On Saturday we had the pleasure of working with Mitch Fillion who shot some amazing footage of us in various locations around UofT. The videos already adorn our myspace - check out his website for other videos: southernsouls.ca. If you ever want to do a live video in a quirky place I would definitely get in touch with Mitch - amazing work.

We also got some kind polaris worthy praise from i(heart)music. You can read the full review here.

"What Hymns of Love and Spirits lacks in volume, however, it more than makes up for in sheer "being awesome"-ness. Every single one of the tracks, from "Bluebirds" on through to the aforementioned bonus song, "Evening", is completely and utterly gorgeous."

The EP wound up on a feature by UK blog thelineofbestfit. Check it out!

"These days we seem to be bombarded with a more or less constant stream of new bands, shows, movies, junkfood and beard grooming kits. Sometimes it gets too much and it is all to easy to get cynical about those who run about championing things as the greatest this or that since, er…the last one. Yet, every now and then something or someone gets through the cracks, rises above the general morass and makes you sit and take stock, even for just a few minutes. From the moment I hit play on The Wilderness of Manitoba’s latest EP ‘Hymns of Love and Spirits’ I knew I was hooked. There’s a stark understated beauty to it’s 8 tracks, which combine perfectly executed four part harmonies intertwinned with muted banjos, solitary cello and subtle fingerpicked parts. There’s a clear homage to the ‘classics’: Joni, Neil and CSNY but the heavily reverbed guitars and slow pace also call to mind slowcore lynchpins Red House Painters and, to an extent Neil Halsted’s Mojave 3. ..."

Also shoutouts at tunesinto and snobs music.

"If I were limited to only stating one thing in this review it would be that this record is a picturesque dream that’s drifting throughout the wind. The Wilderness of Manitoba’s most recent EP Hymns of Love & Spirits is a beautifully crafted acoustic/folk record that speaks to the soul."

And one at Quick Before it Melts:

"Their harmonies and sombre instrumental arrangements hearken back to the heyday of folk and beyond, almost convincing you that these are mystical medieval field recordings.  With just the sound of birds chirping, and a new day dawning acting as overdubs, there’s nothing masking the stark beauty of Hymns of Love and Spirits, one of the best albums by a Canadian band this year."

Amazing review at herohill.com:

Reviews:: Wilderness of Manitoba Hymns of Love and Spirits

It's no secret that sometimes music is the only thing that helps you get through real loss. I’m not talking about a broken heart or a bad day, but those moments you get hit with that are unforgiving and unrelenting and leave an emptiness that wakes up in the middle of the night with nothing to hold onto but an overwhelming feeling of alienation. You start to realize you can't move on, because what you had is gone... forever.

A broken heart goes on beating but the wounds left by the earth shattering inevitable are a lot harder to forget. Considering that pain, it seems fairly natural that when Provincial Parks Will Whitwham’s mother passed away, his brand of summer indie pop wasn't going to be the outlet for the emotions coursing through his veins.

I know right now most people are thinking, "Great. Another acoustic record from an indie guy we are supposed to care about," but Wilderness of Manitoba is something much bigger than one man's journey. Will hooked up with some other local musicians and the quartet (now a quintet) started writing lo-fi folk tracks that hide in the corners and empty space usually reserved for ghosts and shadows. The resulting EP - Hymns of Love and Spirits - is stark and powerful - the muted banjo picks and ominous cello work set the tone for the incredibly personal subject matter - but the journey is warmed with spot on, effortlessly controlled four piece harmonies.

The band really channels folk acts of the 60’s, which is fitting as the focal point of the EP are the two versions of a track written by Will’s mom in 1968. She gave him a recording of Evening on his birthday and the band reworked it for the EP in tribute (and included the original). The original is a lovely piece of chilly folk that focuses on her lovely voice, subtle harmonies and instrumentation and the band makes the smart decision to stay true to the original. They clean up the guitar sound and add some banjo, but really let the male/female vocals take center stage. Similar vocal interplay could be found on countless, classic folk recordings (Peter, Paul and Mary is probably the easiest jumping off point) , but more importantly it gives insight into the talent of these young singers.

With all the vocal folk acts catching praise these days, I love how Wilderness of Manitoba refuses to beef up the sound or move away from the comfort of a walking pace. Obviously I don’t know the band, but I’d guess these songs are something more meaningful than just another "sounds like" collection of picked riffs and that's even when delightful songs like Manitoba, Crows Feet and Bluebird float by, it's only when you really sit down with the songs that you feel the impact of a group of young musicians working through life's hardest hands.


