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Time: 8 p.m.

Cover: $27.50

http://www.jeremyfishermusic.com

Listening to Mint Juleps, the fifth album by two-time Juno Award nominee Jeremy Fisher, is like ambling through the long and relaxed dog days of summer. The acoustic-driven collection of 12 songs reunites Fisher with his folk-drenched musical roots and is a veritable throwback to the golden era of the singer-songwriter.
That’s not to say that Jeremy Fisher lives in the past. On the contrary, the Ottawa-based musician’s craft is deeply imbued with a modern insight that has made him a strong and enduring musical storyteller. He thus inhabits a one-of-a-kind space in this current musical landscape as a rather timeless troubadour.
A blend of both brand new tracks and hand-picked covers, Mint Juleps is a fine new feather in Fisher’s cap that he says best represents him as an independent musician, and as a live performer.
“The concept of the record was to make something that reflects what I do night after night on stage,” Fisher explains. “I wanted to make an album that had the spirit of my live show, which I think hinges on letting my guard down enough to allow unrestrained moments of spontaneity.”
An ode to the glory of the record as a whole, the sophistication of Mint Juleps is in its inherent simplicity. Recorded live off the studio floor, this decidedly unembellished method of capturing the songs was a challenge for Fisher, but it was also a liberating experience.
“There is something authentic to it - it’s just me and a couple of guys playing these songs, and we’re not perfect. But it’s the most honest way I could think to make a record,” says Fisher. “It was really hard sometimes not to defer to the modern way of recording music. But I really gave in to the process, letting the album become a living and breathing thing.”
The album opens with the song “Gone”, a cover song of a John Hiatt classic that pays a twang-infused homage its original.
“I had five songs written that I wanted to record, and then I decided that I would round out the rest of the tracks with covers that I have played live over the years,” says Fisher of the album.