The Gog's second house concert of the year will feature Creek City, a four-piece folk-roots group from Swift Current. One member is a former resident of the Battlefords.
Although Creek City the band hasn't played in the Battlefords before, drummer Michael Tetrault certainly has, and is looking forward to the gig at The Gog.
"I still have many friends and family there that I am anxious to see," says Tetrault. "I have played with many local musicians there when I lived there."
In fact, his first set of drums was a collection of cardboard boxes with which he accompanied his 11-year-old guitarist friend Ray Garand.
Tetrault left the Battlefords in 2005 to work in Regina and in 2005 he moved to Swift Current where he met up with Dave Cyca from Swift Current and Mark Penner and Donovan Epp from Herbert.
None of Creek City's members are strangers to the Southwest Saskatchewan music scene. They are currently working on their first album and expect it to be released this summer.
It all started in 2010 when singer songwriters Penner and Cyca, who have both released Saskatchewan Country Music Awards-nominated solo albums, started collaborating at songwriting workshops then performing as an acoustic duo.
When Penner's good friend Donovan Epp from Herbert started playing bass and providing harmony vocals for the duo, they became a trio with no name other than Mark, Dave and Donovan and were excited about their new direction.
In 2010, Tetrault moved to Swift Current bringing with him 30 years of experience in the music industry as a drummer and a sound/recording engineer. He has drummed and recorded with many bands playing country, rock and gospel throughout Western Canada. When the trio played an event at the Lyric Theatre, Tetrault was hired as the sound technician. After that evening, he became their drummer and this band was born.
Creek City says their music appeals to a broad audience. It is difficult to slot their music into any one category but they describe it as a blend of folk, blues and country/rock.
They will be performing at The Gog, 1391 - 105th St. in North Battleford Saturday, Feb. 27. The doors open at 7 p.m., with the show at 7:30 p.m. The $20 admission goes to the artists, and there is a donation jar for drinks and hostess Kelly Waters' famous hors d’oeuvres.