Also, catch a show review at Shawn Clarke's blog (he's an awesome musician who we've seen play with Olenka, Timber Timbre and solo) here:

Sunday night was Wavelength night. On the suggestion of Jennifer Polk, I gathered my friend and photographer Cody Walker and headed down to see a band getting a lot of buzz right now, Wilderness of Manitoba.

Wilderness of Manitoba are cultivating a sound that is pure Canadiana. It's a sound that has flown through some of the finest bands in this great country for decades. There is no reason why they shouldn't be playing the best venues along side the likes of Blue Rodeo, Neil Young, or the Great Lakes Swimmers. Gorgeous harmonies, and a moving cover of Helplessly Hoping made this one of the best shows I've seen all year.

We got to answer some questions courtesy of BlogTO:

Call & Response: The Wilderness of Manitoba

Local folk ensemble The Wilderness of Manitoba make really pretty music that always puts me in a better mood whenever I need to fight off the doldrums.

Some Press to talk about this week: NOW gave us an NNNN review - pretty rad, check it out here: NOW Review of Hymns of Love and Spirits

so we played with the RAA at the horseshoe the other night, it was pretty incredible. Lots of pictures were taken, will post links as we find them. We also printed 75 advance copies of our EP, all of which are gone (none of us actually got copies), and we'll be making a second run of them in preparation for the actual cd release on the 21st.

Here's a little write up - plus you just might be able to download our EP here:
http://djwontyou.blogspot.com/2009/08/wilderness-of-manitoba.html

"This band really caught my attention because of their simplistic approach, resulting in beautiful music. The very first song they played featured a track of a birdsong in the background, followed by acoustic guitar (Bluebirds). Great music for when you just want to chill out, or you need help falling asleep. The band was also super cool, and told everyone to "pay what you can" for their debut EP. Also cool, they put the amount of EPs on the back i.e. they made 75, and I got #66 of this limited edition beauty. Coolie. Anyway, here it is, Hymns of Love and Spirits."

And another from mechanical forest sound:
http://mechanicalforestsound.blogspot.com/2009/08/gig-rural-alberta-advantage.html

The Horseshoe. Thursday, July 30, 2009.
Even though this was a sold out show, I was mildly surprised at how many people were out early. Although I'm sometimes one to carp about "these kids today", this was fairly decent young crowd, and fairly genteel — save for a small knot of screaming, arm-waving idiots. Perhaps this music (the commonalities of all three bands could be categorized under "The New Sincerity") just appeals to slightly more earnest people. Which might explain the robust turnout for early openers The Wilderness of Manitoba.¹ The most earnestly sincere of the evening's bands, this crew draws from the same folkie harmony-worshiping, cite-CSN-as-an-influence waters as your Fleet Foxes and your Bon Ivers.² The band's sound featured cello, banjo, ukulele and occasional keening, high falsetto. Launching with images of bluebirds singing and autumn leaves, the songs were dominated by earthy imagery and woody sounds. "We're not a very heavy band," averred singer Will Whitwham near set's end — undoubtedly true, and very much the band's blessing and curse. Even with a relatively attentive crowd, their music was eaten up a bit in this space. In a smaller, quieter venue, or out under some trees, this would fit in a little nicer. Although this isn't a style of music that totally accords with my headspace, I was drawn in some by what they're doing — especially when the harmonies hit. Not every song got over, but this band has tapped into a musical vein that could carry them along some. A nice table-setter for the night.

This one from historyjen:
http://historyjen.blogspot.com/2009/08/review-raa-hooded-fang-wilderness-of.html

The night started off appropriately lovely, with the gorgoeous vocal harmonies and instrumentation of a newer Toronto band, The Wilderness of Manitoba. Some of the members of this band had hosted the RAA at their home back in March, and Nils, Amy, and Paul must have liked what they heard then and invited the WOM to perform last night. The band seemed both comfortable and a little nervous about performing in front of so many people on the relatively large Horseshoe stage. Very quickly they created a happy, calm mood with their nature-inspired songs. At moments they reminded me of Fleet Foxes; at others, of Great Lake Swimmers. "Evening" was a set highlight, as was their last song, whose name I don't know. (Sorry, oops.) The mix was a bit off, and the instrument changes between songs took a second or two too long for my tastes, but I chalk that up to a venue like the Horseshoe not being super familiar with their vocal-heavy, acoustic sound, and the band's lack of experience in playing bigger shows. Overall, a pleasing opening set that made them a good number of new fans, no doubt. As I write this I'm listening to their first EP. It's not yet officially out, but those of us at the show got a chance to pick it up. It's great. I may listen to it all night. I look forward to seeing how this band develops.

