Don’t even bother reading this article.
Just skip to the end, to the where, when and how much and get your tickets because I have no idea how to describe the spectacle that is BA Johnston, but you won’t want to miss it.
Johnston agrees that it is not easily described.
“It’s kind of like a low-rent Vegas floorshow,” he said. “It’s pretty weird but that’s not going to sell tickets. You kind of have to see it to believe it.”
You can get a taste for Johnston’s music on his albums but there is an added element of danger to the live show, which he describes as “walking the tightrope of disaster”.
His newest album Shit Sucks made the long-list for the 2015 Polaris Prize, a prestigious award for creativity and diversity in recorded Canadian music. Song titles include Pizza Party for One, When is Trash Day and Drinking on My Mom’s Dime.
Johnston said he started out as a folk singer in North Bay the early 1990s.
“I realized that audiences don’t pay attention so the set evolved as a series of gimmicks to force drunk people to listen. Over time the things that worked became staples of the show,” said Johnston. “I find my fan base, as much as they complain that my show never changes, they also hate when I change anything,”
As a result, you get a belly-rubbing, high-kicking snot rocketeer in a cat sweatshirt singing about IKEA hotdogs. Like I said, not to be missed.
Members of The Silver Hearts and DJ Homecooked will be opening.
BA Johnston is performing at the Creemore Legion on Saturday, Jan. 30. Tickets cost $15 in advance and are available at The Creemore Echo office at 3 Caroline St. W. and online at www.ticketscene.ca/events/14416. Tickets may also be available at the door for $20. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. and the show starts at 8 p.m. The Legion is located at 27 Wellington St. W.
Visit www.BAJohnston.ca.