B I R D C I T Y
Bird City is working on a new album, largely themed around stories from Jenny’s work with seniors in retirement facilities. This much-anticipated album featuring “Girl Friday”, and “Heron” among others, has had its release postponed during the pandemic years, but we are cautiously optimistic a 2023 release is on the horizon
“Winnowing”
For over two decades, singer/songwriter Jenny Mitchell has been regarded as one of the most original voices within the Canadian indie music scene, and her latest project, Bird City, is her most personal yet.
As a beloved fixture of the music community in and around Guelph, Ontario, Mitchell has been a member of the Barmitzvah Brothers, the Burning Hell, Richard Laviolette and the Oil Spills, as well as performing under her solo alter ego Jenny Omnichord. Bird City is in many ways an evolution of the last concept, with Mitchell trading her Omnichord for the banjo and tenor guitar. Focusing on these instruments finally allowed Mitchell’s songwriting talents to fully blossom, and the exposed and poetic songs of paranoia, heartbreak and self-examination on Winnowing, the debut Bird City album, encapsulate the last twenty years of Mitchell’s life.
“Bird City has kind of been around forever,” Mitchell says. “Every time I picked up a guitar or banjo I’d think about everybody who has ever played a guitar or banjo. That’s a lot of pressure. Then there came a time when, as I’d be driving, it seemed like every time I looked out the window I caught the silhouette of a bird of prey. After that, the idea of Bird City became my comfort in knowing that there can be millions of similar things, and a single one in any given moment can still strike you as the most unique and beautiful thing in the world.”
Mitchell crafted Winnowing over a three-year period with producer/engineer Scott Merritt at his Guelph studio, with a host of notable friends contributing. These included Bry Webb (Constantines), Nathan Lawr (Minotaurs), J.J. Ipsen (Jim Guthrie, Two-Minute Miracles), and Merritt himself on a multitude of instruments. Tying it all together is Mitchell’s musical vision of creating out-of-body experiences through stark fragility, no matter how many instruments are on a track.
In this respect, Merritt proved to be the ideal collaborator, as he was able to preserve the exposed roots of each song while helping Mitchell guide the players through the arrangements. It was a way of working that Mitchell had never experienced before, and in some ways a terrifying one, given that she had been carrying many of these songs with her since the early 2000s. Among them is the song “Bird City,” which for many years was just a set of lyrics that Mitchell found impossible to set to music. Then one day in 2012, Bry Webb asked Mitchell to open a show for him in Guelph, which in turn inspired her to pick up the banjo as soon as she got off the phone. By the end of that day Mitchell had finally found the song that had been eluding her and, by extension, her new persona.
Elsewhere, the subject matter of songs such as “Hours” date back to encounters she would regularly have with transient people passing through Guelph, chasing dreams or fleeing demons. Other songs such as “Ticket To The Show” celebrate the gatherings she would regularly hold at her father’s thrift store during the ‘00s, while “Salvage Diver” (another older song) pays tribute to her grandfather, known for finding several previously undiscovered Lake Ontario shipwrecks. But it’s the songs that touch on the struggles of relationships and motherhood, such as “Growing Too” and “It Wasn’t Easy” that make the deepest impressions on Winnowing, and firmly shed Mitchell’s image as a “quirky” songwriter.
“When I was a teenager, playing with my young friends, I shied away from love songs,” she says. “I still wrote them, but they got squirreled away. I think I was conscious of being a teenage girl singing about love, or heartbreak. When I started writing as ‘Jenny Omnichord’ in 2003, I found a space for autobiography and sincerity, but it was masked by an Omnichord. As much as that instrument acts as a perfect icebreaker, it also hides things, and is too often considered a novelty.
“So, I was building this deeply emotional body of work throughout my musical life that no one had really heard, and over the last five years I’ve been pulled more and more in that direction, and feeling compelled to share it. I’m not sure if I’ve ever felt more in sync with my feelings as I do with the songs that are Bird City. And I don’t know if I’ve ever been prouder of an album.”
Indeed, Jenny Mitchell remains one of Canada’s great unsung musical treasures, and now as Bird City, the full range of her talent is on display. Although she likes to describe her work as “tiny songs,” Winnowing is a towering achievement for an artist just beginning to get the recognition she deserves.
