Marvest is an offshoot of the CityFolk festival that runs between September 16th and 20th, at the Aberdeen Pavilion, and along Bank Street. These mostly free shows feature local bands, and we’ll be profiling some of those bands.
Indie rock band The Gallop will be playing at Marvest, the new local music showcase that CityFolk Festival is hosting this year. The band is from Ottawa and consists of David Gervais (guitar and vocals), Michael Holmes (guitar), Paul Ross (drums and vocals), John Leonard (bass and vocals) and PJ Catsiyannis (guitar and vocals).
They played a show at Bluesfest in 2013, but they’ve never played in Ottawa’s Folk Festival. They said they’re excited to be part of the new CityFolk Festival this year.
“We feel that all our festivals in Ottawa are reflective of the diverse and eclectic talents that make up our city’s social fabric,” Gervais said. “It is exciting to us that CityFolk is equally eclectic, and has also integrated with existing venues to offer a wide spectrum of experiences to the public.”
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5KnSFlvuwIM[/youtube]
The band has been playing together since 2010. They released an untitled full-length album in 2012, and last year released two EPs: The Gallop and Tall Tale Tellers. You can check out their music online on their Bandcamp. All of the music is available to download either for free or for a donation of your choice.
Right now, the band is recording a new EP, which they plan to release in late fall/early winter this year. They’re also working on music videos for some of their existing songs.
For The Gallop’s show at Marvest, Gervais said the crowd should expect “some fast, intense indie pop jams with ringing harmonies and banging rhythms.”
We asked Gervais about the band’s thoughts on playing in one of the non-traditional venues that are being used for the Marvest performances – The Gallop will be playing at The Wild Oat, a vegetarian-friendly bakery/café on Bank St.
“We are worry-free and stoked to be a part of this sweet addition to CityFolk,” Gervais said. “We admire CityFolk’s ability to connect to community and bring live music to an even greater audience. We are stoked to play The Wild Oat. We are all big fans of baked goods and coffee, and The Wild Oat is dope!”
He said they’re also looking forward to catching as many other shows during the festival as they can, especially the Barr Brothers, Jenn Grant, Patrick Watson, Will Butler, and Fred Penner.
The Gallop play at The Wild Oat (817 Bank St.) on Saturday, September 19th at 10 p.m. For more information visit the Cityfolk website. You can also find the Gallop on Facebook.
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