Photo courtsey Pepper Watkins on flickr
We at the Apartment613 Society for the Appreciation of Maritime Feats have long been impressed by the great lake swimming of Tony Dekker and his bandmates. Who can forget the time in 2007 when – carrying a mandolin, a slide guitar, and a single snare drum on their backs – they managed to traverse the entire length of Lake Superior? Or in 2005, when they trod water off the shores of Lake Ontario for seven weeks straight, setting a still-unbroken world record? (Frankly, we were surprised they were not done in by the rampant pollution – another testament, one might argue, to their greatness.)
Thus, we propose a new challenge, one that will surely test the mettle of Dekker et al: conquer the currents of the mighty Ottawa River! And what better opportunity than this Friday, as they will be stopping in the nation’s capital for an evening of music at First Baptist Church.
Tickets are $17.50 and might still be available at various locations around town (the Ottawa Folklore Centre had about a dozen on hand Tuesday afternoon; End Hits might also be a good bet). The Swimmers should be showcasing a good dose of material from their exceptionally pretty new album, Lost Channels, which was recently longlisted for the Polaris Prize – a source of inspiration, no doubt, for the proposed feat of stamina to follow.
They’ll also be joined on stage by fellow Polaris nominees Timber Timbre, a favourite of our sister organization, the Apartment613 Society for the Appreciation of Arboreal Destruction. Doors are at 7 p.m.
