Seven accomplished musicians in their own right, the Floorbyrds came together and played to a full house at the Streaming Cafe on June 19th.
Andrew Smith, Norm Strauss, Kim McMechan, Graham Ord, Scott Gamble, Corey Janz, and Dean Clark are known in town and beyond for their individual musical and songwriting skills – and when they come together to perform as the Floorbyrds that skill shines even brighter due to the support of their fellow bandmates.
Although the band could almost be described as a project formed to highlight some of the songs Strauss and Smith have written, McMechan and others contribute songs to the mix as well. And the band itself probably owes its existence more to the persistence of Dean Clark than to anything else.
Clark has a long history of organizing and promoting folk music festivals. He first met Smith and Strauss in relation to a large annual folk fest he headed up in Alberta. After moving to the Okanagan and playing bass in different configurations of this band for various one-off projects, Dean kept saying to Strauss and Smith that they should form a band with more consistency, one that would play regularly together. And (at long last, Dean would say) the Floorbyrds were born.
Fans of Kim McMechan can find lots to like about the Floorbyrds, too; in this grouping Kim sings songs she has written with the support of a six-person band – the multi-layered guitars and underlying rhythm section add a wonderful fullness to her strongly-written songs.
The Floorbyrds: seven stand-alone musicians coming together to make it 'even better' – check out the show highlights in the 'Previous Shows' section of www.streamingcafe.net
Enjoy the clip below "Black Bird Sitting on the Line", fronted by Kim McMechan.
