The Wallowa Valley Music Alliance presents another edition of Tunesmith Night, a monthly showcase of original music. The Saturday, February 8 show features songwriters Jeremy Ferrara, Bart Budwig and Jon Lee. Venue is Sugar Time Bakery, located in the Burnaugh Building on North River Street and will provide the perfect atmosphere for our listening audience.
What good is a song if it doesn’t make you feel something? Jeremy Ferrara knows this, and refuses to waste a minute of your time. His staggeringly sincere songs are made to wash 10-foot waves of emotion over listeners. His unique songwriting style features unabashed poetic professions of his most vulnerable moments and intimate inner thoughts. Ferrara’s forthcoming debut full-length album finds him inviting us to follow along as he wanders through a broad spectrum of feelings. His endearingly forthright lyrics are driven by modern indie hooks paired with timeless, tender, folky sounds. Open tunings and fingerpicking are sprinkled throughout Ferrara’s works, giving them a classic and comforting sort of twang. At the heart of Ferrara’s work, you will find… well, Ferrara’s own heart. His open-hearted songwriting lays all to bare and takes no shame in doing so.
Bart Budwig is a son of Idaho, a cosmic country crooner, a rousing trumpet player, and cryin’-style soul singer. His music is made up of seemingly incongruous parts; thrum & strum country rhythms, jazz guitar melodies, R&B vocals. When Bart sings he draws out words into meditative mantras, whole note neologisms that keep you hanging on until his raspy voice trails off in a ragged edge. His forthcoming album, Another Burn On The AstroTurf (January 24, 2020, Fluff and Gravy Records) was recorded over five days by a seven-piece band inside the OK Theater. It’s a melancholy rhapsody that recalls the uncorked rock n’ roll spirituality of king mystic Van Morrison, the gloomy nostalgia of dark prince Nick Drake and the songcraft sans self-seriousness of 70s Muscle Shoals. Bart’s mastery of dramatic irony turns his work with complex emotional states of being into comforting, uplifting, relatable music.
Jon Lee is a fourth generation Pacific Northwest native son. He loves to write songs that connect people to places and places to people.
Tunesmith Night is presented in a round-robin format, with each musician playing a song, then the next taking a turn, creating an interesting and varied performance. Admission is $10 at the door or by season pass. Doors open at 6pm (SEATING IS LIMITED), music at 7pm, all ages welcome. Sugar Time will have the kitchen open for soups and sandwiches, and adult beverages, in addition to their usual yummy sweet treats.