New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Missing Piece Group) Along with 2,000+ bands from more than 55 countries, Montreal's Leif Vollebekk descended upon Austin,
Texas for the annual SXSW music conference. Vollebekk performed at the historic St. David's Bethell Hall on a stacked showcase featuring Maica Mia, Thus Owls,
Basia Bulat, Timber Timbre, and The Barr Brothers.
Leif Vollebekk's performance on
Thursday evening was featured as a highlight from NPR Music's Bob Boilen, who said "I love the songs and spaciousness of Leif
Vollebekk. He had a way of phrasing that was somewhere between
Van Morrison and
Andrew Bird or Patrick Watson."
Ann Powers of NPR
Music included the album on her "Under-The-Radar Albums Preview of 2014" list and said "Vollebekk also openly borrows from
Jeff Buckley - always a daring move. With a grit-and-honey voice and a way of opening up his own confessions until they become universal, Vollebekk pulls it off."
On January 28th, Vollebekk released his U.S. debut North Americana on Missing Piece Records.
Paste Magazine premiered the music video for Vollebekk's "When The Subway Comes Above The Ground," which you can watch HERE.
The Onion's A.V. Club premiered the album on their website last week and said it features a "unique take on warbling Americana, a la
Ryan Adams or A.A. Bondy."
The ten songs that comprise North Americana were performed by Vollebekk (vocals, guitar, piano, harmonica, a little rusty fiddle), jazz musicians Hans Bernhard (bass) and
Philippe Melanson (drums), Arcade Fire's
Sarah Neufeld (violin), Joe Grass(pedal steel) and Adam Kinner (tenor sax).
On April 15th, Leif Vollebekk will hit the road for a national U.S. tour supporting
William Fitzsimmons.
U.S. Tour Dates:
4/15: Brooklyn, NY - Littlefield*
4/16: New York, NY - NYU Skirball Center for the Performing Arts*
4/17: Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer*
4/18: Pittsburgh, PA - Rex Theater*
4/22: Charlottesville, VA - The Southern*
4/24: Raleigh, NC - The Pour House*
4/27: Nashville, TN - Exit In*
5/25: Pomona, CA - The Glass House*
5/27: Las Vegas, NV - Vinyl at Hard Rock Hotel Casino*
5/28: Phoenix, AZ - The Crescent Ballroom*
5/30: Dallas, TX - The Kessler Theater*
5/31: Austin, TX - The Parish*
6/5: St. Louis, MO - The Gramophone*
6/6: Chicago, IL - Old Town School of Folk Music*
6/7: Ann Arbor, MI - The Ark*
6/8: Toronto, ON - Mod Club*
6/9: Buffalo, NY - Iron Works*
6/13: Burlington, VT - Signal Kitchen*
6/14: Northampton, MA - Iron Horse*
6/15: Cambridge, MA - The Sinclair*
* = With
William Fitzsimmons
Find Leif on:
twitter.com/leifvollebekk
facebook.com/leifvollebekk
www.leifvollebekk.com
