It's been a busy year for Toronto's female folk/noir duo Scarlett Jane. After coming onto the scene in 2012 as one of the most exciting new collaborations in recent Canadian music, the duo has been gracing audiences coast to coast and over in Europe with their charm, haunting harmonies, and distinctive songs.
Their debut album 'Stranger' granted them two Canadian Folk Music Award nominations for Best Emerging Artist and Best Vocal Group among the likes of Whitehorse, Dala, and The Once. Their song Wild Fire was featured on CBC's Here and Now and brought them into the semi‐finals for the prestigious International Songwriting Competition world‐wide. In 2013, they were listed by Metro as one of the "7 Canadian Indie Acts You Need To Know."
Both Andrea and Cindy are road warriors. Andrea has two previous releases behind her, while Cindy has three ‐ two of them in French, which has given her a following in both French Canada and Europe.
They met several years ago at a tiny Toronto music venue; their solo careers were starting to move forward, and they shared a passion for prose, poetry, theatrics and songs in minor keys. They liked blues and country, old school soul and rock’n’roll.
The blend of their voices stopped conversations; their musical sensibilities interweaved seemingly without effort. Soon, they began collaborating as songwriters, performing on each other’s shows and singing on each other’s solo albums.
The groundwork laid in small Toronto clubs ‐ perfect public rehearsals as they honed their songs, their harmonies, their band and their sound ‐ began to pay off. Making their first major recording was the next logical step, and now Stranger is a reality.
Stranger is produced and engineered by one of Canada’s most innovative producers, Stew Crookes, (Hawksley Workman, 100 Dollars, Doug Paisley, Justin Rutledge). The album is a collection of 11 alluring stories about longing and loneliness, about love, loss, and desire including the French version of “Aching Heart” as a bonus track.
The songs came together organically over a brief two months in the fall of 2011, with Cindy and Andrea writing together at retreats in Mexico and northern Ontario, and in their shared apartment in downtown Toronto. Result: A rootsy folk/noir album with enough country‐edged rockin’ wailers to keep dancers moving, and gorgeous ballads and moody set‐pieces to satisfy the indie‐pop fans.
The singers’ collaborative songwriting, sultry performance style, and full band arrangements open up windows for the duo on both the indie scene and in major markets, nationally and internationally.
Meet Scarlett Jane’s partners
Andrea: She was two records into a solo career when she joined forces to create Scarlett Jane. She’s the queen of taking music to places you may well have never heard of; she’s completed (and booked) four major national tours across Canada. She’s of Italian heritage, a sweet city woman with fire in her heart, embers in her voice, and a background that includes school teaching (yes, she has her qualifications), acting in films, and even tap dancing.
Cindy: She calls herself a troubadour and a vagabond. She’s from Timmins, Northern Ontario, bilingual, and she’s as at home in a Paris bistro as she is hitchhiking in Cuba, busking in Spain or making her CDs in Nashville. Her voice can whisper or roar, as the song (and the lyrics) demand. She has three solo albums, two in French, and she’s toured regularly in French Canada and Europe.
The past year saw Scarlett Jane opening for the Skydiggers, Lee Harvey Osmond (Tom Wilson of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings), Alan Doyle, and the Strumbellas, as well as joining Adam Cohen's band with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. The ladies travelled to Cuba to write songs for their next album and will be showcasing many of these new songs on this upcoming east coast tour.
Scarlett Jane: powerful and irrefutable, musically and dynamically. From the studio to the stage, this intriguing female duo is geared for great things.
Scarlett Jane: In a word, ready.
