The Stephen Stanley Band

Jason Mercer and I have spent the last year dancing around the idea of how we might play some music together. Jason is one of my favourite players on the planet. I first knew him as a bassist, but he’ll be bringing his banjo to this project as well... In recent times, Jason had all but put down the electric bass, so we knew this wasn’t going to be a rock/guitar endeavour... After a booking at The St. Alban’s Hall in Adolphustown, Ontario was followed by an interesting request to make the show all-acoustic, Stephen Stanley & NoElectric was born. It was a no-brainer that my closest collaborator for the past 15 years, Chris Bennett, would join in on 6 and 12 string guitars... I then felt we needed one more person to bring this all-acoustic band together. Over a decade ago, one of the jewels of the Toronto music scene was a bar in the Junction called The Troubadour. It was there that I first met Michael O’Grady - and not long after he became the focus of the third verse of a song I wrote called “The Troubadour’s Song” Michael is a brilliant live performer and brings both the accordion and the tin whistle to the NoElectric fold... And everyone sings...! Add in me on acoustic guitar and NoElectric lives! The music will be a walk through my entire catalogue from the early days right up to the present including songs from Lowest of the Low, Too Many Sisters and The Stephen Stanley Band, along with some new ones that have yet to be heard. For this tour we’ll be joined by our special guest Piner, namely their lead singer and guitarist, Claya Way Brackenbury. Claya will kick off every night of this tour with her beautiful socially conscious music and as a bonus, she’ll join NoElectric for a few songs. We honestly can’t wait. See you soon Ontario! -Stephen Stanley