OML’s Juno Nominated Tender is the Night album was just nominated for three East Coast Music Awards! Tender is the Night snagged nods for Album of the Year, Folk Recording of the Year and Solo Artist. See you at the ECMAs in Charlottetown PEI. OML and Joel will be performing live on the Gala awards show.

And joy continues to unfold for OML’s “I Never Sang Before I met You” EP with positive reviews and radio adds from many quarters.

Check this grocery bag out for your next trip to the farmer’s market or bookstore (or liquor store)

The Tour continues for the noble trio (Joel E Hunt on strings and Brian Kobayakawa on upright, and OML), check the shows page for the upcoming western leg with the amazing Jordie Lane!  

Stream the EP HERE on CBC Music

“I never sang before I met you” is a new short collection of songs recorded and produced by Joel Plaskett at his New Scotland Yard in Dartmouth NS. With an increasingly busy tour schedule and a crazy busy home life (three kids under the age of three) I wanted to revamp my approach to making songs and records. In the past I’ve recorded in sprints of four songs a day to make a record in four days. Pretty special. Pretty stressful. Pretty damn quick. I’m now trying to form a habit of getting into the studio more often than just for album making marathons to see what kind of magic can be captured with more time spent there. This collaboration with Joel Plaskett has yielded a gem that seems worth releasing as an EP on the eve of a cross country tour. Then I can play the new songs live.

Working on a tune a day (luxury!) with Joel and the broadened pallet, sensibility and attention to detail he brings as a producer was as thrilling as it was inspiring.  When I wrote Baby, We’d be Rich I knew it needed a JJ Cale rock and roll approach outside of my usual banjo setting. I have admired his wondrous drum machine for several years since it started popping up on his records. I him in mind to produce the track soon after it was written. I think the ease that it comes across with is worth the price of admission alone and is a testament to his production values.

Sorry if I let you down (a line from the which the title is drawn) is a lovely marriage of a typical OML kinda song and Joel’s killer instincts. It flourishes  mournful and solo for a minute until the Pettyesque 12 strings come in and lift the weighty burden. It is an uplifting song about professional angst. Hopefully it’s the only one I ever need write.

Time alone is the biggest sound from the project and is a really exciting treatment of a groovy kind of love song. Drive me to the beach you summer thing.

I’m really grateful Joel Plaskett took the project on in the limited “free time” we had and I’m thrilled with the results. To quote Al Tuck, one of our mutual friends and heroes, “Here’s hoping the sucker goes gold” Please Enjoy

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My suitcases are tucked away for the year. Just home from a wonderful tour of Australia with the awesome Jordie Lane. We smashed it! Brisbane to Hobart, Freeo to Mullum. Big times in the Antipodes for this wayward singing daddy.

Now Jordie is coming to Canada to tour with me across the country in February and March of next year. Tonnes of dates. I’ll be touring with a fuller sound that I’m quite excited about, so come see us already!

I’ll make a record sometime next year and likely also an EP for the Canadian tour. I”ll tour the hell out of them. I’ll come and meet you somewhere on the road.

Had a great time contributing to Nick Hornby’s Ministry of Stories. Check out the album they released that includes the song I co wrote virtually with one of the children involved

Played some great NPR shows in the fall and had a blast opening a few dates for my heroes Tim O’Brien and Darrell Scott. Here’s me on ONE OF MY FAVOURITE SHOWS Really had a fun year playing in the US. We’ll continue that in 2014. Send us suggestions and help and we’ll get to your town!

Won a Music Nova Scotia Award for folk recording of the year. Sweet! Tender is the Night was starting to rack up a lot of zeros after being my best nominated record ever Those two Junos are lonely no more.

Had a great year playing, and now I’m a full-time Daddy until February. Fuck yeah! Safe and wild holidays to you all.

OML

I filmed a couple sessions at the Chicago Music Exchange while I was down there… take a look.

“Kingdom Come”

“Tortoise and the Hare”

I also sat down with Dick Gordon at The Story to talk about all things Canadian – You can give it a listen HERE.

OML

Five Nova Scotia Music Award nominations for Tender is the Night and Old Man Luedecke! The big news here has hearts filled with grateful and bellies filled grape full.

I’ve had a great summer running to festivals and after kids. Now it’s on to more US dates this fall. I’m headed mostly new places I’ve never been or played. Come out or send your relations. I have a splash through rural Saskatchewan in early October and then I’ll round out the year in Australia touring around there with the wicked Jordie Lane.

Check out the “Tour” section for all upcoming tour dates – Check in for news and updates.

American Songwriter featured this nice video that sideman Hunt put together with footage from the road over the last year or so. Fitting that it’s for “Tender is the Night”

On June 6th, my wife Teresa and I had a baby girl. We named her Annabelle and she’s the apple of my eye!

In other good news, ‘Tender is the Night’ has been selected for the Polaris Prize long list! Thank you to everyone that voted for the album, I could not be happier!

I’m looking forward to playing quite a bit this summer, some festivals across Canada, US, and the UK.

I hope you enjoy the new look of the website, a little summer facelift. Check back on the ‘Tour’ section for info & updates on upcoming shows. Here’s where you can find me over the summer…more to come!

15-06-13 – Montreal, QC – Montreal Folk on the Canal Festival

20-06-13 – Nashville, TN – Music City Roots

23-06-13 – Louisville, KY – Clifton Center

27-06-13 – Berwick, NS – Union Street Cafe

28-06-13 – Mount Stewart, PE – Trailside Cafe

29-06-13 – Gagetown, NB – Feels Good Folly Fest

01-07-13 – London, UK – Canada Day Int’l

05-07-13 – Suffolk, UK – Maverick Festival

11-07-13 – Ottawa, ON – Ottawa Bluesfest

19-07-13 – Ness Creek, SK – Ness Creek Music Festival

21-07-13 – River Valley, ON – River and Sky Festival

09-08-13 – Indian River, PE – Indian River Festival

10-08-13 – Lunenburg, NS – Lunenburg Folk Harbor Festival

15-08-13 – Milwaukee, WI – Milwaukee Irish Fest

24-08-13 – Grand Manan Island, NB – Summers End Folk Festival

30-08-13 – Birnamwood, IL – Jackpine Jamboree

20-09-13 – Bristol, TN – Bristol Rhythm & Roots Festival

28-09-13 – Berryville, VA – Watermelon Park Fest

Be well,

OML