MOUNTAIN LIFE - Blue Mountains | Summer 2019

79 words :: Tom Thwaits When Neil Young sang “Everybody knows this is nowhere”, he was not talking about Meaford, Ontario. Whether it’s Meaford Hall, Electric Eclectics, Irish Mountain Music, or Sons of Ishmael, Meafordites have long been making their small town somewhere musical to be. Add to that list the Home + Home Music Fest, quite possibly the town’s best-kept secret. This year, homegrown heroes Milk Fraud, with a fantastic new EP under their belt, and Sages, fresh from a performance at EE last year, are in on the act. And the organizers have tapped the talents of two Toronto-based acts: Carew, a three-piece that plays “rock and roll that sinks heavily and surfs lightly” (their own words) and So La Ti Doe, a hiphop trio that blends live drum loops, bass and guitar with the stylings of MC and chanteuse Jane Doe Smith. Headlining the first night is Fiver, a project by One Hundred Dollars and Highest Order frontwoman Simone Schmidt, who floored music fans last year with her exhaustively researched Audible Songs from Rockwood , inspired by Rockwood Asylum, Ontario’s first women’s institution for the mentally ill. The second night’s headliner is Toronto’s prolific Sandro Perri, who’ll bring a full band to share his unique sound, the product of years of fine-tuning and production work with artists as varied as Tanya Tagaq and Great Lake Swimmers. The Fest got started two years ago when Bry Webb, of Constantines fame, went looking for a gig in Meaford. In the words of Home + Home co-founder Dave Trumble, “the idea of having [Webb] and other under-appreciated Canadian musicians play in my backyard was something I couldn’t pass on.” A few months later, Trumble and his partner Michelle Harrison, with the help of some creative lighting and the magic of Bry Webb’s hurdy-gurdy player, cast the spell that eventually became Home + Home. It snowballed from there, with Trumble and Harrison planning a show for the following summer, bookended by a second night of acts in Michael O’Connell and Karri North’s backyard. O’Connell, a touring musician himself with a predilection for unusual venues, decided that “if you want to make something happen, you just make a decision and commit.” With that in mind, the couples’ backyards were transformed into venues for the Silverhearts, Doug Tielli’s the Silt, Joyful Joyful, Ansley Simpson, Renee the Voice, Bill Monahan, Sterling & the Birdwatchers, and O’Connell and North’s own band, Culture Reject. At $15 a night, free entry for those 18 and under, and both nights of the Fest hosted in private backyards, it’s never been easier to roll in with your blankets, chairs, coolers and kids to take in two exceptional evenings of music, and bear witness to Meaford, once again, punching above its weight. Home + Home is on July 26 & 27. Tickets are available through eventbrite.com (follow the links from the H + H page on Facebook) and will be available at the event as well. MUSIC STAY HOME THIS SUMMER Meaford’s Home + Home Music Fest Toronto-based Anishinaabe singer-songwriter Ansley Simpson performing at H+H 2018. STUART MANWELL