Over the past few years, The Barr Brothers have increasingly established themselves as some of the most prominent purveyors of eclectic and modern Americana music in the West. Their sound is primarily fueled by the polyrhythmic and playful drumming of Andrew Barr, the guitar of his brother Brad Barr, and the innovative prowess on the harp of Sarah Pagé, who has single-handedly redefined this instrument and its use. The band expands and contracts their sound and scope from their base of operations in Montreal, Quebec. Bass, pedal steel guitar, keyboards and brass come and go freely in the mix. As comfortable with solemn Arcadian ballads as with swampy North African improvisations or more classic rock'n'roll, The Barr Brothers continue to embrace and delight audiences with their both methodical and fanciful.

The two brothers and Sarah began playing Brad's songs across North America, recruiting other friends with other instruments as needed to take these chamber folk songs to larger, more complex territories. The link they maintain with the past blends wonderfully with a poetic vision anchored in the present. Musically, they incorporate everything from Malian rhythms to slide guitar worthy of Elmore James. The handcrafted percussion notably recalls the long-buried silencer of Tom Waits and his “Jockey Full of Bourbon”, in addition to resurrecting Celtic folk traditions, the polyrhythmic interaction with the harp and the fiery sound of African blues.

Their self-titled debut album, The Barr Brothers (2011), balanced on the thin thread between the possessed blues of Robert Johnson, the Arthurian ballads and the poetic sensibility of Leonard Cohen. Sleeping Operator (2014), their second record, delves deeper into the waters that connect Delta blues with its origins in West and North Africa, while retaining its roots in the gentleness of Appalachian folk and powerful resilience that a song can convey. The band's favorite pieces that didn't find a place on this album finally saw the light of day on Alta Falls (2015), a collection of five pieces that explores the Nordic lands, having been partly recorded in Iceland by Valgeir Sigurösson ( Björk, Sigur Rós, Nico Muhly). An ethereal folk punctuated with multidimensional vocal harmonies is revealed, its warm aspect being reflected by the red vinyl on which it was recorded.

The success of this natural and yet unprecedented convergence of influences allowed TheBarr Brothers to perform at Levon Helm Studios in Woodstock, NY, at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheater, twice on the “Late Show with David Letterman”, in Japan, Europe and the United Kingdom. They also received two Juno nominations for Adult Alternative Album of the Year, in 2013 and 2015. Over the next year, they will once again draw from their vast and diverse pool of inspirations to experiment and to record a third full-length album. Malian Bassekou Kouyaté and his partner Amy Sacko will also join forces with the group for two unprecedented collaborative performances during the summer of 2017, at the Quebec Summer Festival and the Montreal International Jazz Festival. The mixture of both figurative and literal musical traditions will then be brilliantly highlighted.