The ever-popular band Shred Kelly is back with another album release which is set to hit shelves in February of 2018. The Fernie-rooted alternative folk rock group is also returning home to play at The Northern Bar and Stage this Friday, December 15.
Recently they have been all over – from Australia, to Germany touring with The Dead South.
Since getting back a few weeks ago they have been touring the mountain towns; Jasper, Banff, Canmore, Golden, Revelstoke, then Fernie and Castle Mountain. After this mountain town tour they will be able to sit back and relax before taking off on a Canada-wide album release tour in February.
This will mark the groups’ fourth album release since their first in 2010.
“It’s been great,” said lead singer Sage McBride.
Shred Kelly first entered the studios to record this album in the final months of 2016, and finished after a few separate recording sessions, just under a year later. They don’t normally break up their recording sessions, but touring in between gave the group time to really listen to some of the songs they recorded and think of ideas to implement upon their return.
“It was nice to elongate the process a little bit to take a bit more time with the material and decide what we did and didn’t like,” McBride said.
Shred Kelly started off recording 20 songs and narrowed it down to 11 which they chose to include in the album, Archipelago.
Asked if we would ever hear the other nine, McBride said some may resurface on the next album, which the band will start to record over the next two months.
Archipelago is the name of the album and also the title track. While the band was touring in Germany in September of 2016, they popped over to Sweden to relax and visit some friends.
They arrived at their friend’s place – a house on the ocean in an area known as the Archipelagos. It was during activities such as being out in a boat, and watching the Northern Lights, that it made them think of home.
An archipelago is a term used to describe a collection of islands in close proximity.
“We chose Archipelago as a title because it was the best representation of the collaborative process of songwriting,” said McBride. “Each band member has a song they wrote on the album.
It was very collaborative so it was a representation of that.”
As the songs were created for this album, each band member would contribute in a different way. To McBride, this album showcases how they have grown over the years, and she believes it is their best album yet.
“We’re all really excited about it,” said McBride. “It will be exciting to get it out into the world.”
For the folks back home, they will have to wait to hear Archipelago in a live performance when Shred Kelly returns for Fernie Stokefest on March 24.
Shred Kelly will be performing a family-friendly show at Stokefest in the afternoon and a 19+ show later in the evening.
The six-musician lineup for Stokefest will be announced at the Shred Kelly performance this Friday, where tickets will be on sale. For a full list of upcoming shows visit Shredkelly.com.
