Ben's Motel
Ottawa, Canada | Established. Jan 01, 2015
Music
Press
"Claymore Pub & Table
95 King St. W., Cobourg
905-372-5231
"Thursday, August 3
7-10pm - Karaoke
"Monday, August 7
6pm - The Everything Bagel duet (no cover)" - Taken from >>> https://kawarthanow.com/2023/08/03/nightlifenow-august-3-to-9-2023/ - KawarthaNOW
"THE EVERYTHING BAGEL PRESENTS Table Turned in Cobourg with The Everything Bagel
"Date: Monday 7 August 2023
"Time: 7-11 p.m.
"Location: The Claymore Pub & Table (95 King St. W., Cobourg)
"Cost: No cover
"As part of The Everything Bagel's Tableturn Tour 2023, a duet of instrumentalists will play original songs with a sprinkling of soca and reggae covers. Doors open at 6 p.m.
"For more information visit https://www.facebook.com/events/2123797251154654/." - Taken from kawarthaNOW.com (Monday, July 24, 2023), Available https://kawarthanow.com/event/63836/table-turned-in-cobourg-with-the-everything-bagel/ - kawarthaNOW
"A duet of instrumentalists from The Everything Bagel will play soca and reggae covers interspersed with folk-shoegazer fusion original songs on Civic Holiday Monday, 7 August 2023, at The Claymore Pub and Table in Cobourg, Ontario. Door: 6 PM - free admission...Turn, turn, turn!!!" - Taken from >>> https://www.northumberlandnews.com/events/#/details/Table-Turned-in-COBOURG/11874195/2023-08-07T18 - NorthumberlandNews.com
"Kinney's message to other songwriters thinking of applying for the foundation's grant: "I'd say: Do it!" he enthuses. "If you don't do it, you'll never know if the answer would have been yes! If you do it, it could make all the difference. Get your voice out there and heard." - Taken from >>> https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/birdsong-new-music-foundation/?mprompt=1 - CanadaHelps.org
'A new album with songs by Canadian musicians with mental health diagnoses was released Tuesday by charity Birdsong New Music Foundation. ...
'Keyboardist Allan Kinney, one of Birdsong’s songwriters, has had to overcome both clinical schizophrenia and the “innate discrimination of institutions and individuals who do not live with or understand mental health issues,” according to Birdsong.
' “If it were not for music, treatment and medication, I would not have persevered,” Kinney said. “Music is something I can’t do without.”
'The singers and songwriters on the album include Statia, Paakwasi, Earl Johnson, Dustin Harder (Prairie Soul), Ashley Bell, Thomas Messenger, Allan Kinney, Robin Benedict, Matthew Johnston, Jhmal King, Jordan Gow and David Martin.
'The album can be purchased online for $30. All proceeds from sales will be split between the artists, who own the copyright to their songs, and Birdsong New Music Foundation.' - Camilla Bains, 14 February 2023 - Available at >>> https://nowtoronto.com/culture/canadian-artists-with-mental-health-diagnoses-release-album/ - NOW Toronto
Motel Ben opens for The Everything Bagel at LIVE! on Elgin...leave your heart on LIVE! when you go home!! <3 --- Taken from >>> https://allevents.in/ottawa/get-heart-on-elgin/200023713798243 - AllEvents
"There is some overlap between the two bands’ recordings - both in repertoire and in personnel - and both bands were featured at the Ottawa fundraiser [for Birdsong Foundation]. As composer, keyboardist and singer, Allan Kinney is the anchor of both groups. ...
