“We sound like a bunch of people singing together, who love each other.”
In the last year and a half the greenbelt has played over 130 shows, all over North America. This includes three cross continental tours including stops at events such as this year’s Illuminaries Festival in Vancouver, the internationally renowned 10th annual Queeruption, as well, as the international Music Festival, POP Montreal.
WORKING ON RELEASING NEW ALBUM " GENERAL MEETING" TO BE OUT IN LATE SUMMER EARLY FALL> HOPEFULLY.
A sound that includes that of over 13 people, their voices, and 15 different instruments. Regardless of the particular configuration they assume at a given show, the songwriting harvests the sentiments and political conversations dealing with issues of environment and political psyche and in some cases specifically the political landscape
of a greenbelt member’s hometown. Overall, the attitude and performances of the group generate positivity en masse, leading to a warm welcome, wherever they find themselves.
Profile:
The Greenbelt Collective are a gathering of partners and friends. They are a strongly focused ensemble of musicians striving to enhance their community through persistent involvement and experienced musicianship (each individual member of Greenbelt has their own project which they are developing concurrently). Perhaps most critical, however, is their emphasis on interaction. The Greenbelt consistently endeavor to improve their own strengths as songwriters and musicians, while at the same time being socially-conscious and adaptable to their environment. This concept of environment and community is crucial, because over the past year and half, during which the Greenbelt Collective have embarked on three cross-continental tours and performed over 110 concerts, they have established a strong presence in cities throughout Canada and the US, and their ever-expanding membership currently hails from Vancouver, Hamilton, Montreal, Regina, and numerous places in-between with members aged 19 to 29.
The core group (named for an environmentally distinct region of southern Ontario) formed March of 2005 in Montreal before eventually settling in Vancouver in 2006. With one member, Beshele Caron, providing the structure for a number of community-minded folk songs (take, for example, the song "Aerotropolis"- deliberating on the various effects of a gigantic airport set to overtake the town of Mount Hope, Ontario), new members would each add their own spin on the design, producing songs in a progressively collaborative manner both musically and thematically. The eventual result is a celebration of sorts, upbeat music as enjoyable to perform as to witness in a crowd. That this dichotomy can sometimes be removed altogether (as a result of encouraged participation), the celebratory appeal is only increased, and as such the band rarely wanes in energy. This manner of performance has fueled the Greenebelt through their three major tours, and continues to inspire them as they consider future travel and cultural experimentation.
The band's first tour in the summer of 2006 was of Canada, followed by a west coast tour south from British Columbia to California in early 2007. In the spring they recorded and released a debut album entitled "Our Homes" - a title which is reflective of the group's predominant theme of community. The album contains 13 songs, with more than a dozen vocalists and instruments making appearances, and was independently released on the band's own Greenbelt record label. In this way, the band has always been very much of a "do-it-yourself", entrepreneurial mentality, and their self-reliability is as such one of their greatest commitments and assets. From management to financial planning, promotions, even designing and packaging CDs (which had a limited run of hand-sewn jewel cases, still feature individually silk-screened covers, and recently won the award for "Best Album Artwork" at the 2007 Hamilton Music Awards), the Greenbelt Collective have always taken full responsibility for their work, a process which has thus far been met with consistently well-received results. In the fall of 2007 Greenbelt set off on their most ambitious tour yet- a two month circle of the North American continent with members joining as their school and work schedules allowed, typically seven to ten individuals per concert. The tour brought the group to new American cities such as Las Vegas, Austin, New Orleans, Chicago, Baltimore, New York, and concluded with a month long tour of Canada that included a stop at the internationally renowned "Pop Montreal" festival.
Now writing songs and raising funds for the recording of a sophomore release, the Greenbelt Collective continue to dedicate themselves relentlessly to organizing cultural events (often for fellow travelers and up-and-comers not yet established on the local scene) which encourage active participation while promoting those works of local artists already in progress. Examples of these events has included craft fairs, benefit concerts, and festivals promoting commonwealth (such as the recent "International Queeruption 10" festival held on British Columbia's Sunshine Coast in August of 2007). In the coming year the band would like to expand these promotions abroad, while continuing to cultivate them domestically. As the band continues to experience new environments there is a constant process of inspiration- the Greenbelt continues to learn how to interact amongst their own community to greater efficiency, as well as how to assist development of an international community based on the same values and ideas of artistic enthusiasm and civic consideration.
old:
a greenbelt is a space around a highly developed area which is set aside to hold off development and to preserve the character of the countryside and community. hmm... it holds us in, comfortably. and constantly. How do we contemplate these relationships..
by ... dancing, and singing and loving!!! all the time..
"my heart is like a landfill, it seems to never end"