Chris Ronald

“Takin’ Turns” is back, new and improved and at a new venue: The Prophouse Cafe, 1636 Venables Street (@ Commercial). “Takin’ Turns” is a monthly music circle that happens every 3rd Tuesday, and co-organizer Glenn Chatten and I have been busy getting ready for the 2013 launch show on February 19th. This year, notable additions include a web site with live streaming at www.takinturns.ca, partnerships with local businesses such as Long & McQuade and Dominion Blue as well as local radio such as CiTR, and there will also be a raffle each night to raise funds for Crisis Centre.

As the featured artist for December’s SongStage, I was able to perform a set of mostly new material from the upcoming new album. Here is a clip from that performance featuring the song “Final Throes,” which is a response to climate change and the lack of leadership being shown by the Canadian government when it comes to the environment. The video was shot using my new Zoom Q2 recorder, which is primarily an audio recorder but also shoots HD video; a great little piece of kit delivered early by Santa.

For more information about SongStage, please read the previous post.

SongStage, presented by SAC (Songwriters Association of Canada) and organized by Ivan Boudreau, is a monthly showcase of “original music and creativity.” The evening begins at 7:00 with the featured artist followed by an open mic. The event usually takes place in the spacious lobby of The ACT in Maple Ridge. However, every now and again it gets moved into the lovely Genstar Studio Theatre, and that’s where I’ll be performing as the featured artist on Tuesday 11th December – lucky me!

I’ve been in a creative groove of late writing songs for the new album, so this will be a perfect opportunity to air some new material in an intimate setting with great sound. Click here to read a recent write up in the Maple Ridge News.

The Eastside Culture Crawl is a 3-day event where 433 local artists open their studios to the public. I was scheduled to perform only on opening Friday night but got caught up in the vibe and returned for more on Saturday and Sunday. In between sets I would go and explore the multiple levels of Parker Street Studios along with thousands of fellow art-lovers. Stand-out artists for me include printmaker Lawrence Lowe and furniture-maker Judson Beaumont.

A big thank you to Deborah Bakos and her colleagues in Studio 202 for supporting live music.

I played some new tunes during last week’s interview on CJSF Radio. Stream the show here.