Sarah Williams
Beaver Staff
Ellena’s Cafe is once again inviting people to come in from the cold, dust off their snow boots and partake of an intimate concert on Feb. 20. The show will feature Kerri Ough of the Good Lovelies and fellow musician Christine Bougie.
For Ough and Bougie, Napanee kickstarts a tour they’d been dreaming of for some time, one in which they visit a handful of small, Ontario towns where they’re able to connect with the audience.
“I grew up in small town Port Hope and I’ve been touring with my band for 13 years. No town is too small and no city is too big,” Ough exclaimed. “We’d been dreaming of putting this tour together in Ontario and hitting up all of our favourite cafes, little towns and house concerts. Napanee is one of those places-I have a lot of ties in that area.”
Ough described an intimacy to cafe shows that, apart from entertaining, allows for a level of catharsis and healing.
“There’s an intimacy to shows that are in cafes. You get to really know people and make them comfortable in a small space,” she said.
In speaking with Ough, she described a particularly painful period in her life after her mother died, after which she subsequently went on the road, touring with her band The Good Lovelies. Despite concern from bandmates, the musician found playing music to be more healing than sitting at home.
During her stop at Ellena’s, audience members can expect Ough and Bougie to combine their sounds. Bougie, whose music Ough describes as “stunning”, will play lap steel and electric guitar, whereas Ough will sing while playing guitar and ukulele.
When asked what continues to drive her to perform, Ough described an evolution that has guided her performing career.
“In the early days, when getting on stages, I liked how that felt-being able to look at the audience and trying to figure out how to communicate with them, make them laugh, or get some sort of reaction from them,” she said.
Though connecting with the audience is still a draw for Ough, she now writes songs first and foremost for herself.
Tickets for the show, which are $20, can be found at www.starstop.ca. For more information about Kerri Ough, visit www.kerriough.com.