They say most Canadians live in cities these days. We didn’t always. Many of us were born into small towns and rural communities. Much of the Maritimes still haven’t changed all that drastically. A lot of us grew up wondering what the hell to do on Friday night, and more than a few of us no doubt came to the conclusion that there are worse places (but not many) to take a date than karaoke at the local bingo hall. Cape Breton’s Pretty Archie have managed to see it in a more romantic light for their new video “This Whole Town.”
“The song is about falling in love in a town that needs some love. Struggling with knowing or not knowing if you are meant to be at home or somewhere else,” explain the band.
So Pretty Archie took all those FOMO moments that kept you up at night for most of high school, put them into a romanticized wrapper and added a dash of mandolin, reiterating that immortal question from The Clash: “Should I stay or should I go?”
Apparently the band all went with the latter, choosing to stay in their beloved Cape Breton with all the glimmering karaoke lights.
“We are all born and raised in Cape Breton so we have been front row to see a lot of the issues that plague communities that have suffered the effects of the post industrial loss of rural/small town life,” says Colin Gillis who handles the band’s harmonica, bass, and backing vocals.
“It’s something we live with and think about a lot. It comes through in our writing because we try to write about things and themes that affect us and that we have on our minds.” says Gillis.
“If you have spent time in any small town, not just the Maritimes, I would say it would all seem very familiar. We all live in Cape Breton. We all love it here. I guess that’s why we think about and write about these types of things so much.”
“This Whole Town” is the first single from Pretty Archie‘s upcoming album Hanging On. The album is officially being released worldwide in February, but you can order copies ahead of that.
The band also have a handful of tour dates before the new year in Nova Scotia, before a trip to the UK. They do say to expect plenty of dates across Canada throughout the Spring and Summer, but have yet to release and details.
Tour Dates:
12.13.18 – Mabou, NS @ Strathspey Performing Arts Center
12.23.18 – Sydney, NS @ Centre 200
12.31.18 – Iona, NS @ Iona Heights Inn
01.29.19 – London,UK @ Canadian Blast! – Empire Bar
01.30.19 – Glasgow, UK @ Celtic Connections