Sly Violet
Kawartha Lakes, Ontario, Canada | Established. Jan 01, 2005 | SELF
Music
Press
Originally from Halifax, Aileen Violet Clarke developed a nomadic spirit since the age of six, with her family moving to London, Keswick, Brantford and finally Freelton. She found herself in music and adopted the performing moniker of Shy Violet. This weekend she celebrates her debut CD release.
“I’ve been musical my whole life,” explains Violet. "I wanted to start a band and because music is such an outlet for me.” Studying piano from the age of three, Violet picked up the guitar at 13 and formed her first band by 16. By 2001, the original incarnation of Shy Violet came to be, but band members fell by the wayside until she became a soloist. The name, however, stuck.
With allusions to the ‘80’s cartoon series Rainbow Brite, Shy Violet dons big glasses and colorful garb that matches the creative and sensitive personality within. Her eponymous CD is a smattering of sparse acoustic folk with Hayden, Dashboard Confessional and less humorous Murmurs as touchstones. Violet admits a strong emotional outpouring in every song. “I’ve always been a person with too many ideas in my head and too many emotions, so I guess music and writing is my way of letting it all out,” confides the singer.
The self-recorded CD features Violet on guitar, bass and piano with guests Mitchell Rushton and Jeff Elliott. For the release party, Shy Violet hopes to share her words and music in an open and supportive atmosphere.
“I’d like the music to be the focus of the evening and The Staircase has a really relaxed listening environment,” says Violet. “I think my sound is pretty different and original sounding than most popular music today or even most local musicians that I’ve heard and the live performances are definitely something to see.”
Shy Violet celebrates her debut CD release this Sunday at The Staircase Theatre in Hamilton.
- View Magazine
“Just blown away by, not just by your singing which is great, your songwriting, guitar playing and everything so I think you’ve got a real gem here (referring to the new EP). One of the things I thought of when I heard it, just beautiful singing voice and everything it did put me to mind of Joni Mitchell a little bit.”
- Dave Illman, 91.9 BOB FM Lindsay, ON
- Dave Illman
October 21st at the Indie Attic the folk rock duo from Lindsay Ontario Sly Violet graced the Cajun Attic stage (Ottawa, ON). Their laid back and gentle demeanor could be felt all through out the room as the soft-spoken pair poured all their energy into their unique blend of modern folk. Violet enchanted the audience with her sincere and passionate delivery as she skillfully coaxed her acoustic guitar to sing along with her. While Sly slipped into the the trance of the beat as he played his beautiful stand up cocktail drum kit.
The duo is currently on tour traveling across Ontario, stay tuned into their website (www.slyviolet.ca) to see when Sly Violet may be playing a venue near you!
- Heather Farmer, Indie Buzz Werks - Indie Buzz Werks
Quite often, the emotion of a powerful ballad loses its impact when partnered with heavy instrumentals. Such is not the case with Sly Violet - the musical duo of Woodville's Aileen Violet Clarke and percussionist Sly Boston - which is poised to take their new EP release Feel Your Way Out on a tour this month.
The duo kicks off the A Folk in the Road Tour this Saturday with a performance at Sweet Bottoms Coffee in Fenelon Falls, beginning at 7p.m. with stops in Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan on the tour, ending in British Columbia in mid-November. Violet has studied piano since age three, opting to pick up the guitar 10 years later. She started out as a solo performer eight years ago, with a focus on her own brand of folk rock, companioned with heartfelt lyrics, and formed her first band at age 16. At age 22, she won the Kawartha Lakes Idol competition in 2007 and went on to make the top 100 in Canadian Idol later that year.
Although she had released her debut, self-titled CD under the name Shy Violet, in 2004 a name change to Sly Violet was logical after connecting with Mr. Boston in the spring. "Which has really rounded out the sound, we fit really well together," said Violet.
On the six-track EP, Violet sings about found love, lost love and the confusion of life in between. The release showcases the evolution and maturity of Violet’s music and compositions.
The release was produced at both Studio 13 in Hamilton and the Sly Violet studio and will be distributed independently, as well as online at www.slyviolet.ca and at live performances. Sly Violet's music has received airplay on CBC Radio 1 & 3, BOB FM, K-Lite FM and CFRC. For more on Sly Violet, visit their website at www.slyviolet.ca.
- Kawartha Lakes This Week Newspaper
Discography
FRIENDS FROM FAR PLACES - March 7, 2015
- Adore
- Into the Woods
- Love Gravity
- Dark November
- Reality
- Trees Dance
- Low Down
- Sooner Than Later
- We Should Sleep
- Drive Home
- The Rain (Good things are coming)
- Always Been
KING OF THE MOUNTAIN ep - Sept 29, 2011
- Stuck in Our Ways
- Low Down
- Deep Beneath the Frost
- Life is Good
FEEL YOUR WAY OUT ep - October 23, 2009
1. Trees Dance
2. Drive Home
3. Adore
4. Sooner Than Later
5. Sometimes...
6. Forget Those Days
Photos
Bio
Website: www.slyviolet.ca
Sly Violet consists of Violet Clarke (vocals, guitar, harmonica, keyboard, bass) and Sly Boston (drums, percussion). Their original songs combine influences of artists such as Jack Johnson, Neil Young, Alanis Morissette and Hayden into a melting pot of modern alternative folk rock.
Sly Violet has independently released 2 studio albums and 1 EP: Feel Your Way Out (2009), King of the Mountain EP (2011), and their latest Friends From Far Places (2015). They spent the month of January 2015 in a snow covered cabin near Parry Sound, ON writing and recording Friends From Far Places which was released March 7, 2015 followed by their largest tour yet in spring 2015, with 24 shows throughout Canada's east coast.
A track record of live performances over the past decade has seen Sly Violet performing on hundreds of stages across Canada, they've played shows in every province in the country. Some of the highlights have been playing The Mod Club in Toronto, Duncan's Garage Showroom on Vancouver Island, George Street in Newfoundland, ski resorts throughout the Rocky Mountains, as well as festival stages at the Blue Bridge Festival, Windfall Ecology Festival and Music in the Streets.
Violet started early in music, beginning piano lessons at the age of 3, studying classical piano for a decade before she began learning the guitar and branching out to other instruments through her teenage years. She starting writing and performing independently in 2001, sneaking into bars underage just to play at open mic nights. A few years later she met Sly in college, where they both studied Outdoor Adventure Leadership and their passion for music and outdoor recreation brought them together. Sly and Violet were married in 2005 and began playing shows together not long after, creating their band name by joining together their names.
Multiple albums have garnered radio play and music awards for the band. Their 2009 album "Feel Your Way Out" earned them BEST FOLK at the Barrie New Music Awards, and a nomination for BEST FOLK/ROOTS at the Toronto Independent Music Awards. Sly Violet’s live performance at the 2010 Honey Jam Showcase with past performers Nelly Furtado and Julie Black led to a surge in popularity for the band in Ontario, Canada. Violet was also the winner of the Kawartha Lakes Idol competition in 2007 and went on to be a Top 100 finalist on Canadian Idol later that year.
Band Members
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