Event

Blue Monarch Presents the Annika Forrest Cd Release and Benefit Concert

Blue Monarch Presents is proud to announce Annika Forrest's CD Release and Benefit Concert, 9pm, January 25th, 2014 at the Shaker and Vine, 2929 SE Powell Boulevard
Portland, Oregon 97202. A percentage of proceeds will go to Janus Youth to benefit "at risk" youth. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door on the night of the performance.

Blue Monarch Presents in collaboration with the Annika Forrest Project are raising awareness for "at risk" youth by donating a percentage of proceeds from their CD and ticket sales to Janus Youth. Making a benevolent difference in the world through music is their primary purpose and is the spark for the projects enthusiasm since they began recording together a year ago.

Janus Youth was chosen at the recommendation of co producer Rick Bouvette who worked with Janus Youth as a Youth Care Specialists. Janus Youth has a well rounded purpose and focus that is in alignment with Blue Monarch Presents and The Annika Forrest Project.

Abused and neglected youth. Runaway, homeless and sex trafficked youth. Teen parents and their children. Low-income families living in inner-city neighborhoods. These are the children, youth and families Janus Youth Programs has championed since 1972. Every day they work with 600 youth. Every night they shelter 200 youth. Every year they help 6,000 individuals. From their programs in Oregon to those in Southwest Washington, they are changing lives and building futures. Please join us as we work together to build strong, healthy communities.

THE ANNIKA FORREST PROJECT

See a picture of the Annika Forest Project and you'll see distinct, creative people who own their space uniquely, and with expression. And if you're lucky enough to hear the Annika Forest Project, you'll experience the audio equivalent, each band member bringing distinctive talents, and voice to the group. The strengths of each weave together to create an intricate, and vibrant tapestry of sound. There's groove, mingling with folk, which sways along jazz chords, and dances with reggae beats. The music defies a focused genre, but holds an organic honesty in the vocals and lyrics, as well as the instrumentation which includes guitar, piano, drums, bass, electric guitar, and an occasional didgeridoo! The music is playful and sometimes reverent, but regardless of the tone, all the songs are rich with feeling and sincerity.

Singer-songwriter Annika Forrest is a mystic on a shaman path, weaving stories of healing, transformation, and courage throughout her creative expressions as a singer/songwriter and guitarist. Her love of nature and spirituality converge both in her music and her paintings. She has been a prolific and eclectic musician for the last two decades and has performed both solo and in several bands.

After paying homage in her previous bands to great artists like The Original Carter Family and Bill Monroe, Annika is now fully stepping into her original material. A year and half ago she began an eclectic, creatively expansive collaboration with an accomplished group of local musicians. Eric Montgomery (drums, vocals, keyboards), Rick Bouvette (bass, vocals, percussion) , Jeff Horton (guitars) and Tasha Flynn (keys, vocals) have combined their many talents into what is now a dynamic five piece band. Fusing styles that draw on many years of professional experience, Annika Forrest and her band seamlessly weave together styles ranging from bluegrass and reggae to blues and rock. Their recent debut album release, Fountain, has gained immediate recognition and acclaim and the band has quickly attained an enthusiastic following.

Annika grew up in the mountains of Oregon's coastal range and has lifelong roots in folk, bluegrass, and old time music. these influences are woven into her songwriting and guitar playing, her exposure to many genres is clear in her versatility as an artist. Annika began singing and performing in childhood and writing songs at the age of eighteen. She was a founding member of the band, The Red Rose Girls, and the Old Time band, Sweet Fern (founded with Doug Sammons of the Midnight Serenaders and Sam Hill).

As a seasoned performer Annika has shared the stage with such artists as The Sawtooth Mountain Boys, Bryan Bowers, and Joe Craven. Her reputation as a strong and accomplished vocalist has garnered her respect from the Northwest's top musicians. As a guitarist she gracefully oscillates between steady, traditional rhythms and innovative, melodic, finger-picking styles. Her intelligent, transcendent lyrics and ability to connect with an audience on a personal level can bring them to tears one moment, and have them dancing on their feet the next. She writes to inspire and imbues her songs with a soulful, heartfelt message. Two of Annika's songs were featured in the Emmy award winning documentary, Hostages At Home.

Eric Montgomery co produced the album in addition to performing drums, keyboards, and vocals. Performing both as a piano/vocal soloist and a drummer, he is best known for his performing/recording as a frontman with Montgomery Park in Denver, Colorado, and Maurice The Fish, the number one rated corporate cover band. Some of Eric's most rewarding musical works include, Welcome River, a collection of delicate piano meditations created for his daughter in utero, and producing a sound bed of shamanic journeys for the Peaceful Earth meditations by Peace Prize winner, author, and speaker, Lisa Hepner.

Rick Bouvette co produced the album with Eric Montgomery in addition to performing bass guitar, percussion, vocals, and keyboards. He is an artist of many mediums, with a deep love of music and rhythm from as early as he can remember. He began on the saxophone in elementary school, which later led to percussion, voice, lyric and his true love, bass. As his songwriting marinated and fused with his deep love for indigenous groove, producing and arranging became a natural progression in his musical path, integrating genres and cultures into his commitment to conscious creativity in Spirit.

As a producer team and rhythm section , Rick and Eric have an undeniable and grounding kinetic synergy. They have a tremendous intuition for intriguing arrangements, keeping the listener captivated whether producing, performing or writing with voice, drums, bass and keyboards. They integrate their love of ancient shamanic wisdom, rhythm, and melody with a modern pop sensibility.

Annika, Rick and Eric began collaborating on Annika's first full production solo album in the fall of 2012 after each were synchronistically called to focus on spirit driven music projects that give back to community by raising the awareness of "at risk" youth.

They recruited singer songwriter, Tasha Flynn, on keyboards and backing vocals to fulfill the projects creative performance demands. She is a recent graduate of Portland State University's music department. She has written arrangements and compositions for choir, woodwinds, cello/piano duet, and piano solo. As an M.Ed, she has taught piano and voice around Portland for the last ten years. Tasha Flynn Band is her first endeavor onto the jazz/pop/rock performance scene. Tasha has a unique, energetic, soulful vocal and addictive songwriting skills.

Accomplished guitarist and producer Jeff Horton naturally adds his unique, catchy and edgy guitar stylings to the songwriting with a shared passion for making a positive impact on the world through the expression of music. As the founder and lead guitarist for the highly successful band Wild Dogs, Jeff has toured and shared the stage with some of the top rock musicians in the business including Metallica, Quiet Riot, Dio, Rising Force, Raven and Slayer. Signed by Capitol Records Jeff has had the opportunity to work with many other artists and write for several great labels including MCA Records and Atlantic.

Annika's prophetic lyrical wisdom and catchy songwriting, infused with the bands dynamic and cross-genre performance is sure to inspire and entertain even the most discerning listeners.

Location

Shaker and Vine (View)
2929 SE Powell Boulevard Portland, Oregon 97202
Portland, OR 97202
United States

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