"That Banjo Guy" Anthony Damiao
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"That Banjo Guy" Anthony Damiao

Guelph, Ontario, Canada | SELF

Guelph, Ontario, Canada | SELF
Solo Folk Singer/Songwriter

Calendar

This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

Music

Press


"Interview with Indie Roundtable"

(video) - Indieroundtable.com


"Interview with Indie Roundtable"

(video) - Indieroundtable.com


"Damiao's Day in the Sun is Coming"

Now in its eighth year, the Non-Violence Festival’s Day in the Park strives to bring the community together with the simple message that we should reject violence in all forms, and affirm citizens’ rights to liberty. Local vendors, artists, musicians, and dozens of volunteers crowd Victoria Park each year to educate and entertain the families drawn to the festival’s sights, sounds, and delicious smells. Among the performers this year is local folk singer Anthony Damiao.

“It’s a diverse community, which is the best kind of community,” Damiao says of the festival. “It brings people who maybe wouldn’t normally meet, together with one basic message. I mean, everybody is against violence, on their own terms, but I think the best way of resisting any kind of violence is to build community and I think they do that really well. It’s inspiring.”

Although Damiao’s career as a musician is in its infancy, he already has one record under his belt. Last May he released his debut EP: a live-off-the-floor set of earnest, jaunty Canadian folk. The songs are all anchored by Damaio’s supple, reedy croon, and supported by brushed snares, kazoo, banjo, and punchy acoustic guitars. So far, it has served as an easy calling card for the young singer, earning him CBC radio play and a growing number of festival appearances.

“We made (the record) at Maxwell’s Music House, really early in the morning,” Damiao explains. “We did two, maybe three takes of each songs, and some of the songs we weren’t even really sure how we were going to end them, we just played it by ear. But it all turned out really nice. I still really like how natural it sounds. It was very low-stress to make. I’ve been in studios a couple times since then and it’s really stressful playing to a click-track or trying to get everything just right. That one was just fun to make and I think you can hear that. There (are) even parts of it where you can hear me whispering to the banjo player about the part coming up next. Everybody was having fun. That’s my favourite (method of making records), and it’s usually (the kind of music) I like to listen to as well.”

The EP’s strongest tune, Walk Around, is a fine display of Damiao’s intentions as a writer. In it, he pines for love and travel; bobs and weaves with his banjo-player; and name-checks the provinces of Saskatchewan and Ontario, as well as our own Waterloo Region. It’s a naked portrait of a young, unsure Canadian man, with big dreams.

“I try to be as true to myself as possible,” he says. “I like to be very particular with my songs. Rather than some Canadian songwriters, good or not, that will write a song about waking up in New Orleans or Tennessee or something and they’ve never been there. In my songs, if there’s a certain idea or feeling that I want to capture, I try to connect it with someplace I’ve been or something I’ve experienced. And other people will get to connect with it too because they live in Waterloo, or they’ve been to Montreal a few times. I also just love Canadian music and if there’s an opportunity to connect my music with the country I grew up in, then why wouldn’t I?”

Damiao is optimistic about his fledgling career, and is excited to contribute to the culture of Canadian troubadours. He’s written nearly 100 songs (so far) for album No. 2 , in the hopes that the more he writes, the more likely he is to come up with a couple of true gems. His wide-ranging influences, from the Clash and the Replacements, to Dave Van Ronk, C.R. Avery, and especially Bob Dylan, have helped to keep him inspired and eager to grow.

“I consider myself a folk singer, but I also want to sound different,” he explains. “That’s important to me. I want to continue to strive for new things and these (influences) just keep me looking for new ideas.” - Kitchener-Waterloo Record


"Damiao's Day in the Sun is Coming"

Now in its eighth year, the Non-Violence Festival’s Day in the Park strives to bring the community together with the simple message that we should reject violence in all forms, and affirm citizens’ rights to liberty. Local vendors, artists, musicians, and dozens of volunteers crowd Victoria Park each year to educate and entertain the families drawn to the festival’s sights, sounds, and delicious smells. Among the performers this year is local folk singer Anthony Damiao.

“It’s a diverse community, which is the best kind of community,” Damiao says of the festival. “It brings people who maybe wouldn’t normally meet, together with one basic message. I mean, everybody is against violence, on their own terms, but I think the best way of resisting any kind of violence is to build community and I think they do that really well. It’s inspiring.”

Although Damiao’s career as a musician is in its infancy, he already has one record under his belt. Last May he released his debut EP: a live-off-the-floor set of earnest, jaunty Canadian folk. The songs are all anchored by Damaio’s supple, reedy croon, and supported by brushed snares, kazoo, banjo, and punchy acoustic guitars. So far, it has served as an easy calling card for the young singer, earning him CBC radio play and a growing number of festival appearances.

