Parklife

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I made it to the Stockley Gardens Arts Festival today to see Ampersand, a band that I had been told was worth seeing. Sure enough, they're a likable bunch of singers and players. While mostly a cover band, the group's musical skills and taste put them head-and-shoulders above the average band slogging though Dave Matthews and Matchbox 20 tunes. They're also a mostly-acoustic band, so they naturally rearrange covers in a fashion that's homespun, and yet with plenty of vocal and playing chops. The Ampersand quintet tackled bunch of varied and tasty tunes: "Heart of Glass" by Blondie "Blue" by The Jayhawks (a terrifically hard tune to pull off) as well as others by The Smiths, Johnny Cash and The Cure. There was at least one original tune in the bunch, but I didn't get to hear enough of it to say much about it.
Ampersand is fronted by Shay Roebuck on upright bass and his wife Martha Roebuck on vocals and guitar. The group is rounded out by the excellent (in this case acoustic) guitar player Greg Wikle as well as a drummer and keyboardist. You may remember Shea from The Hollowbodies. Martha fronted the band Falstaff a few years back.
Lovely harmonies, great and unpredictable song selection and strong, tasteful musicianship -- matched with a lovely, sun-drenched day at the park -- made my first Ampersand experience a good one.
They're scheduled to play Granby North May 31. Catch 'em if you can.