Winnipeg-based folk/pop band Sweet Alibi is kicking off this year’s Bragg Creek Performing Arts fall music series with a double-bill performance Oct. 13, accompanied by Edmonton’s Jenie Thai. Sweet Alibi’s Jess Rae Ayre, Michelle Anderson and Amber Nielsen met through mutual friends in high school, and according to Ayre, decided to get together for a jam session around nine years ago. The trio penned their first song that night, she said. “We loved singing together,” Ayre said. “It seemed right.” Ayre had been singing in choirs and musicals since she was a student, she said, but Anderson and Nielsen didn’t really find their voices until Sweet Alibi was formed. Instead, they focused on guitar – Nielsen’s father, Perry, started teaching her chords when she was eight or nine, and Anderson found inspiration after seeing Fred Penner perform at around the same time. “I didn’t really play with anyone else until about high school,” she said. “It was also around that time that I started learning banjo.” Together, the three developed a musical style all their own. According to Anderson, Sweet Alibi’s music fits into the folk/pop genre, but with a bit of a “rootsy” element. “I like that the three-part harmonies gives our sound a nostalgic sound, but our instrumentation and melodies make the songs catchy and upbeat,” Ayre said. While not all of Sweet Alibi’s songs are written by the trio as a group, Ayre said, each song becomes a collaboration, in the end. No matter who brings their writing to the table, the harmonies and layers provided by the other two creates a finished product that ultimately belongs to Sweet Alibi. And, according to Anderson, this same energy continues when the band performs live – even though, she admitted, the songs “will never be played the same way twice.” “We are like a family on stage,” Nielsen said. “We make sure everyone is enjoying their time…I love seeing the audience smile and dance, [and] meeting [them] after the show. Hearing their stories and sharing experiences that may be brought out from our songs.” Anderson added with different venues, different audiences and each performer’s mood that day, each show becomes a new and exciting experience. However, according to Ayres, concert-goers can expect a lot of beautiful harmonies, catchy riffs and plenty of fun. Sweet Alibi and Jenie Thai will be performing at Bragg Creek Community Centre, Oct. 13 at 7:45 p.m. Tickets are $30 for adults and $28 for seniors, but discounts are available with the purchase of season tickets. For more information, visit braggcreekperformingarts.com