"The 1970s vibe permeates Allan’s recorded output, yet the music is not nostalgic. 'Not Here, Not Now' and 'Freedom of Association' are only two examples of Kinney songs whose dystopian visions reflect current anxieties. Allan’s talent as a humorist comes through on 'Designated Driver,' a hilarious polka that uses both piano and accordion to great effect. Tunes like this and 'Vlad "the Impaler" P.' - a homoerotic satire of Russia’s despised president - demonstrate Allan’s ability to obliterate the line between parody and serious social commentary." - Taken from >>> https://temporarylodgingsc.wixsite.com/tlcunincorporated/post/critical-review-of-songwriter-allan-kinney-s-repertoire-in-motel-ben-and-in-the-everything-bagel - Temporary Lodgings Collective
"Dom Polski - The Polish Combatants of Canada Hall in Ottawa, Ontario was the scene of BIRDSONG - The David Martin New Music Foundation's second artists' showcase on October 6. The sold out affair was designed to smash the social stigma surrounding musicians and others suffering with mental health issues, with music and mass inclusion as the weapons du jour. Audience and cast alike basked in the cascade of love and compassion that BIRDSONG has come to represent, and a moving, magical and magnificent evening out was had by all involved -- all the while helping to hasten the opening of doors for change and healing through compassion and song.
"Hosted by BIRDSONG founder/director Margaret Konopacki and Toronto actor and Nicolas Cage body double Marco Kyris, the evening clipped along under the guidance of Supervising Producer Bryant Didier, along with Associate Producer Allan Kinney and his bands Motel Ben and Everything Bagel providing the back-up on 15 original songs performed by five BIRDSONG artists, plus a song by BIRDSONG namesake David Martin-Konopacki, Pray For Your Peace, sung by Jordan Gow, leaving not a dry eye in the house." - Daryl Jung - taken from >>> https://birdsongfoundation.com/blogs/news/birdsong-ottawa-anti-stigma-show-a-smash-hit?fbclid=IwAR1K2T2FHPZgO35DPUr12BpnA375UzK_5jiirHEAQhD43fBUFOP-OBB7whs - Birdsong Dave Martin New Music Foundation
"This new Ottawa-based national charity will entertain you with incredible music and great food, prepared by a top Ottawa chef from Baccanalle, a unique Caribbean-style cuisine (vegan, less spice and gluten-free available). The live music show features five original BirdSong artists, along with two Ottawa bands to entertain you." - Taken from >>> https://ottawatourism.ca/en/see-and-do/birdsong-new-music-foundation-concert-and-charity-fundraiser - Ottawa Tourism
"Gordon Best Theatre
"216 Hunter St. W., Peterborough
"(705) 876-8884
"Coming Soon...
"Thursday, September 1
"8:30pm - The Everything Bagel ($10 at the door or PWYC or in advance at www.bestptbo.com/upcomingevents/the-everything-bagel)" - Taken from >>> https://kawarthanow.com/2022/07/28/nightlifenow-july-28-to-august-3-2/ - Kawartha Now
Gordon Best Theatre...let's lift each other up out of the swamps of nothingness! <3 Door: $10 or pay what you can - band starts at 8:30 PM - three sets! :) #theeverythingbagel #newartpop - Taken from >>> https://allevents.in/peterborough/the-last-1-3-revolution-per-second-in-peterborough/200022902051313 - Allevents.In
Canada Week Drag DeTour: Beauticians' Day!
Free entry with a pre-booked hair or nail appointment at https://fernandinosalon.ca/contact-us/rideau-centre/ - put on your Saint-Jean weekend sashay!! Check out The Everything Bagel at https://www.sonicbids.com/band/bens-motel/ #theeverythingbagel #newartpop - Allevents.in
"Melissa McLeod, Tansy Etro-Beko, Kim Lovell, and the late JoAnn Brooks singing give us a folky, soulful vibe while Allan gives us more of a classic musical vibe, like Phantom of the Opera.
"Surfer vibes meets a modern indie band. Vocals like pomplamoose with haunting harmonies. Folky, storytelling, spoken word, stories about everyday life; the hustle and bustle of the city life, ragtime classic instruments - talk of money, buses and trains, losing one's mind in the city, relationships, spirituality, phantom of the opera vibes, Beethoven vibes - moonlight sonata.
