Her own kind of blues

Cristina Vane to play the Heartwood Center lawn concert series July 18

trying to perfect it, either.

Me Again.

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By Lyndsie Kiebert-Carey Reader Staff

Born a globetrotter to parents of both Sicilian-American and Guatemalan backgrounds, Cristina Vane could speak four languages and had lived in three countries before moving to the U.S. at age 18 to attend college. Her far-flung experiences and lack of roots point to a sort of irony when learning that Vane, a recording artist now based in Nashville with two albums under her belt, is a prolific blues musician.

So how, after all her travel and upbringing as a kid mostly interested in indie rock music, did she land on traditional American roots music?

“That is such a hard question to answer — not because I can’t tell you the step-by-step of what happened to get me to where I am today, but I always say that it’s kind of like asking me why I like the color blue or why I like chocolate,” she said. “It always resonated with me.”

“When I first heard slide guitar, I was captivated by it,” she said. “I never went back.”

That path led her to her current tour, which comes to Sandpoint on Tuesday, July 18 for an outdoor lawn show at The Heartwood Center. Gates will open at 6 p.m. and Spokane singer-songwriter Matt Mitchell will kick off the music at 6:30 p.m.

Cristina Vane live at the Heartwood

Tuesday, July 18; gates and vendors open at 6 p.m., show starts with Matt Mitchell at 6:30 p.m.; $14 advance, $18 at the gate. The Heartwood Center, 615 Oak St., get advance tickets at mattoxfarm.com. Listen at cristinavane.com.

She described that resonance as a “soul connection,” despite the lives of 1920s Delta blues artists being “an experience potentially the furthest away you can get from mine.”

Neither rhyme nor reason seem to play a part in Vane’s musical style, which exists on its own plane — thriving on heartfelt lyrics, sure-footed vocals and down-home instrumentation.

Vane is keenly aware that she isn’t reinventing the blues-rock wheel, and she isn’t

“I don’t think my calling is to learn to play exactly like Blind Willie Johnson played — that is a noble quest and it’s impressive, but I have a lot to say,” she said. “I’m not going to be able to pull off the traditional approach anyway, and honestly, I love rock music — I love drums and performing and all these other things, so it never felt like it would be the most authentic choice for me to only play blues, or only play guitar and not have a band.”

That marrying of the old and new is evident on Vane’s sophomore album Make Myself

“I wanted to really have in mind what I grew up playing,” she said. “I also wanted an album that reflected, a little more, the live show.”

That live show will be in full force on The Heartwood’s lawn, as she and the band stop off in the panhandle during a fast-and-furious tour of the American West. Vane wouldn’t have it any other way.

“It’s a happy accident that touring is important for my business and writing music, and I happen to love it,” she said. “It’s fulfilling for me to see how different people live, and I get to share my deepest and most sacred feelings and creations.”

Friends of the Panida sip-and-shop at P.O. Winery to benefit theater

By Reader Staff

The nonprofit Friends of the Panida organization will host a sip-and-shop fundraising event Thursday, July 13 at the Pend d’Oreille Winery (301 Cedar St., in downtown Sandpoint), inviting attendees to drop in from 4-8 p.m. and enjoy a glass of wine and a bite to eat.

A portion of sales during the sip-and-shop will be donated to the Friends of the Panida, an independent 501(c)(3) group that raises and distributes money to support a variety of projects at the historic

Panida Theater in Sandpoint.

All money raised is dedicated for the historic theater, such a recent donation by the organization of funds to cover the cost of materials needed to construct the new outside stairs at the Little Theater. For more information on Friends of the Panida, contact FOP President Steve Garvan at steve@garvanmarketing.com or 303-809-1676. Contributions can be mailed to Friends of the Panida, 4964 Colburn-Culver Road, Sandpoint, ID 83864.

A snapshot of notable live music coming up in Sandpoint

Tylor & The Train Robbers, The Hive, July 15 Biddadat, Eichardt’s Pub, July 14

Since forming in 2014, quartet Tylor & The Train Robbers has played more than 200 shows per year in ever-widening circles away from their home in Boise.

Fronted by Tylor Ketchum and backed by his brothers Jason and Tommy Bushman, and Ketchum’s father-in-law Johnny “Shoes” Pisano, the band has released three independent studio albums, the most recent being Non-Typical Find, all showcasing TTR’s airtight Americana-roots-country ensemble sound.

These train robbers pull into the sta- tion at The Hive on Saturday, July 15.

For his part, Ketchum has been described as “a quintessential singing cowboy,” mingling vocal strains of Joe Ely and Arlo Guthrie, layered over lyrics steeped in vivid Western imagery. Or, as Americana Highways described it, “bulleye roots rock Americana songwriting.”

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Zach Hagadone

Doors at 6:30 p.m., show at 8 p.m.; $15 pre-sale (plus taxes and fees), $20 at the door; 21+. The Hive, 207 N. First Ave., 208-920-9039, livefromthehive.com. Listen at tylorandthetrainrobbers.com.

Some bands have that magical ability to get you out of your seat dancing, whether you want to or not. Biddadat is one of those bands.

Featuring Sandpoint High School grads Cameron Brownell and Kyle Miller, Biddadat has gained prominence as Seattle’s go-to neo-funk band, where they combine the nostalgia of funk and blues with contemporary rock and electronica. They don’t take anything too seriously, but they make seriously excellent music.

Lived experiences lead to great writing, and the lived experiences of fire lookout Philip Connors are no exception. Connors’ 2011 book Fire Season: Field Notes from a Wilderness Lookout draws on his years watching for smoke from the seven-by-seven-foot confines of a lookout in the New Mexico wild, retold within the window of a single fire season. This book provokes valuable reconsideration of the human relationship with both fire and solitude.

Listen

It’s been a minute since I recommended a female solo artist breaking into the indie rock scene who knows her way around an electric guitar. One such artist is Nashville-based Katie Pruitt, who captured my attention with her cover of Lucinda Williams’ 1992 song “Something About What Happens When We Talk.” Pruitt makes the track her own by stripping back Williams’ twang to use vocals and instrumentation more romantic and understated than the original. Pruitt’s style has evolved from singer-songwriter to rootsrock icon in a few short years, so she’s one to keep an eye on.

Watch

“Biddadat is probably my favorite local group; they’re making what Stevie Wonder would be making if he was growing up now, and it’s sick,” wrote one Seattle reviewer.

If you miss them at Eichardt’s, catch Biddadat on Saturday, July 15 at Schweitzer’s Northwest Winefest.

—Ben Olson

8 p.m., FREE. Eichardt’s Pub, 212 Cedar St., 208-2634005, eichardtspub.com. Listen at biddadat.com.

The second season of FX’s The Bear arrived on Hulu this summer, delivering a scathing 10-episode expansion on the world of embattled Chef Carmy Berzatto and his cast of Chicago friends and cousins as they embark on opening his dream restaurant. The plot might sound upbeat, but those who have worked in kitchens know that “cutthroat” doesn’t begin to describe the realities of restaurant life. The Bear is delightfully dark, with layers thicker than muck on a grease trap. Viewer beware: Jamie Lee Curtis will never be the same.

From Northern Idaho News, July 14, 1925