Vogelmorn Upstairs presents the Sylvia Tour with Just Janie & Sig Wilder and support from Gram Antler!
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Just Janie and Sig Wilder are banding together to tour their new double single 'Sylvia'. Fusing nostalgic Laurel Canyon folk and alt-country grit onstage in a 'songwriter rounds' format, they will be sharing the songs and stories of the music that made them.
Sig and Janie met earlier this year in Te Whanganui-a-Tara and realized they'd both written songs titled 'Sylvia', influenced by poetry collections from Sylvia Plath and Sylvia Legris. After performing together, the duo knew there was something special when their voices merged. Now they’re bringing that magic to the stage.
Gram Antler is the solo project of Pōneke singer, bass player and guitarist, Jason Johnson (Ebony Lamb, Marlon Willams, French For Rabbits, Eb & Sparrow). Reformed choirboy and post-alt-country, Johnson presents Gram Antler as an anachronism, a man unstuck in time. The songs aspire to be pop, but seem to congeal into a form that can only be described as Slacker Yacht-Rock. Hooky and melodic, and full of lush texture, the soon-to-be-released record GRAM ANTLER was written and recorded with award-winning Melbourne-based producer Brett Stanton (The Phoenix Foundation, Beastwars, Holly Smith). Listen to or watch to the new single here - https://linktr.ee/gramantler
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'Sylvia', includes two tracks, written individually and recorded together.
Sylvia I, written and composed by Just Janie, is a response to reading Sylvia Plath’s poetry collection *Ariel*. After picking up the collection at Scorpio Books in Ōtautahi and feeling drawn in from the two cover lines: ‘I rise with my red hair, and eat men like air’, Janie was flawed by the collection. This is a song to deal with the trauma of reading Sylvia Plath.
Sylvia II, written and composed by Sig Wilder, is a response to reading Sylvia Legris's poetry collection *Garden Physic*. With each page Sig, who is also a gardener, discovered a wealth of complex plant references and horticultural histories. He was inspired by the botanical glossolalia seemingly of Sylvia's own invention and the collection's ability to create music from language. 'How to write about flowers without the nauseating sentimental phraseology?' Legris writes. This song is an exploration of the language of plants and the haunting relationship between poet and reader.
Drawing inspiration from the folk scene of the late sixties and early seventies, Central Otago-born artist Just Janie has a crisp and tender style, creating worlds for listeners to melt into. Raised in the American Midwest and now living under the Southern Cross, Sig Wilder's music is a journey through the hills and plains of Aotearoa, weaving the nostalgia and sorrow of Americana into the fabric of Aotearoa’s musical landscape.
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Vogelmorn Upstairs is not a wheelchair accessible building. There is an accessible
bathroom in the space. This is an all ages venue but those under the age of 16 must be
accompanied by a designated adult after 8pm. The Vogelmorn Precinct is a community
space located in a residential area. With that in mind, the team ask that you be kind to
others' and that when you leave the gig, you do so quietly to avoid disturbing our
neighbours.”
“The Upstairs Bar and Smoked and Pickled Restaurant will be open from 3pm, to book a
table for pre-show kai email Alice at smokednpickled@gmail.com”
