On the Road- Kristin Sweetland

My pretties, I have been having one rip-roarin' heckuva time up in brrrr-land Sudbury. Was not expecting the cold to encroacheth this quick upon me, but I've pulled out the hats, gloves and little pink leg warmers (and pink poofy everythings) to help me cope. Had extreme amounts of fun this past weekend at the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals conference. Hooray for Erin Benjamin and Tara Levesque for all their hard grueling work! Most memorable moments include: my truly yummy showcase (thanks to the incredible work of the Nutshell Music folks, Ken Whitelely and all the fabulous attendees...) Post-conference decompression swimming and singing with Michael Wrycraft, Liam Titcomb and Darlene, the uncomparable bowling extravaganza (damn my socks looked fine with those shoes!) with Geoff Berner, Kris Demeanor, Ken Brown, his lovely Julia and the whole crew... and of course the raging Sunday night bender in my hotel room singing gospel to all wee hours (till the hotel had to sweetly warn us that there were now some "business people" on the floor...ooopsy.) Almost never had so much fun in my life... still recovering. Will be hanging out in Sudbury for another few days so Darlene can show me some local sights (other than the inside of a hotel) then off into the wild yonders for some time off (or maybe I'll just go home, lie around and get a cold or something- now that I actually can.) Yaaayyyy resting!

Oh Glorious Day!! My aunt and uncle have graciously let me come stay at their beautiful cottage while they gallivant about Italy. Lucky me. Soon as I got up here my whole body just went Ahhhhhh and I'm starting to remember about important things like breathing and resting and eating.... Mmmmmmmm. It feels SO good to be back in the homeland after six weeks on the road. The whole tour itself was an incredible journey of epic proportions with all the critical and necessary mythological elements:

1) Hero leaves home on journey to save the world from evil (whilst looking super fine) and will hopefully stay alive long enough to throw the bad nasty precious ring into the fire pits of Mordor.

2.) Hero faces many challenges along the way and is waylaid by great tempests and the irreconcilable wraths of Nature. Next, Hero is stricken by thunderbolts blazing down from the hands of the Divine. Then, Hero encounters no-good evil-doers and small creatures in need of large amounts of saving.

3.) Now, Hero is forced to face the very darkest depths of him/herself and in the struggle is nearly lost forever.

4.) Hero has many subsequent enlightenments, nearly dies only once or twice then surely manages to overcome all obstacles with irrepressible strength and will.

5.) Hero makes it to the final feared and coveted destination, has one last catastrophic moment of pivotal melodrama then manages to save the world from the undesirable encroaching apocalyse. Good one!

6.) Hero returns home in wicked need of a shower, has a delicious meal of roasted organic root veggies, gets many kisses from the dog, and will never EVER again be the same.

September 22nd, 2003
Gid Brown Hollow, VA

Greetings again, from the wet wilds of Virginia. I'm back in the hollow after a truly insane trip down to Nashville and all points in between!! Had a serious blast at the Nashville New Music Conference meeting crazy talented (and rather stylish) folks from all over. Then I headed up to the Bristol area for the Birthplace of Country Music and Carter Family museums. Got to take Maybelle the Van to see where Maybelle Carter (her namsake) was born and it all began... Got back just in time for Hurricane Isabel who ripped through Thursday night leaving us with no power or water for five days now (and no end in sight...) Guess thay can't figure out where the power lines got knocked down so they've been combing the mountains with helicopters all weekend. So I'm livin' it up in ye olden way in the little log cabin in the hills reading books by candlelight and haulin' buckets of water in from the swampy pond to flush the potty. Since the hurricane I've had three gigs in the area (all which thankfully had power for the PA) and I can drive into town to get hot coffee, so I've really got nothin' at all to complain about. Except maybe the little kitten Evilina who keeps catching mice and snakes and giant elephant beetles (and I mean GIANT) that I have to take away from her and then deal with. Ew! (Good thing I'm a brave one.) Will be here for another week of writing retreat and rehearsing and then heading back to Ontario for the fall. (gotta be somewhere with power and cable in time for the season premiere of Angel... Very Important.)

love'n kisses, K

Check out photos from the Salem Sessions here!

September 5th, 2003
Sperryville, VA

Look at me!! Back in the Shenandoah holler...Glorious rural Virginia abounds all around me and I am having my first official visit to Jenny's new 150 year old cabin ( that used to belong to a bootlegger.... no lyin') And let me tell ya I have had QUITE the trip so far... Holeee. I'm actually thinking this might qualify as possibly the FUNNEST tour I've ever had 'cept maybe yesterday when I drove down the gloomy dirty nasty icky I-95 from NYC to DC and hit ALL the disgustoid rush hour traffic jams along the way. Yikes. At least I had the new Harry Potter book on tape to keep me entertained... ( But pauvre Harry's going through some rough spots right now and I was forced to commiserate along with him. Boohoo. )

