After spending the last six months feverishly playing throughout the Comox Valley, Fiftieth Parallel returns to Serious Coffee in Campbell River for their first full concert at the venue in June.
Featuring Philip Marchand on guitar and Jonathan Hinds on guitar and djembe, they bring their own unique sound to the already vibrant Vancouver Island music scene. The influences of acoustic guitar geniuses such as Andy McKee and John Butler shine through clearly, but there is also a blend of Pink Floyd and the more obscure Kyuss thrown in for good measure.
Each of the many performances Fiftieth Parallel has played so far has been fantastically received by each audience; whether it be drawing in passers-by at the village square in Cumberland, or opening for Delhi 2 Dublin in Courtenay who are in the midst of their North American tour.
Each has mesmerized the audience no matter what size and left them wanting more.
From the airy simplicity of the Pink Floyd-esque Red & Blue all the way to the technical guitar drumming of Zed, the variety of Fiftieth Parallel’s original material will impress you, even if their music somehow fails to amaze.
“I was blown away by their talent at one of our Open Mic nights,” says Catherine Bell, The Zocalo Café in Courtenay, “They are one of the up-and-coming local talents to watch.”
Fiftieth Parallel plays at Serious Coffee at Willow Point in Campbell River on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale at the venue: $10 in advance and $15 at the door.
Their newly-released, self-titled EP will also be on sale, which they hope to follow with their debut album later in the year.