April Moon

April Moon bring their irresistibly charming, boot-stompin’ Canadiana to Ebenezer’s in Crewe on Thursday 4th November, as part of our Songs & Stories shows. Jaime April and Jason Moon are a UK-based Canadian duo who grew up on the wild prairies beside the North Saskatchewan River, and they combine intertwined twangy and jangly guitars with powerful vocal harmonies and a kick drum made from an old suitcase.

Their fun, whimsical songwriting weaves effortlessly from alt-country and Americana to folksy blues, rock and pop, though their new EP, Forgiveness Juice, leans towards the sounds of their rootsy upbringing. Recorded in a Liverpool studio with the backing of a funding grant, it follows their self-released album The Other One Was You and has won support from BBC Introducing and Countryline Homegrown. The EP was launched with a headline Americana all-dayer at Future Yard in Birkenhead, and the extended tour that followed is taking the pair across the UK, Europe and Canada.

April Moon call their genre Canadiana: think Americana, but with a big helping of northern charm that runs through their kooky storytelling and lyrics, creating a vivid, sunshine-filled world that covers everything from love, scandal and divorce to life on the prairies, living in an abandoned brewery, cow autopsies and the nomad life. Having learned early that hitting the open road was the only way to cover the vast distances between venues, they have never put down roots since, splitting their time between several countries and cruising from gig to gig in their beloved campervan, affectionately known as The Clubhouse.

Reviewing their set at the Cavern Live Lounge in Liverpool, Lucy Bell of New Sound Generation called it “the most sunshine-filled performance I think I’ve ever seen”, with “so much energy and vibrancy, we just can’t keep our eyes off this pair”. A Stoke-on-Trent promoter was just as taken, praising “an absolutely mighty sound for a duo” and “excellent musicianship, fully engaged with the audience, well written songs and oh so quirky covers”. Expect two sets of original songs with a few carefully chosen covers in between, in a room where the beer and gin are chosen with the same care as the acts on stage. Tickets are limited, so don’t leave it too late.