The Vermilion Allied Arts Council kicked off their 2021-2022 season with a performance by The Blake Reid Band at the Alumni Theatre Saturday evening. Hailing from Dogpound in Southern Alberta, Blake Reid, a fifth-generation farmer, uses his music to tell the stories of rural life. Writing music while farming and growing up in rural Alberta, Reid and his songwriting partner, Aaron Young have mastered the art of storytelling through melody and thoughtful, genuine lyrics.
“It is coffee time through music, stories that are coloured with acoustic instruments played by fantastic musicians,” says Reid.
The band played several of Reid’s original pieces entertaining the socially distanced crowd with some down-to-earth, clean, clear country rhythms. Drawing music from the band’s documentary ‘No Roads In’, their extensive repertoire of songs, as well as new music from their next album, the band painted a realistic, sometimes humorous portrait of real-life experiences. From the title track of the movie, to the entertaining ‘Friggin’ Dog’, and a tribute to the strong relationship with his grandfather, as well as a wonderful nod to Merle Haggard’s ‘The Way I am’ Reid and his friends had the crowd clapping, laughing, reflecting and tapping their toes all evening.
The band’s documentary ‘No Roads In’ is available through their website www.blakereidband.com, as well as access to several videos and albums.