Originally hailing from Canada, Po’ Girl weave a blend of musical influences, sweetness, grit & soul into their fresh and original sound. Since the band’s birth in Vancouver, BC in 2003 they’ve gained a devoted following across 4 continents and 13 countries with their powerful, passionate and spirited live show.
The interplay between Allison Russell, Awna Teixeira, Benny Sidelinger, and Mikey “Lightning” August is truly something to behold. They are distinct voices with incredible harmonies; multiple instrumentalists who bring the perfect sound to each song and songwriters who pen poetic tunes you’ll find yourself humming. Po’ Girl showcases a wide array of instruments-from gutbucket bass, accordion, clarinet, banjo, dobro, guitar, to electric bass, glockenspiel, piano, harmonica, bicycle bells and drums – and they all frequently trade off instruments with each song. Their fluid and joyous musicality is one of the group’s most endearing and irresistible features.
It’s impossible to put this band in a tidy little box – they’re equally at home in Douala, Cameroon playing the Massao World Music Festival, as they are at the International Jazz Festival in Montreal, the Winnipeg Folk Festival, the Woodford Music Festival in Australia or just playing for fun for the people in Vondel Park, Amsterdam.
Suffice to say Po’ Girl makes 21st Century roots music, urban roots – never derivative, not faithfully aping a beloved tradition. Russell, Teixeira, Sidelinger, and August don’t re-hash the old forms; they reshape and reinvigorate them for new ears. Like genuine gypsies, they wander and play – out on the international road bringing their unique brand of pan North Americana to a widespread audience 250 to 300 days of the year. Always restless, more often than not bone-tired, they write their flashes of sadness, their loss, their good love, their faint dreams of home into songs that matter deeply to them. Like any good art, they are little acts of self-rescue. So you should listen. You aren’t much different from them, and who couldn’t use a little rescuing these days?
In October 2010 Po’ Girl released their fifth album Follow Your Bliss. Recorded in Chicago, Illinois with the fantastic Zach Goheen at the helm. Follow Your Bliss is titled in reference to Joseph Campbell’s work and reveals Po’ Girl achieving new heights in their musicianship and songwriting maturity. The sound on the album is warm, real and intimate, Zach Goheen successfully preserving the organic, spontaneous quality of Po’ Girl live while creating a rich, radio-friendly sound. Recorded on one-inch tape using vintage equipment Follow Your Bliss also features guest appearances by JT & The Clouds.
Track from Follow Your Bliss
Buy Album: Follow Your Bliss
Video
Tour Dates
AUGUST
Thursday 4 Salcombe Regis Sidmouth Fringe Festival – Thorn Centre Festival Campsite
Nr. S idmouth, Devon 01395 579 564 / www.sidmouthfringe.co.uk £10, 6pm
Friday 5 Broadstairs Broadstairs Festival – Concert Marquee, Pierremont Park
Kent 01843 604080 / www.broadstairsfolkweek.org.uk £15, 8pm
Saturday 6 Wakefield The Orangery
01924 215550 / www.the-orangery.uk.net £15, 6pm
Sunday 7 Wombwell ‘Voices For Nature’ Festival – RSPB Moor Lane – NB Afternoon Show
Barnsley 01226 751593 £19, 12.30pm
Sunday 7 Kirton in Lindsey Diamond Jubilee Town Hall
North Lincolnshire 0794 7712316 / www.kirtoninlindseytownhall.co.uk £12.50, 7pm
Wednesday 10 Norwich Olives
01603 230500 / www.olivesnorwich.co.uk £10, 7.30pm
Wednesday 24 Edinburgh Acoustic Music Centre at St. Bride’s – Edinburgh Festival Fringe
0131 6682019 / www.acousticmusiccentre.co.uk £12, 8pm
Thursday 25 Oswestry The Ironworks
Shropshire 01691 679123 / www.the-ironworks.co.uk £9, 8pm
Friday 26 Langton Matravers Purbeck Festival, Wildswood Farm
Swanage, Dorset 023 8071 1818 / www.purbeckfolk.co.uk
Saturday 27 Durham Town Centre – Durham Streets of Folk Festival
www.durhamstreetsof.co.uk Free, 8pm
Sunday 28 Workington Solfest, Carnegie Theatre
01900 602122 / www.solwayfestival.co.uk 8pm
Monday 29 Ireby The Globe Hall
Wigton, Cumbria 01697 371645 / www.cromulentmusic.co.uk £10, 7.15pm
Wednesday 31 Hempstead The Bluebell Inn
Nr. Saffron Walden 01799 599199 / www.thebluebellinn.co.uk £8, 8pm
SEPTEMBER
Thursday 1 Nottingham The Glee Club
0870 2643333 / www.cosmicamerican.com £12, 7pm
Saturday 3 Fleetwood Fylde Festival – Second Stage
Lancashire 01253 887693 / www.fylde-folk-festival.com 8pm
Sunday 4 Fleetwood Fylde Festival – Main Stage – Afternoon Show
Lancashire 01253 887693 / www.fylde-folk-festival.com 2.30pm
Sunday 4 Hebden Bridge The Trades Club
Yorkshire 01422 845265 / www.thetradesclub.com £10, 8pm
Tuesday 6 Kilkenny Cleere’s Theatre Bar
Ireland 056 7762573 / www.cleeres.com € TBA, 8pm
Wednesday 7 Clonmel Clonmel World Music, Raheen House Hotel
Tipperary, Ireland 086 3389619 / www.clonmelworldmusic.blogspot.com € TBA, 8pm
Thursday 8 Clonmel Clonmel World Music, Raheen House Hotel
Tipperary, Ireland 086 3389619 / www.clonmelworldmusic.blogspot.com € TBA, 8pm
Saturday 10 Buckingham Radcliffe Centre
01296 748268 / www.empty-rooms.com £16, 7pm
Sunday 11 Birmingham The Kitchen Garden Café
0121 443 4725 / www.edalefolkfestival.co.uk £14, 7.30pm
Monday 12 Glasgow O2 ABC2 – No Mean City Americana Festival
Details TBA £11, 7.30pm
Wednesday 14 Bristol St Bonaventure’s Parish Social Club
0145 2550575 / www.crhmusic.com £13, 7.30pm
Thursday 15 St. Ives St. Ives Festival, Western Hotel, Royal Square
01736 792128 / www.stivesseptemberfestival.co.uk £12, 8.30pm
Friday 16 Calstock Calstock Hall, The Quay
Cornwall 01726 879 500 / www.calstockhall.org £12, 7.15pm
Saturday 17 Didcot Cornerstone Arts Centre
Oxfordshire 01235 515144 / www.cornerstone-arts.org £14, 8pm
Sunday 18 London The Lexington
020 7837 5371 / www.pulluptheroots.co.uk £13.50, 7,30pm
Wednesday 21 Shoreham By Sea The Ropetackle
01273 464440 / www.ropetacklecentre.co.uk £12, 8pm
Thursday 22 Sturminster Newton The Exchange, Stour Hall
Dorset 01258 475137 / www.stur-exchange.co.uk £8, 7.30pm
Saturday 24 Whitstable The Royal Native Oyster Stores, The Horsebridge
Kent 07895 683567 / www.whitstablefolk.co.uk £12, 8pm