My adventure began two weeks ago when I hit the road for the Eaglewood Folk Fest up in Pefferlaw, Ont. Had an amazing weekend there with fabulous performers and friends, then swiftly hauled it to Peterborough for their folk fest mainstage on Sunday night. Ptbo was a divine experience as I used to live there and all my friends came out to visit!! Yeehaw! After that it was off to lover-ly Vermont for some vistation and resting and mass comsumption of Thai food and sushi. Mmmmmmm. Next I had my maiden voyage to Boston and surrounding zones for the Labour Day weekend Campfire Festival at Club Passim. Now THAT was fun. Got to meet fabuloso performers from all over and wander about the green pastures of Harvard fantasizing about going there one day (for my highly esteemed PhD in sword-slinging butt-kicking geetar-picking singer-songwriter-ing.) Or possibly some Rocket Science..?. And THEN came my favourite part (drum roll.....) when I got to have my "Vacation" in Salem where I spent too much money on witch-shaped things (but really, what's TOO much?) and visited various witchy museums and monuments. Ate some damn fine stuffed scallops at Victoria Station, then got sucked in to the happenings at Salem's Vintage Photography... There I got tons of wicked novelty photos taken that will for sure go down the archives as a wholly worthy cause. Check out some of the Salem Sessions photos!!

So now I'm here in the holler fore a few days resting up and getting work done, then off to Nashille for showcasing at the Nashville New Music Conference (and a good thing cause I REALLY need a new pair of guitar shaped nail-clippers!)

yours ever so truly,

xo, K

In the back of Maybelle the Van. Photo by Morris Lamont of the London Free Press.
For recent press photos and reviews click here!!!

July 23rd, 2003
London, Ontario

My, it's been SO long since I wrote... shame on me! I guess that means I've been supremely and excellently busy in the best possible way. So far the summer has been truly good to me, festivals, lounging, forest adventures, sleeping in...MMmmmmm. I've also been working hard on booking for the fall, winter and spring and am planning visits to New England, Virginia, the Carolinas, Tennessee, the Southwest US, California, BC, the far reaches of Ont-errible and justa 'bout everything in between. YAyyyy roadtrip!! Most fondest memories of the past few weeks include an incredible weekend at Mariposa with the delicious likes of James Keelaghan, Bob Snider, Michael Wrycraft, Anee Lindsay, Jason Fowler, Jim Moray and the Wailin' Jennies wailin' out the 80s tunes around the piano till all wee hours... Oh my. This past weekend at Home County was true heaven!! The hometown festival proved very fruitful and fun as all heck. Spent much time dancin' with the one and only Darlene (and her mighty hula hoop) to the late night croonin' of Jackie Washington ( who played on and on and on and on.... What a guy.) Next adventures will take me to Vermont to perform at my good friend Chris Jones' venue the Eclipse Theater with two of my very favourite players (and people...) Zubot and Dawson. Yay roly poly hills and Moo Moos and red barns... Rural yum, here I come.

Grandpa Paul L. Sweetland 1914-2003

May 28th, 2003
London, Ontario

MY GOODNESS has it ever been QUITE the month (gasp), but I am back in Ontario and back in action. My parents have fly flyed away to Europe and I have been happily poodle sitting in their absence. Me and little Raven the dog have been doing much hiking in the glorious forest and watching much high quality television (boo hoo Buffy bye bye). I have also been loving my NEW CELLO and have been madly trying to teach myself how to play it. I can already play the them from Angel- which is just like a total dream come true... Have also been spending a lot of time in the backyard being total Garden Girl of the dirty nails and rippling biceps (I wish). Today planted black hawthorne, wild grape, creeping jenny, raspberries, strawberries, sage, orange mint, cilantro, hollyhock, roses, echinacea, poppy, foxglove, and a whole rainbow coloured world of beets, butternut squash, yello zuchinni, greens and purple japanese eggplant... MMmmmnnnn. Getting ready for summer festival season... the wild and crazy adventures encroacheth!

In Sperryville, VA with Miss Jenny (in front of the REAL authentic Dukes of Hazzard car...no lie) havin' some catfish, coleslaw and bluegrass tunes down at Cooter's Garage.

May 1st, 2003
Sperryville, Virginia

Lovelies, Happy sweet and delicious May Day- my most favourite day of the year. All is so glorious and green in gorgeous Virginia and I am so incredibly happy to be here. Heading out the the Smokehouse Meadery- fine makers of honey wine for a May Day celebration gig and other fine and sordid goodness. The sun shineth and the bees buzzeth and all things good seem to flow. Yippeeeeee!