"This is the kind of music that grows on you: the more you listen, the more you enjoy it." - Jessica and Joanne Martin, Arnprior, Ontario, Canada - Taken from >>> https://temporarylodgingsc.wixsite.com/tlcunincorporated/post/allan-kinney-s-music-the-everything-bagel---motel-ben
https://www.sonicbids.com/band/bens-motel/
https://www.sonicbids.com/band/the-step-beyond-album/ - Jessica and Joanne Martin
'It is not lost on Kinney that were it not for music...he would not, from that low point, have persevered through three degrees, a 10-year career as a college professor, four albums, two Ottawa Bluesfest gigs, an appearance with Pellegrini Opera on keyboards in their production of Tosca, 60-plus shows with Ras Lee and the Vibes Band – and started his own band, Ben’s Motel and the GuruRebels, which plays all his original songs.
' “Music is something I can’t do without,” he says of his journey.' - Taken from >> https://birdsongfoundation.com/blogs/news/allan-kinney-s-deep-dimensions - Birdsong Foundation
"[Three] Ottawa musicians — Al Kinney, Jordan Gow and Mathew Johnson — were recorded this fall with veteran record producer Ted Adler [with the help of Birdsong Foundation]. ...
"Kinney, who has taught English at Algonquin College and was friends with David Martin, now enjoys mentoring other musicians and helping them build a supportive community.
" 'Music is unforgiving and expects the people who practise it to have super-human energy. People who struggle with mental illness or addiction face barriers of ableism and classism,' Kinney said. 'It’s a very competitive atmosphere, and that can become destructive.' " - Ottawa Citizen
Ben's Motel and the GuruRebels Return to Sonny's. 8 March 2019. Soul has its reasons. Spread the word! #theeverythingbagel - In https://www.bytownsound.ca/event/bens-motel-and-the-gururebels-sonnys/2019-03-08/ - ByTownSound
October 2017 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOwgl4KU49s&feature=youtu.be - YouTube
"...Kinney is still performing cheap shows at smallish venues.
"Kinney is one of the most important bands of our generation. ...
"Kinney is one of those bands that consistently receives kudos and acclaim from the critics. ...
"Kinney is easily the least emotionally embarrassing band around." - Taken from >> http://www.name-list.net/worldwide/surname/Kinney - name-list.net
Follow this link >> https://www.bytownsound.ca/event/bens-motel-gururebels-rainbow-3/ - Bytown Sound
Discography
Self See Us - release planned for 2024
Bucolica - release planned for 2024
Photos
Bio
Beginning with a gig at Grinders' Café in Toronto in 2014 with Ben McColl, Allan Kinney, and Ryan Carr, Ben's Motel, by 2016 consisting of Scott Corkery and Allan Kinney, joined forces with JoAnn Brooks and Jack van der Meer with Allan Kinney doubling as the third member of "The TripLettes" in playing to a full house at Castro's Lounge in Toronto's Beach neighbourhood on Monday 16 May 2016. When Allan Kinney moved back to Ottawa later that year, Ben's Motel added Michel Danis on guitar and the vocalist Natalie L'Amour at the Atomic Rooster and at The Cross on Elgin.
With Howie Inniss, Tansy Etro-Beko, James Carre, John-Marc Desmarais, Keeyah Lynn, Ricky Lyan, Abi Hutchinson, Chris LeBlanc, Kim Lovell, Stephen Kwabena, and Marc Mésile, Ben's Motel has appeared more and more often on stages in Ottawa since 2017 in various combinations and under several pseudonyms. In addition to DeTOUR at Ottawa's Fernandino Hair and Nail Spa, The Everything Bagel and Motel Ben played the well-attended, well-received and successful Thursday 6 October 2022 Ottawa release party of the first Birdsong compilation album at Dom Polski. Two long-anticipated album releases are coming in 2024: Self See Us and Bucolica. Headliners at LIVE! on Elgin on Thursday 9 February 2023, we were back at it at the Not-So-Instant Replay birthday bash at Sonny's Bar and Grill on Saturday 25 March and in Cobourg at The Claymore Pub and Table on Civic Holiday Monday 7 August! Watch our newest video from Saturday 11 November at Espace DEP Sylvestre, 230, rue Montcalm, Gatineau for our dry all-ages Birdsong Foundation Benefit - CD's were also available that night! You can now find the unofficial release of SelfSeeUs on Bandcamp! To everything there is a season! <3 <3 <3 :) :) :)
- Last updated 10 March 2024 -
Band Members
Links
