August 30, 2001

Cowboy Junkies In Concert September 29

(North Adams, MA) On Saturday, September 29, at 8 P.M. the Cowboy Junkies bring to MASS MoCA their unique sound formed through two decades of experimentation and refinement. Known for quiet, moody, melancholy music and sultry, sometimes whispering vocals, the Cowboy Junkies play American pop heavily influenced by blues, country, and folk. Spin magazine calls them "a distinctive musical vision, sweet, subtle, and strange." The Cowboy Junkies in Concert is co-presented by the Iron Horse Entertainment Group.

Primary songwriter and guitarist Michael Timmins blends the punk-wave influences that colored the band's early days with a core concentration on the organic roots of country blues with the help of co-founding member Alan Anton on bass. Percussionist Peter Timmins drives the underlying rhythm. Junkies lead singer Margo Timmins provides a melancholic alto that simultaneously haunts and captivates taking a Method-acting approach to the characters brother Michael creates in his story-songs. According to VH1 "Margo Timmins' voice remains one of the most moving in all of pop music."

Spending their formative years in their hometown Toronto and then in Britain, it wasn't until Timmins and Anton returned home that the band's unique profile began to take shape. Joined by Timmins' sister Margo behind the microphone and brother Peter on drums, the first Cowboy Junkies recorded their first album, Whites Off Earth Now in 1986.

Since that first album, the Junkies have continued to explore the potential of sounds in their songs and studio recordings. From Calendar's Best Album of the Year The Trinity Sessions (1988) to their latest release Open (2001), the Junkies developed a fan-base as eclectic and dedicated to their music as they are. The Cowboy Junkies have the diversity to deliver passionate original songs such as "Misguided Angel" and "Miles From Our Home," while at the same time transforming covers such as the Velvet Underground's "Sweet Jane" into a distinctly flavored masterpiece.

In support of their eleventh album, the Cowboy Junkies embarked on a three-month tour spanning the country and the globe, including North American venues in Seattle, Vancouver, Denver, and Florida. The September 29 date at MASS MoCA marks the last date in the United States before a leg of European shows including performances in the United Kingdom, Italy, and Norway.

Tickets to Cowboy Junkies are $27.50 or $22.50 for students. MASS MoCA members receive a 10% discount. Tickets are available through the MASS MoCA Box Office located off Marshall Street in North Adams from 10 A.M. until 6 P.M. daily. Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling 413.662.2111 during box office hours or purchased on line at www.massmoca.org. Doors open at 7:00 P.M.

MASS MoCA, the largest center for contemporary visual and performing arts in the United States, is located off Marshall Street in North Adams on a 13-acre campus of renovated 19th-century factory buildings.

For Immediate Release
Contact: Katherine Myers
(413) 664-4481 x8113
katherine@massmoca.org