WEYBURN – An Alberta-based rock pianist, Curtis Labelle, will bring his four-piece band to Weyburn on Wednesday, March 23, to play a rock show on the stage at the Weyburn Legion Hall at 7 p.m.
The independent singer-songwriter is in the midst of a four-month “High on Pride” tour that will take him across Canada until June 25.
Born in Vernon, B.C., he is currently based out of Red Deer, Alta.
Labelle first began to learn how to play the piano at the age of four and has been playing the instrument for about 35 years now, including teaching piano as well as performing and writing his own music.
“It has been a phenomenal journey,” he said of his musical career, noting he’s been singing and composing for about 20 years, and has been a solo independent artist for the past four years.
Labelle said he declined to sign with a label, hoping to avoid all the red tape by working for himself as an independent artist.
“My management team, from my booking assistant all the way down to my touring assistant, said it was time to do a tour and share my music. As a proud gay man, we came up with the title for the tour, ‘High on Pride’,” he said.
“It’s a big touring production. We bring our own lighting and sound and my purple piano, and a full crew is with us,” he added, noting he will have a band with guitar, bass and drums playing with him on stage.
Style-wise, he notes he’s been compared to the rock piano sounds of Elton John and Billy Joel as well as with the classic piano and comedian, Victor Borge.
“I’ve created my own style,” said Labelle. “We are travelling with my purple piano that lights up with LEDs. It’s high-impact energy that combines the electric performance of an Elton John with the cool entertainment of Billy Joel.”
He pointed out also this is an all-ages concert that will appeal to both a younger generation and an older one. Labelle has a number of music videos on YouTube, under “Curtis Labelle Music”, that people can watch to get a sense of his style of playing.
Advance tickets can be bought online on his website for $10, or for $15 at the door.