CONTACT:
Jenny Mitchell: jenny.birdcity@gmail.com
519-760-4027
http://labelfantastic.com/artists/bird-city/
https://www.facebook.com/jennybirdcity
Songs:
Videos:
“A Bit Part” (Attic Transmissions) http://youtu.be/K2_fM41-EvM
“Salvage Diver” Live at “Silence” Guelph http://youtu.be/cqWRAHk8hOg
“A Bit Part” Live at Next Summer Festival http://youtu.be/-T06dMPYN2c
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PAST DATES
2022
June 26th – the ANAF, Guelph ON w/ Abigail Lapell
Apr 30th – The Tranzac, Toronto ON w/ Magpie
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Sept 11, 2021 – Festival of Friends, Concert in the Park series
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2020
June 20 – Carolyn Mark’s (virtual) Hootenanny
May 12th – Homefest (virtual festival based in the UK)
WINTER TOUR W/ GEOFF BERNER FEB 2020
Feb 14 – Tranzac, Toronto ON
Feb 15 – The Blacksheep Inn, Wakefield QC
Feb 16 – Casa Del Popolo, Montreal QC
Feb 20 – This Ain’t Hollywood, Hamilton ON
Feb 21 – The Garnet, Peterborough ON
Feb 22 – The ANAF, Guelph ON
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Dec 7th 2019 – House show, Guelph, w/ Marker Starling
September 27th 2019 – Cameron House, Toronto, w/ Wax Mannequin & Hush Hush Noise
July 2019 – Hillside Festival, Guelph ON
WESTERN TOUR JUNE/JULY 2019
Thursday June 27th: A House show, Vancouver BC w/ Ida Nilsen
Friday June 28th: Mile Zero Wine Bar, Penticton BC w/ Hot Ticket
Saturday June 29th: Jita’s Cafe, Golden BC w/ Ian Bain
Sunday June 30th: Songsmith Sundays at King Eddy, Calgary AB
Monday July 1st: The Aviary, Edmonton AB w/ Dylan Ella, Sam the Living, and Jewel Jennifer Dahlgren
Tuesday July 2nd: The Gazebo, Saskatoon SK w/ Juniperous
Wednesday July 3rd: tba in Winnipeg MB
Thursday July 4th: Serendipity Gardens, Rossport ON
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June 19th 2019 – Uptown Waterloo, “Campfire” w/ Great Lake Swimmers and Safe as Houses
June 9th 2019 – “In the Soil”, St. Catherines ON – inthesoil.on.ca
Feb 27th 2019 - The Burdock, Toronto ON, w/ Abigail Lapell
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WESTERN ALBUM RELEASE TOUR OCT 2018
Oct. 11th – Thunder Bay ON – The Apollo
Oct. 12th – Kenora ON – Bob’s Burger Bar
Oct. 13th – Winnipeg MB matinee – Forth
Oct 14th – Langenburg SK – Flav’r Country Ranch
Oct 15th – Swift Current SK – Mighty Neighbourly House Concerts
Oct 16th– Lethbridge AB – Theoretically Brewing Co. w/ Phouka & guests
Oct 17th – Nelson BC – Royal on Baker
Oct 18th – Penticton BC – Cannery Brewing w/ Maiya Robbie
Oct 19th – Victoria BC – Vinyl Envy w/ Jessicka, & Mani Khaira
Oct 20th – Vancouver BC House Concert
Oct 21st – Vancouver BC – The Wise Hall
Oct 22nd – Abbotsford BC – The Car Port w/ David Ivan Neil
Oct 23rd – Summerland BC house concert w/ Tavis Weir
Oct 24th – Golden BC – Whitetooth Brewing
Oct 25th – Calgary AB – The King Eddy w/ IG BO LYN (Clinton St. John’s new project) and Dumb Angel
Oct 26th – Edmonton AB – Kasbar – w/Amy Van Keeken, Lucas Chaisson & Liam Cody
Oct 27th – Saskatoon SK – House Concert w/Juniperous
Oct 28th – Winnipeg MB – Henderson House Concert
Oct 29th – Rossport ON – Serendipity Garden
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EASTERN ALBUM RELEASE TOUR MAY-JUNE 2018
May 25th – House Show, Montreal QC w/ Dan Misha Goldman
May 27th - Chumleys Bar & Grill, Petitcodiac NB (early show, 3pm)
May 27th - An Octopus’ Garden Cafe, Alma NB (7pm)
May 28th – House Show – Sackville NB w/ Jon Mckiel Person
May 29th - The Townhouse Brewpub & Eatery - Antigonish NS
