Durham County Poets and Lynne Hanson featured this weekend at Stone Crop Acres

Durham County Poets

MORRISBURG – Durham County Poets front-man Kevin Harvey recently spoke to The Leader about their upcoming Harmony Concerts show at Stone Crop Acres July 31st.

It will be their first time performing here.

Harvey said that people really like how their music weaves in and out of different sound-scapes. “Sometimes within a song, but certainly within a set, or on an album,” said Harvey.

He said that upon seeing them perform, people often comment on the sense of joy and general all-around good feeling of the music.

The pandemic has put artists in a similar situation.

Harvey said that in 2020 they were all set to head to Saskatoon to perform at the JUNO awards. “We had our plane tickets, then that morning we heard that everything was cancelled.”

He said that they have been blessed to be able to do a few live steam concerts in Ontario and Quebec, and just a few months ago they were able to do their first live performance in Royan Noranda, Quebec.

“That was a lot of fun,” said Harvey.

“By far, the best thing about a live show is the interaction with the audience. Hopefully, when we do it right and we’re all settled in, people will be touched and have smiles on their faces,” he said.

Harvey told The Leader that the Durham County Poets are honoured to be performing at Stone Crop Acres. “When I look at the lineup of artists I have great respect for all of them.”

Lynne Hanson

Also, they love sharing this thing that they do – creating music, arranging, recording and presenting it to people and seeing their reactions.

“We greatly appreciate the tremendous amount of effort that Harmony Concerts, and the host venues put in,” said Harvey. “There’s always a risk involved when it comes to producing shows. And it takes A lot of dedication. And working with and building an audience because lots of artists travel far and don’t necessarily have a local following. That’s kind of where we are at, to some extent. So we would like to thank them. And thanks to all the people who attend and make these events what they are. So we look forward to greeting you all on The 31st and together we are going to have a lot of fun!”

Sunday evening’s show features Lynne Hanson who performed at Stone Crop Acres last year.

Asked to describe her music, Hanson said: “I’ve been described as too tough for folk, and too blues for country, and I think that captures the mix of musical genres that my style tends to encompass.”<

Hanson’s been working on songs for a new album that will be coming out in early 2022. “We’ll be debuting some of those songs this weekend,” she said.  “I’ll be playing with Blair Michael Hogan, and we’ve got a whole new setup that incorporates percussion, loops, and more electric guitar.

“We had just a handful of outdoor shows since last November so we are chomping at the bit to be back at Stone Crop Acres as part of this summer’s Harmony Concert series,” added Hanson.

“I think the thing we’ve missed the most over the course of this pandemic is that sense of being with a community of music lovers, and getting to perform at a real venue.  The audience that attends these events is one of the most supportive I’ve performed for, and it really does feel like ‘coming home’ to step on that stage.  And after nine months of live-streaming I can’t wait to have someone ELSE do sound for us!”

“I’ve been performing for a long time, and I know how much work goes into organizing an event like this,” said Hanson.

“Even in the ‘Before Times’ a person has to really love live music to put in all the hours to organize a concert.”

“So to know that they (Harmony Concerts and Stone Crop Acres) are willing to put in all those extra hours to ensure we can have a space to perform and listen to live music has made me feel that my music is important at a time when there hasn’t been much opportunity to feel that creative validation.”

“They make sure that we feel heard, and that what we do is important by going to all this extra effort, and having a date on a calendar to look forward to really does feel like a lighthouse shining during what has been a very dark time for the performing arts.”

Over the last year Hanson said that the biggest change for her has been that’s she’s re-found her Muse and is back to creating new music.

“Which for me is the most important and exciting part about being a musician,” said Hanson. “I love new songs, and I cannot wait to share them with the audience this coming Sunday.”

Hanson said that over the last year she has really embraced technology, and this has even made its way into her live show.

“One thing that hasn’t changed is my love of playing to real live people, so we plan to bring it to Morrisburg this weekend!”

For ticket information visit www.harmonyconcerts.ca

Since you’re here…

… Thanks for reading this article. Local news is important. We hope that you continue to support local news in your community by reading The Leader, online and in print. Please consider subscribing to the print edition of the newspaper. Click here to subscribe today.

Subscribe to Email Alerts

Enter your email address to subscribe to Email Alerts and receive notifications of new posts by email whenever The Leader publishes new content on our website.