 2014) are Alexa Dirks, Andrina Turenne and Annick Bremault with Benoit Morier on guitar and Sacha Daoud on drums. “Originally the founding members of the band sang a cappella together for years as part of a larger group. The three who remained together, brought in Sacha on the drums. I joined them later. I was a teen just cutting my teeth in clubs when the band heard me, and invited me to join them. I’ve never looked back,”Alexa said.

Chic Gamine  (“to us the name means fresh and new, but also very playful”) is not tied to one genre. Soul, rock, Motown, folk, even, as one critic put it, “a bit funk”, this band finds inspiration in all kinds of music. “We love the timeless artists, Nina Simone, Etta James, but we listen to everything from world music to hip hop to country. We absorb these genres, and then we put our own unique twist on our own music.”

To fans and critics alike, one word establishes the keystone of Chic Gamine’s appeal: harmony.

“We remain very based on harmony and vocals,” Alexa Dirks explained. “We are in a new phase of our band, undergoing a kind of metamorphosis. We have brought in instrumentation and we are moving toward experimenting with new sounds, and developing old ones.” The band produced the exciting City City in 2011, and, in 2013, the two record Closer garnered new fans in the US. They performed at the Vancouver Olympics, appeared twice on A Prairie Home Companion, and opened for Smokey Robinson and Mavis Staples. Yet Chic Gamine has proved equally at home singing the lilting “I Love Pie” with ‘Mama’, which delighted some very young CBC fans. 

“Most of our work is original, and writing for us is very much a collaborative effort,” said Alexa. “Our themes tend to be related to our immediate lives: we bring our experiences, even our heart breaks, to our music, focussing on an idea and expanding it. We have a new album, as yet untitled, coming out in the fall, and the sky’s the limit in terms of touring and performing. Chic Gamine is a mixture of anglophones and francophones: we have our musical feet in both doors.”

The music of Chic Gamine is infectious, bursting with energy, and, naturally, very unique.

Also unique is the music of the artist who is opening for Chic Gamine, Tracy Lalonde. Now a seasoned performer, Lalonde was part of an earlier Stage emerging artists showcase a few years ago. An accomplished guitarist who originally was a solo performer, she is now part of a trio with Dylan Groulx and Pamela Cumming. Noted Cornwall musician Graham Greer helped Tracy release her first EP, Little Letters, and has been one of her musical mentors. 

Music is clearly a passion for this young artist. “I’ve always had a tendency to do my own thing – not paying attention to what others are doing, and this is as much a curse as a blessing. While I stubbornly go after a feeling I want in my music, sometimes it is good to hear and compare what others are up to. My sound is, I would say, along the lines of alt-pop/folk. It’s not straight-ahead pop by a long shot, but at the same time, I don’t think it’s what you’d imagine straight ahead folk to sound like either. It’s nestled comfortably between the two.”

What her music definitely is, is personal and deeply felt. “When song ideas come to me, generally the music presents itself first. Sometimes I (can) have a full song from start to finish with complete instrumentation floating in my head before I ever write down a word. In the past I’ve used literature for a source of inspiration, but I have a feeling my new music will draw more from personal experience. There is a feeling I chase through the songs.” Audiences can look forward to a memorable opening act when this young singer steps out on the stage.

The Chic Gamine concert on April 11 represents a wonderful musical coup for the St. Lawrence Acoustic Stage: don’t miss the chance to hear these outstanding performers live, right here in South Dundas. Tickets are $18 in advance, $20 at the door. Contact the Stage at www.st-lawrencestage.com for information.

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 Since October 2013, South Dundas council and staff have been working on revising a tough new sewer use bylaw.

This bylaw has been the subject of previous special meetings of council earlier this year, and of two public meetings in June, where the public was invited to review the bylaw and provide feedback.

Last week, at a special meeting to once again review the latest draft of the bylaw, council suggested more changes. 

The latest changes will give homeowners longer to face compliance.

At the August 13 meeting, council decided that they would like to see tiered implementation, with industrial and commercial properties within the villages needing to ensure their compliance within about a year of the bylaw enactment, with a possible grace period.

Because commercial and industrial sewer use has the most potential to upset the balance of the sewage treatment plants, council decided that would be an important place to start with the bylaw.

“We’re not here to drive anyone out of business,” said South Dundas mayor Steven Byvelds. 

The bylaw is designed to regulate what can and can’t be put into the sanitary sewer system, and deals with improper connections that result in extraneous flow of rainwater into the sanitary system, such as roof downspout connections.

Council foresees a final draft of this bylaw, for commercial and industrial sewer use being tabled for approval late in September.

South Dundas staff have been asked to explore the possibility of a municipal funding program designed to encourage voluntary compliance.

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Almost $25,000 will be spent on trail improvements in the Two Creeks Forest Conservation Area in South Dundas.

Two Creeks Forest Conservation Area is located north of County Road 2, across from the west end of Lakeshore Drive.

The money will come from funding received from the Great Lakes Community Guardian Fund, a fund which helps communities take action to protect and restore their corner of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River Basin.

The upcoming project will mostly consist of signs for educational purposes.

As part of the funding requirement, a public information session regarding the project will take place April 9, 7:30 p.m., at the South Dundas municipal office in Williamsburg.

The purpose is to find stewards to help with trail management, sign installations and educational program delivery through interpretive signs.

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