Even though there are horns throughout much of  her brand new CD ‘Across the Plains’ Jolene Higgins, aka Little Miss Higgins, says it is all about the songs.
She said there are some great horn arrangements from Calgary based clarinet player Cedric Blary throughout the CD.
“A lot of the music I listen to, especially jazz from the ’20s, ’30s, ’40s and ’50s  had great places for horns in them. they add such flavours and colours,” said the Brooks, Alberta born blues/jazz guitarist/singer from her home in Nokomis, Saskatchewan, where she is getting ready to continue a tour of Alberta and B.C. until the end of May which takes over  the Slice, tomorrow, April 29.
“It was a lot of fun recording them,” she said adding she co-produced the CD with the D-Rangers’ Jaxon Haldane in Bedside Studios in Winnipeg. The horns  are all over songs like ‘Wash Those Blues Away,” and turned out fantastic.
“It was great working with Jaxon. I’d never worked with him before, but I know him from Winnipeg and have hung out with him as a musician. He comes from that old bluegrass, folk and country . So I knew he would keep the CD close to the roots and a little less over-produced. He keeps it rooted,” she continued adding Little Miss Higgins is touring with Foy Taylor and stand up bassist Joey Lorer, who plays with the Cracker Cats and Heartstrings. They have worked with Lorer many times.

As per usual, there is a lot going on in Lethbridge this week.
 It is roots heaven at the Slice with Little Miss Higgins returning on Thursday, in support of their brand new CD ‘Across The Plains’ and David Newberry, Treeline and the Perpetrators the next day. If you haven’t seen Little Miss Higgins, L.A. Beat is giving away a pair of tickets for the  April 29 show. Just be the first to  e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with the name of the town they are currently calling home. L.A. Beat is also giving away to the killer  Perpetrators/David Newberry/Treeline show on April 30. Be the first to e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it telling me what city the Perpetrators call home. I’ll include a copy of David Newberry’s new CD as well.
Also at the Slice, a really cool ambient rock band called Adam’s Rib is returning to Lethbridge, April 28.
 And Lustre Creame is back at the Slice on Saturday with Big Jim and the Twins.
Across town, local pop sensation Kellianne  Litchfield will be releasing her CD at the Blarney Stone, April 30,  with special guest Alyssa McQuaid. Tickets cost $5 in advance or $7.50 at the door.
Unfortunately a big all ages gig  at VHQ, April 30 which was to feature  several local acts including the Living Luca, the Necessities, Jesse and the Dandelions and Matt Robinson has been canceled due to circumstances beyond the organizers’ control.
McQuaid has her own show at the Mocha Cabana, May 1 from 7-10 p.m..
This is the last week to hang out at Henotic  so they have a  big schedule of live acts and DJS throughout the week.
Lustre Creame and the Bohemian Cause along with Broken Host will be playing a free show on Thursday. Black Social 2 on Friday featuring DJs and live acts. And artists won’t want to miss the last Dr. Sketchy’s  anti-art school on the third floor of Henotic featuring Zombie Lady Gaga on Friday from 7-10 p.m.
Even Sunday has a lot going on. The biggest show of the day is at Henotic, where Mammoth Cave Fest 2 will be sending the beloved hangout for artists and musicians out in style with 35 bands running from noon until midnight.
The Darryl Düus Blues band has a gig at Jimmy’s Pub on the south side next to Future Shop, May 1 as well. He tore up the casino last week and always puts on a great show.
 The other special show takes place at the Folk Club’s Wolf’s Den,  May 1 where Two Spirit Sage will be performing with local acoustic bluesman Leon Barr and special guests Maura and  Gary Bourdon from Medicine Hat.

Touring Alberta in the spring is a lot more fun than traveling B.C. in February by Greyhound bus. So Vancouver based  singer/songwriter David Newberry is looking forward to his first visit to Lethbridge with guitarist James Lamb, April 30 when he will be sharing the stage at the Slice with the Winnipeg blues band the Perpetrators and Treeline.
“That was a really interesting experience, traveling B.C. In February. It was fantastic, but really interesting. You never have to drive but you have to adapt to their very limited schedule and if you hit a snow squall, you end up being an hour late for a gig,” said Newberry over the phone from Nanton, where  he was having lunch en route to a  gig in Calgary.
 He is touring in support of  his new solo CD ‘When We Learn the Things We Need to Learn’ with guitarist  James Lamb, who did the Greyhound bus tour with him.  So far response has been great.
“The tour has been going great. We’re on the road again and it is fantastic. It’s been  a lot of fun,” he said.

Vancouver folk/ roots band/ poets The Fugitives are looking forward to returning to Lethbridge for the first time in a year and a half.
“We actually didn’t play there last tour,” said Fugitive member Brendan McLeod, on a fading phone connection from somewhere in the middle of the Canadian shield.

They will be playing Henotic, April 28 — one of the last stops on their tour.
“It (the tour) has been great. We went all the way out to PEI and now we’re coming back,” said the Calgary born McLeod, adding audiences have responded well to their brand new CD ‘Eccentrically We Love,’  which was just released at the end of March.

The Fugitives, including Brendan McLeod, Barbara Adler, Adrian Glynn and Steven Charles, are all multi-instrumentalists  who use an array of different sounds and musical styles to back their poetry.
Macleod is  an award winning slam poet, while Barbara Adler was a CBC's poet laureate which meant she was commissioned to write a few poems for CBC.