A Foothills favourite is making the rounds with a festive set list.
The Travelling Mabels are back on the road, kicking off the On the Edge concert series Nov. 27 at Red Deer Lake United Church.
“We’re so happy that Red Deer Lake was able to include us, we’re really looking forward to it,” said Keith Floen, who plays the keys as a quarter of the Mabels, along with Lana Floen, Eva Levesque and Therry Lawson, who offer a mixture of vocals, guitar, bass and percussion.
“We did one last year and it was so successful we decided to do a bunch more.”
Red Deer Lake is the second stop on its tour, one the group is all too eager to get back to.
“I love the venue, it’s great sounding, there’s lots of space but it’s still intimate and the people are wonderful,” Floen said.
As in past years, the group will be bringing its own folksy flavour of festivity to the stage.
"It’s going to be holiday music, a few original holiday songs,” Floen said. “A lot of stuff people know, maybe an obscure one people haven’t heard.
“I’ll be throwing out a little bit of the Charlie Brown Vince Guaraldi music – gotta do my Linus impression.”
When the group formed in 2008, it drew its name from a dog named Mabel that Levesque had known.
The band began with Eva Levesque’s daughter Suzanne, who went on to start her own act with husband Craig Bignell dubbed Over the Moon, with Lawson stepping in to fill the spot, offering her talent in singing and writing.
This past June the group marked the release of its new album Take Me Home with a concert at Turner Valley’s Flare n’ Derrick.
With songs written by Levesque, Lana Floen and Lawson, the album featured an amalgam of blues, rock and folksy tunes with a hint of ‘50s country.
“It’s been really well received,” Floen said. “It’s a bit of a new sound, Lana’s playing a lot more percussion which is really cool, and we’ve been having a lot of fun just getting out and playing, getting out in front of people.
“On the other end, the audience has been super receptive, because they’ve all been eager to get out and listen to live music too.”
One song on the album, Alberta Blue, was turned into a children’s board book by Red Barn Books and is available online or at the concert.
The concert is Nov. 27 at 3 p.m., with doors open at 2 p.m.
Tickets can be purchased at reddeerlakeuc.com/tickets. They are $30 for adults, $15 for youth ages 13-18, and free for children 12 and under (but a slot must still be booked). Season tickets can also be purchased for $120.
For all other information about the Travelling Mabels, visit thetravellingmabels.com.