this came up today
the horseshoe with the Rural Alberta Advantage on the 30th is going to be amazing

http://singinglamb.com/singinglamb/index_new.php?page=features&post=350&month=July&year=2009

will and scott were also on the Zygiella/Historyjen podcast talking about a bunch of stuff including houses, communities, shows, gardens, and a tonne of other stuff

www.zygiella.com/historyjen

We're really excited to announce that the record we've been working on for the past few months is finally done.  it has been a labour of love and emotion for us and we're all very proud of the final result.
we have grown so much through this process, learned a lot about ourselves, and challenged eachother to be better - as citizens in a larger community and as musicians in a band we all believe in.

we hope you take the time to listen, and we hope you enjoy what we all poured our hearts into.
many people were kind enough to help us along the way, without them this day would never have come
Will's mom Wendy Blackburn, and all of our families
Sarah Shafey
Shawn Jurek
Jenn Illet
Jeeyon Shim
Elise Legrow
Lauren Schrieber
Lara, Wendy, Chantal, Robyn, Tyson, Craig, Comedy Bar, Pete and SF, Garfunkle, Delaware House, Snowblink, Luxury Pond, Maylee, Elaine, Leif, Dan, Tyler, Jen, Cathy, Eric, Keith, Terri, Kent, JM, Stein and KW, Jon and KHW, Melissa and GSG, our jobs for their understanding and support (and patience with our lack of productivity and excessive time off)

for now you can stream from our myspace page, but we will be releasing the hard copy on August 21, with a special show at a place we know quite well. 

keep spreading the word!  we'll be seeing you soon.



JOIN US ON FACEBOOK!
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/The-Wilderness-of-Manitoba/105745873643

this summer is sneaking by so quickly, find time to search out a nice piece of grass under a tree and watch the clouds roll by - go outside, enjoy our seasons.

First - we're really happy to play with Erin Lang on Thursday Night at the Magpie in Toronto - she is one of the most amazing women in this city, and she bakes a mean cupcake.  it will be small, quiet, intimate, wonderful - she is so great.
www.myspace.com/erinlang

Second - in the next few days we'll post the EP - yes finally.  so many friends and folks to thank for this, a lot of people contributed their efforts and time so generously and without expectation, we're really excited for you to hear it, and we're really proud of what we can accomplish with the help of amazing people.
we are releasing it on August 21, we'll fill you in on those details later on.

Third (AND THIS IS REALLY EXCITING!!!!) - July 30 at the Horseshoe the RAA are coming back to the city after being on tour and sxs-westing and saddle-creeking to release their album HOMETOWNS for us here at home.  we're elated.
we're on first!  come support these great friends, and come support us this great night.
(we may or may not have some discs....but its not our night so shhhhh)

Finally - possible east coast tour in sept, but we'll fill you in on that later too.  In the meantime we are playing the Wavelength Music Series at Sneaky Dee's on August 30.  we've been to many of these shows and always dreamed of being a part of one.  now that we are, we cant think of a better way to close out August.

Thank you for everything!
Keep listening
if you like us, tell your friends and bring them to a show, we would be forever grateful :)
see you all soon

The last four months have truly been amazing.  What started as a project between 2 has quickly become a labour of love for 4.  we've all been really busy practicing, writing songs, writing parts for songs, playing our first shows together, and really enjoying the winter in this cold city.
We owe a lot of people a lot of thanks; most of all you, for reading this and for listening to the music we play.  This has already come much further than any of us expected.
So friends, we need your help.  Please continue to listen and to tell your friends as you have been, and continue to come to our shows giving us your love, you make this so much fun.  What we promise is to have our EP finished by early summer so that we will have something to put out into the world.
The next few weeks will be spent finishing up the EP, with the hope of getting on the road in the near future.
We love hearing from you, don't stop writing us!
We'll see you out there.