May 31st – Main & Station, Parrsboro NS
June 1st - RadStorm, Halifax NS w/ Twin, Holy Crow, & Belia
June 2nd – House Show, Greenwich NS w/Anne Hedonia (Tzomela Parepa-Rose), Valmy & Twin
June 3rd - Oakdene Community Centre (Rivernest Studio), Bear River NS w/ Anne Hedonia
June 4th – The Attic, Moncton NB w/ Anne Hedonia
June 5th - Taco Pica Restaurant, Saint John NB w/ Sadie Anne & Tooth & the Fang
June 7th Grimross Brewing Co., Fredericton NB w/ Perfect Perfect
June 11th - Fou-Bar - Quebec City, QC
MARCH 2018 TOUR WITH WAX MANNEQUIN
Fri. Mar. 9th, “The Garnet”, Peterborough ON w/ Wax Mannequin & Martti Mäkkelä
Sat. Mar. 10th,”Pressed” Ottawa ON, w/ Wax Mannequin, Andrew Vincent, & Martti Mäkkelä
Sun. Mar. 11th, “Musiikki Café”, Kingston ON, w/Wax Mannequin & Martti Mäkkelä
Thurs. March 15th, “The Piston”, Toronto ON, w/Wax Mannequin & Martti Mäkkelä
Fri. Mar. 23rd, “The Bicycle Cafe”, Flesherton ON, w/ Rich Burnett
Feb. 3rd, 2018: “The Tranzac” w/ Rich Burnett
January 13th, 2018: “Green Bank Folk Music Society” w/ Scott Merritt
ONTARIO WINNOWING TOUR DATES Oct-Dec 2017:
October 28th: Heritage Hall (Guelph) w/ Scott Merritt
November 5th: The Burdock (Toronto) w/ Sandro Perri
November 18th: House Show (Meaford) w/Culture Reject (solo)
November 24th: Maxwells (Waterloo) w/ Rheostatics
November 25th: The Casbah (Hamilton) w/ Eiyn Sof & Mayor Mcca
December 9th: La Catalina, Peterborough w/ Joyful Joyful and Old Haunt
December 10th: Pressed, Ottawa w/ Krista Muir
December 22ND: “Winter Spectacular”, London ON w/ Luka, Construction & Destruction & more
December 23rd: Phog Lounge, Windsor ON w/ Henry Adam Svec
SAPPY BOUND: Golden Bus Tour w/ Joyful Joyful & Shopkeeper (all shows ON the Golden Bus except where otherwise stated) July- August 2017
Thurs. July 27th: Peterborough ON, outside Sadlier House, “Sad Fest”
Fri. July 28th: Ottawa ON, outside/co-presented by Gallery 101 Sat.
July 29th (Matinee) Vankleek Hill ON: “Vankleek Hill Porchfest”
Sat.July 29th (evening) Quebec City, outside La Source de la Martinière
Aug. 1st: Rothesay NB, outside Michael’s house full of trees
Wed. Aug. 2nd: Petitcodiac
Fri-Sunday August 4th-6th: Sackville NB: SAPPY FEST!!! (Sets at various venues as part of Sappy Fest)
Tues. Aug. 8th: Alma NB, outside Octopus’ Garden (Shopkeeper & Bird City solo)
May/June 2017: Bry Webb w/ Bird City:
May 13 – Manitowaning (Manitoulin Island) – Debajehmujig Creation Centre
May 14 – Peterborough – Artspace
May 18 – Owen Sound – Heartwood Concert Hall - w/ Long Branch
May 19 – Sudbury – Fromagerie Elgin
May 25 Kingston – Next Church
June 18 – Grimsby – The Pumphouse
Past Tour dates fall/winter 2014/15
Tour 2014/15 * = shows w/ Shopkeeper
Tour 2014/15
* = shows w/ Shopkeeper
*Nov. 8th: The Tranzac, Toronto , w/ Jose Contreras
*Nov. 9th: Wasted Space, Oshawa (Next Winter
Festival)
Nov. 10th: Grumpy’s, Montreal QC
*Nov. 11th: House show, Rothesay NB
*Nov. 12th: Jazz Guys, Sackville, NB w/ Julie Doiron
*Nov. 13th: Gus’ Pub, Halifax NS, w/ Cactus Flower & Nap Eyes
*Nov. 14th: House Show, St. John’s, NL
*Nov. 15th: Fixed, St. John’s, NL
Nov. 16th: The Ship, St. John’s, NL
*Nov. 18th: The Levee, St. John’s NL
*Nov. 20th: The Capitol, Fredericton, NB w/ CFL Sessions (Henry Svec)
*Nov. 21st: Le Cagibi, Montreal, QC
*Nov. 22nd: Raw Sugar, Ottawa ON,
w/ Richard Laviolette
*Nov. 23rd 3pm: The Garnet, Peterborough, ON w/ Nick Ferrio
*Nov. 23rd 9pm: The Cornerstone,Guelph ON
Dec. 21st, Silence, Guelph w/ Jessy Bell Smith
*Jan. 3rd &4th: Fromagerie Elgin, Sudbury ON
*Jan. 23rd: The Station Coffee House
& Gallery, Brantford ON