For years, whenever I thought of Newfoundland I only thought of Jockey Club beer, Iceberg tracking web sites and Ches' Fish & Chips, but lately more and more talented acts have been coming across our desk. Most people know Polaris Short-listers Hey Rosetta!, but the amount of good music coming from the Rock is insane. For me though, Jon Janes - aka The Mountain & The Trees - is the act I'm keeping my eye on. You know what? I'm not the only one.

Jon is coming to Halifax on Nov. 15th to open for the legendary Billy f&cking Bragg! It's hard to believe he's making waves all over North America on the strength of 4-songs, well, that is until you actually listen to his songs. His arrangements rise and fall like a slow beating heart and every time I throw on Hop, Skip & A Jump, I play it three or four times in a row.

Jon was feeling frisky, so he decided to take on the herohill Random Question Generator, discussing topics like tight pants, favorite instruments and his love for BA Johnston.

He also wanted to thank you the reader by offering up a copy of Hop, Skip & A Jump. I can't recommend it enough - ie. it's high on my Best-of '09 EP list - and it's well worth you leaving a comment with your details or dropping us an email (herohill AT gmail DOT COM).

So, enjoy the track and Jon's responses.

Name: Jon Janes

Band: The Mountains & The Trees

Web: http://www.rockandroots.com

1. Super tight pants on dudes: Yes! or Noooooooooooooooo!

Emphatically no.

2. If you could only keep one instrument from your collection, what would it be?

Definately my guitar. I've been attached to it ever since I found it. Because of the year, it'd also be the hardest to replace. I'd have to put my suitcase as the second instrument for all the same reasons.

3. What was the first moment you considered yourself a 'professional musician'?

During my first tour, at a show in Halifax, at Gus' Pub, with Jon McKiel. After the show, a couple approached me outside and asked if I'd be in Newfoundland the next week, which I was. They took my contact info and got in touch with me when I got back. They were from the Netherlands and bought a handfull of CDs to bring back to their friends. They even got me to autograph them. It felt really weird, but it always stood out as one of those moments.

4. Mr. Dressup or The Friendly Giant? (or neither because you're too young and have no idea who they are)

Mr. Dressup. I was at the CBC museum for the first time in Septemeber and saw the tickle trunk - mind-blowing.

5. Name a Canadian band (past or present) that should be bigger outside this country.

BA Johnston. I'd LOVE to see how his show would go over in other countries!

MP3:: The Mountain & The Trees - Up & Down
MYSPACE:: http://www.myspace.com/themountainsandthetrees

Labels: Canada, contests, Five Funky Stories, Music, Music Canada Newfoundland, The Mountain and The Trees

I'm not sure I could have found a better fall EP or a better candidate for the old Sunday Morning Coffee section than the debut from Bird & Bear. This Newfoundland folk duo is built on the crystal clear, traditional folk vocals and guitar work of Jillian Freeman and the drum/banjo/drum machine support of Jon Janes (aka - The Mountain and The Trees).

Bird & Bear are about to release their debut EP - Into the Moon - and the overwhelming sensation you get from the collection of folk songs is warmth. Jillian's voice carries over the strums, keep time drums and banjo picks like a smile that lights up the room. We already know about Jon's talent and unique voice, but he's quite happy to act as a supporting player, laying down drums, subtle loops, organ and some killer accordion (and the occasional banjo line) to bolster Jill's classically trained and perfectly delivered vocals.

Witho all the bands dipping into the classic folk sounds, relying on seamless harmonies and heartache, it's refreshing to hear how Bird & Bear channel classic folk sounds (Old Habits could be stripped from any of your favorite folk records from the last two decades), but use the organ (and every other instrument they can find) and energy to keep the effort sounding fresh. The punchy conclusion to I Won't Go swirls and surges, and floats into the ghostly tones of the accordion driven A Settling of Accounts - a track that lets Jillian show off how effortlessly she jumps into falsetto - but it's the closer that really shows the future of the band.

A Practical Imagination is a seven minute affair that mixes Jillians coffee shop, back porch vibe with a surprising drum machine back beat and barely audible electric guitar that moves in and out of the song nicely. More importantly, it ends the EP on a high that makes you want to listen again. All in all, perfect for a Sunday AM, so do yourself a favor and pick up the EP next week when it comes out.

MP3:: Bird & Bear - Old Habits
MYSPACE:: http://www.myspace.com/birdandbearband

Labels: Best-of '09, Bird and Bear, EP, Music Canada Newfoundland, The Mountain and The Trees

I'm quick hitting Things Fall Apart, the new album from Newfoundland rock & rollers The Novaks for a couple reasons. Of course there's the ever present "not enough time/too many things to write about" that I deal with on a daily basis right about now, but moreso than that, I think that reaction to this album will be pretty polarized - it's twelve songs of good old fashioned gut-kick rock & roll - and people will likely either love it or hate it, and no amount of rambling, barely coherent paragraphs from me will change that.

As you might guess, based on the fact that I'm posting on them, you can count yer man Shane amongst those in the pro-Novaks camp. The St. John's trio recorded this album live off the floor at Halifax's Sonic Temple studios, and the results are pretty damn solid. Raw yet polished, The Novaks take you from the big riffs of the straight-ahead indie rock of There Goes The Night to the metal vibes oozing from Destroyer on down to the rollicking, 70's-ish rock of Under Those Wheels. So while they keep things loud and hard throughout, they aren't afraid to spread out and "explore the studio space" if you will. And I will, because it allows me to seque into a mention of the delightful cowbell-usage on Sometimes I Gotta Go Down, which I might not have been able to do otherwise.

So the case here is pretty simple I think, if you like your rock & roll with big ballsy riffs, sing along hooks, and swaggering lyrics punctuated by the right amount of yelps and hollers, then Things Fall Apart is for you. If that doesn't sound like something you'd like, don't worry about it, just go back to your tea cozies, your Pat Boone records, and whatever else a sensitive soul like yourself enjoys (I'm just messing with you, sensitive souls, without you gentle folks, like 70% of the Acks reviews would fall on deaf ears). The rest can catch The Novaks on tour later this month or on the Commons here in Halifax with Kiss in July.

19 Jun 2009 The Horseshoe Tavern (NXNE) Toronto, Ontario
22 Jun 2009 Zaphod Beeblebrox Ottawa, Ontario
23 Jun 2009 The Casbah Hamilton, Ontario
25 Jun 2009 The Blind Dog Windsor, Ontario
26 Jun 2009 Lucknow Strawberry Festival Lucknow, Ontario
27 Jun 2009 The Montreal House Peterborough, ON, Ontario
28 Jun 2009 The Stubborn Mule Sarnia, Ontario
29 Jun 2009 Call The Office London, Ontario
9  Jul 2009 Arts Under The Stars Clarenville, Newfoundland
18 Jul 2009 Halifax Commons Halifax, Nova Scotia

MP3:: The Novaks - There Goes The Night

MP3:: The Novaks - Under Those Wheels
MYSPACE:: www.myspace.com/thenovaks

Labels: Music Canada Newfoundland