The Wailin? Jennys have a great name and a great sound, as demonstrated in concert last night at the Fawcett Center. The Canadian folk trio ?
Annabelle Chvostek, Nicky Mehta and Ruth Moody ? dazzled the auditorium with their clear, three-part harmony and multi-instrumental prowess. The concert opened the 2006-07 CityMusic World Music Series, which draws interesting and eclectic musical acts from around the globe.
From left to right stood Moody, Mehta and Chvostek, swapping lead vocals and using a small arsenal of portable acoustic instruments on quirky self-penned songs from their albums, along with some choice covers. The a cappella numbers, which included Leadbelly?s Bring Me a Little Water, Sylvie and the traditional Long Time Traveller, were arresting in their simplicity and their glorious blend of voices: Moody?
s soprano, Mehta?s mezzo and Chvostek?s alto.
Original Wailin? Jennys songs feature some nice lyrics: "There?s only one way to mend a broken heart" from Beautiful Dawn, and "Live and die and gone" from The Devil?
s Paintbrush Road. Then there was "Oh swallow / What did you swallow?" from Swallow, which Chvostek said was "about getting dumped.
" Other songs were inspired by Canada. Chvostek?s Firecracker, for example, is about the Parade of Lost Souls, which takes place around Halloween in Vancouver.
Each of the Jennys plays guitar but also had her own specialty. Chvostek, playing the mandolin and fiddle, appeared to be the most proficient player of the trio. Mehta played harmonica and percussion.
Moody played the bodhran (a hand drum), accordion and banjo, and jokingly said she?d take up bagpipes next. Mehta said the group was formed in 2001.
"It started as a little bit of a lark. We decided to see how far it would take us. We?
ve been around the world in five years. It shows that sometimes a onenight stand can turn into something quite lovely." Moody and Mehta, both from Winnipeg, are original members.
Chvostek, who now lives in Montreal, joined the group in 2004, replacing Cara Luft. The trio has become a favorite on the radio show A Prairie Home Companion. One of the things to like about the group is the amusing confusion of its name.
Actual conversation: "Who are you seeing?" "Wailin? Jennys.
" "Isn?t he dead? " Another thing that?
s likable about them is their easy humor. Mehta told the audience that Jennys T-shirts were for sale. "We would wear them," she said, "but we fear we?
d look like egomaniacs.
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