Little Raven and her Alligator on my bed. To peek further into the Lady Sweetland's Chambers click here

April 1st, 2003
London, Ontario

Greetings sweet lovelies,
Happy April Fools!! Ahhh the spring it cometh finally.... Even tho it's a wee bit of a brrr one today, Raven the dog and I are still supremely psyched at the excellent meltingness of snow (which means WAY more forest walking fun and other said goodness.) Have just returned home from a lovely trip up to Ottawa for gigs and friends and art gallerying and museum visitation. There's a "Mysteries of the Bog People" exhibit on at the Museum of Civilization and I could not resist the lure of the illustrious Bog Man. Was a bit of an archaeology girl in University and have written many a serious bog body epic essay in my time ('tis true!) Had a total intellectual bronze age blast. Also, I've been listening to the "Life of Emily Carr" book on tape by Paula Blanchard while driving and am SO incredibly passionately in love with Emily Carr and her story. It's even more exciting for me cause it's set in Victoria, BC in way yonder day (late 1800s early 1900s) and I have been learning much craziness about the history of my old neighborhoods and haunts. In other news I have been keeping busy with much music work, but also finding time for the ever important fun and I just can't wait for warm weather and tank tops and rolling in grass... Mmmnnnn grass rolling.... Altho, I am quite enjoying the slowness of spring and am loving every second of the end of my first full (and totally frickin' brr) winter I've spent in Ontario in over 8 years! And I even got to have a true Canadian maple moment the other day when my darling friend Mary Beth took me out to her family's sugarbush-in-the-woods. It was my first adventure of the maple syrup shack variety and I was truly overcome by the glorious goodness of it all. Imagine: big blazing woodstove in little shack in the wood cranking out the heat with simmering vats of maple sap steaming up the air with sweet sugary yum. The ultimate steam bath of heavenly goodness! I am sure there is nothing so delicious in this world as woodsmoke and maple steam. Mmmmnnnnn delish!
So, in terms of my upcoming travels, I'll be heading to Toronto this weekend the play with James Keelaghan at Hugh's Room, then it's off to Michigan for "Ladyfest"and then down to the the Blue Ridge mountains of sweet Virginia for some May Day bonfire extravaganza... Hope to see y'all out in the yonders.
xo, k

Serena Ryder, Darlene and Lady K at the OCFF Conference 2002 MMMmmmmmmmmmmm yellow world.

February 20th, 2003
Sperryville, Virginia

Greetings from the sweet and snowy Shenandoahs where I've been held up in delicious hibernation for the past week. It's just a short drive from Washington D.C. up into the hills but you would hardly know it as it is SO beautiful and ancient here its like another land altogether. Had a seriously out of control festival of snow this week and we got snowed in UP TO OUR EYEBALLS. Took us days to shovel ourselves out (well Jenny did most of the shovelling, while I baked us biscuts and honey apple bread on the woodstove) And Jenny made a wicked Snow Witch with the carrot nose and the big pointy hat and how sad, today she melted and her head fell off. We got to play Little House on the Frozen Prairie and I got to be Ma of the cooking and cleaning while Jenny was Pa of the shoveling out of the carriages. We were totally stuck in the beautiful nowheres with no way out for days... Ahhhhhhhhh... Finally had a chance to catch up on some much needed rest after a truly insane couple of months. Worked so hard all January to the point of serious exhaustion from acute stress monkey syndrome. Managed to get myself totally ill just in time to hop in the car and drive myself to Nashville for the Folk Alliance conference. Regardless of the sniffles, I made it through and had a truly amazing time... mostly thanks to my dearest friends the Little Red Hen darlings without whom I would surely perish. Now I'm putting myself back together at Chez-Jenny and her converted hunting lodge/sleazeball motel/country home of goodness by the river in Sperryville, Virginia. I am discovering that being truly happy in this life for me must include much more sleeping, breathing, baking, wood stacking and fire tending... Mmmmmmnnnnnnn....

In other news, last night I got to have my second glass blowing lesson in Eric the neighbor's glorious glass studio. SO MUCH FUN. But wow, it's really hard work. Concentrated so intensely for hours on creating my masterpiece which in the end tragically fell off the big flamey poker and back into the fire of its creation. I almost cried.

So, I will be leaving this lovely land soon (hopefully before the predicted coming rains and possible flood... yikes) and back to Toronto for a gig that's SO gonna rock the world. Will be performing with my most favouritest ladies, Serena Ryder and the Road Dog Divas at Hugh's Room on February 27th. So all y'all Torontonians/Ontarians won't wanna miss it. Believe me. We's gonna take down the house. Hope to see you out there.
xoxox
K

January 15th, 2003
London, Ontario

Hello glorious world... I am here in snowy snowy land all cozied up with SO much work to do. Have been extremely caught up in the business of doing a major radio and media promo campaign and have been mailing and mailing my little brains out! So, on that note if you are a radio or media personality and have NOT received my package as of yet (and would like to!!) please contact me at kristinsweetland@hotmail.com!!! Well, enuff said about that... In other news I have been occupied with mucho graphic design work trying to get posters and promo stuff done for myself and the Little Red Hens (a collective of fabuloso and oh so supremely talented women performers that I belong to...) for the Folk Alliance conference in Nashville. If you are planning on attending the conference please come check out our so-sure-to-be-rockin' showcase in the Little Red Hen Room!! I will be takin' off for Tennessee and yonder southlands in a couple weeks.... Can't wait to hit the road again... Ahhhhh the road...

To check out the Little Red Hen Folk Alliance Poster click here!!