“We made (the record) at Maxwell’s Music House, really early in the morning,” Damiao explains. “We did two, maybe three takes of each songs, and some of the songs we weren’t even really sure how we were going to end them, we just played it by ear. But it all turned out really nice. I still really like how natural it sounds. It was very low-stress to make. I’ve been in studios a couple times since then and it’s really stressful playing to a click-track or trying to get everything just right. That one was just fun to make and I think you can hear that. There (are) even parts of it where you can hear me whispering to the banjo player about the part coming up next. Everybody was having fun. That’s my favourite (method of making records), and it’s usually (the kind of music) I like to listen to as well.”

The EP’s strongest tune, Walk Around, is a fine display of Damiao’s intentions as a writer. In it, he pines for love and travel; bobs and weaves with his banjo-player; and name-checks the provinces of Saskatchewan and Ontario, as well as our own Waterloo Region. It’s a naked portrait of a young, unsure Canadian man, with big dreams.

“I try to be as true to myself as possible,” he says. “I like to be very particular with my songs. Rather than some Canadian songwriters, good or not, that will write a song about waking up in New Orleans or Tennessee or something and they’ve never been there. In my songs, if there’s a certain idea or feeling that I want to capture, I try to connect it with someplace I’ve been or something I’ve experienced. And other people will get to connect with it too because they live in Waterloo, or they’ve been to Montreal a few times. I also just love Canadian music and if there’s an opportunity to connect my music with the country I grew up in, then why wouldn’t I?”

Damiao is optimistic about his fledgling career, and is excited to contribute to the culture of Canadian troubadours. He’s written nearly 100 songs (so far) for album No. 2 , in the hopes that the more he writes, the more likely he is to come up with a couple of true gems. His wide-ranging influences, from the Clash and the Replacements, to Dave Van Ronk, C.R. Avery, and especially Bob Dylan, have helped to keep him inspired and eager to grow.

“I consider myself a folk singer, but I also want to sound different,” he explains. “That’s important to me. I want to continue to strive for new things and these (influences) just keep me looking for new ideas.” - Kitchener-Waterloo Record


"RukusRadio on Anthony Damiao"

"Anthony is quite the talent, playing a mix of folk and rock, in a way that makes it fun to listen to. His music has real balance and his voice just smoothly slides across the guitar, which is why Rukus Radio likes his sound, as well as his stories, to which I am personally interested."
-Kelly Hornblower
Rukus Radio - RukusRadio


Discography

Upcoming Full length to be released in May 2013

Anthony Damiao- 2011 EP

My first selftitled EP recieved radio play on CBC Radio 1's "On The Go" in St. John's, Newfoundland and also recieves regular radioplay on www.ruckusradio.com , Radio Laurier, and Kitchener-Waterloo's "Sound FM"

Jack and the Beanstalk- single 2010

I'd Buy Yours- 2010 (8 track demo collection)

Photos

Bio

"A better banjo player than me fo' shizzle"
- CR Avery

"Guelph is ****ing lucky to have him"
- Roger Marin

I grew up listening to early new wave bands and British Isle punkers, all of them held together by a Beatles cassette which lived in my father's truck.

Always a writer in one regard or another, I found my storytelling nature most sincerely connected to the folk tradition. Finding inspiration in the likes of Bob Dylan, Amelia Curran, Tom Waits and Joe Strummer, I have spent my years as a songwriter expanding upon the grey area between folk storytelling and rock n roll.

My efforts in the folk/roots genre have earned me performances at NXNE and the S.C.E.N.E. Music Festival among others, and a Canadian tour from Ontario to Newfoundland. They have also gained the attention of award winning Canadian folk artists with whom I have been privileged enough to share the stage. (Amelia Curran, Ben Caplan, C.R. Avery, Charlotte Cornfield, Jason Webley-- Seattle folk hero).

Coming from a theatrical entertainment background, I cherish the laughs and the singalongs with live audiences just as much as I enjoy the moments of quiet and reflection more often associated with folk music. My songs stretch from the witty and goofy, to the capturing of human experience with sound, words, and energy.

I have recorded one EP which has been featured on CBC Radio 1s On The Go and am currently working on my first full length release.

See you on the road,
Anthony Damiao

Festival and Performance Experience:

- Canadian Music Week 2013
- NXNE 2012
- S.C.E.N.E. Music Festival 2012
- Winterfolk 2013
- Folk Alliance showcase 2013
- Come Together Music Festival 2012
- Cicada Music Festival 2012
- KOI Music Festival 2012
- Broken Arts Music Festival 2012
- KW Non-Violence Festival 2012
- Fresh Water Jamboree 2012
- Kitchener Earth Day 2012
- Midsummer Madness Festival 2011, near St John, NB
- Eastern Canada tour 2011
- Have shared the stage with: Amelia Curran, Ben Caplan, CR Avery, Jason Webley (Evelyn Evelyn, Amanda Palmer), Charlotte Cornfield and others

Band Members