Meet The Echo Hunters

The Echo Hunters, favorite sons of the Montreal folk-roots circuit, launched their sophomore album Cabin Fever in early November. The follow-up to their 2003 debut album Twenty Years, Cabin Fever features once again the collective writing and performing team of longtime friends Larry Cassini (lead guitar, vocals, bass, harmonica), Gordie Fleming (lead vocals, 12-string guitar, harmonica) and Rob Couture (drums, percussion), plus additional members of the collective : Kirk Fontaine (vocals, guitars, and more…), Ben Griffin (vocals, bass), Alec MacElcheran (bass), Alan Springer (dobro). Bass player Carl Rufh is currently touring with the band, with Sylvain Dancausse (violin).

The band has played festivals from Yosemite, California to Vancouver Island, British Columbia and Lunenberg, Nova Scotia and clubs and showcases throughout North America (NXNE, Folk Alliance, etc.), and along the way have opened for and backed up UK rootsman Jim Condie, roots darling Penny Lang, bluesman Rob Lutes, and in Ontario and Quebec with the UK’s Chris Jagger’s Atcha (brother of the brother) They have   just recently toured in the  UK, BC and Ontario in 2009.
The’ve also released 2 albums

The Echo Hunters, enfants chéris des circuits folk-roots de Montréal on sorti leur deuxième album Cabin Fever début novembre! Cabin Fever, qui fait suite au premier album du groupe, sorti en 2003 Twenty Years, est l’oeuvre du travail collectif des amis de longue date Larry Cassini (guitare principale, voix, bass, harmonica), Gordie Fleming (voix principale, guitare à 12 cordes, harmonica) et Rob Couture (batterie, percussions), plus autres membres de la collective : Kirk Fontaine (voix, guitares, et plus…), Alec MacElcheran (basse), Ben Griffin (voix, basse), Alan Springer (guitare résonator) et Sylvain Dancausse (violon).

Le groupe a fait des prestations aux festivals du Yosemite, California jusqu’à Vancouver, Colombie-Britannique et Lunenburg, Nouvelle-Écosse, jouant des salles et des showcases à travers l’Amérique du Nord (NXNE, Folk Alliance…). Sur la route, ils ont fait la première partie et accompagné des musiciens de renom, dont Jim Condie (roots du Royaume-Uni), la légende canadienne Penny Lang, le “bluesman” Rob Lutes et Chris Jagger’s Atcha (frère de tu-sais-qui, d’Angleterre).

The Gazette

2011: Dreams and daring, with moments of defiance and discovery

By T’Cha Dunlevy, Kathryn Greenaway, Bill Brownstein, Arthur Kaptainis, Bernard Perusse, Jordan Zivitz, Pat Donnelly, Brendan Kelly, Jeff Heinrich, Victor Swoboda and John Pohl, The Gazette December 23, 2011 7:06 PM

Dylan bash turns into 7-hour marathon
It was the best birthday party I attended all year– even if the guest of honour was never expected to show.
Bob Dylan turned 70 on May 24 and the Petit Campus was packed to what seemed like double its capacity for a celebratory bash (Dylan obsessives would call it a million-dollar one). Montreal musicians of all shapes, sizes and styles turned up to play favourites from the formidable Dylan catalogue in what turned out to be a seven-hour marathon.
Organized by broadcaster and Dylan fanatic Mitch Melnick, with his friend and business partner Lloyd Fischler, the event was as joyous as they come. The Echo Hunters, Craig Morrison, the Steamfitters, Matt Large and the Smalls, the Bones Malones, Rob Lutes, Felicity Hamer and the Shane Murphy Band were among the homegrown performers who showed up to sing Dylan songs, both comfortably well-worn and ticklingly obscure.
The audience, wildly enthusiastic with just the right pinch of rowdiness, was an all-age group of fans, seemingly from every walk of life, united only in their devotion to His Bobness. As the mini-sets piled up, next-day breakfast meetings and term papers were ignored, to be worried about only when the alarm went off in a few hours.
When the Jimmyriggers and Lee Mellor performed Chimes of Freedom, a group of friends and I raised another pint and sang along with gusto. It was the moment I had hoped for – a reminder of music’s deep, communal spell. And the fact that the night was being driven by such a life-changing body of work allowed elation to cross the line into magic.
Bernard Perusse

July 31 The Inn at Lathones, St-Andrews, Fife (Scotland) – 8:30 pm – 14£  www.theinn.co.uk
Aug 1 Brightlinsea Festival, Essex (England)  – Main Stage – 5:30 pm – free www.brightlingseamusicfest.co.uk
Aug 4 The Black Horse Inn, Amberley, West Sussex (England) – 9 pm – 7£ www.amberleyfolkclub.com
Aug 6 The Green Note, London (England) – 9pm – 8£ www.greennote.co.uk

Sometimes the finger-picked guitar riffs sound Central Asian, and there’s a general sweetness to their sound. Flute, mandolin, piano, fiddle, and percussion all enrich the mix, and the melodies really sing. The Scotsman Michael Church (June 15, 2009)

www.echohunters.com
www.myspace.com/echohunters

Listen to the CBC Radio 2 recording of Echo Hunters’ concert in Sechelt, BC (Jan. 31, 2009) at Raven’s Cry Theatre. Ecoutez le concert de Echo Hunters, enregistré par CBC Radio 2  le 31 janvier 2009  au Raven’s Cry Theatre à Sechelt, BC.

http://www.cbc.ca/radio2/cod/concerts/20090131echoh#readReviews