Piggy reunion show to steal Haligonians' hearts all over again

You'd beryllium hard-pressed to find a radical of section euphony lovers much enthusiastic and nostalgic than those who volition undoubtedly beryllium lining the sidewalk of Gottingen Street successful Halifax adjacent week.

They besides mightiness beryllium a small much grizzled than your mean assemblage for a section gig — though, successful fairness, the musicians whitethorn be, too.

On May 8, a tiny portion of Halifax euphony past volition beryllium revived, arsenic Piggy the Calypso Orchestra of the Maritimes plays a one-night-only reunion show.

The beloved Halifax set won the hearts of galore Haligonians done the eclectic, energetic shows they played from 1994 to precocious 2000.

Up to 10 musicians would assemblage the stage, including the accustomed guitar, drums, bass and keyboards, but besides horns, flute, clarinet, banjo, accordion and the occasional kazoo, and the effect was a joyful raucousness driven by ideals of societal justness and infused with kindness.

"It was benignant of similar if determination was an outlaw hippie Sesame Street," says Maggie Rahr, who attended Piggy shows arsenic an aboriginal teenager.

"They were conscionable truthful saccharine and open, but besides unpacking immoderate quality complexity and conscionable benignant of showing america a mode of being that is peaceful and loving."

Piggy songs often touched connected themes of inequality, poverty, capitalism and different superior subjects, but astir ever with a playful sound.

The Person Behind the Counter encouraged radical to beryllium bully to those successful the work industry, The Thin Man examined the issues of hunger and poverty, She's Stepping Out is astir coming retired arsenic queer, and Emma Goldman is a existent banger of a tribute to the celebrated anarchist.

Lead vocalist Paul Gailiunas says Piggy's political bent was intentional.

"That was a main motivating origin for maine personally successful a set was to effort to address, you know, things that were important issues," helium says.

The different motive, helium says, was to marque it "as amusive and wacky arsenic possible." Musicians often dressed up successful costumes and shows often featured creation contests — which Rahr erstwhile won, and was treated to a peculiar prize of going to spot the movie Babe: Pig successful the City with the full band.

In an epoch erstwhile Halifax was dubbed the "next Seattle" and bands similar Sloan, Thrush Hermit, Jale and The Super Friendz were making it big, Piggy wasn't angling for grounds deals oregon fame.

"It was much of a labour of emotion and a amusive creation project, a communal creation project," Gailiunas says.

Drummer Graham MacDougall volition beryllium performing with the set astatine the reunion show, and says it's been amusive revisiting the songs aft a 4th period — adjacent if helium can't rather retrieve immoderate of them due to the fact that they're lone connected cassette tapes and helium doesn't person a subordinate anymore.

With immoderate members of the set — similar Gailiunas, who present lives successful California — coming from retired of town, MacDougall says radical rehearsals volition beryllium limited, truthful the reunion amusement volition apt beryllium "pretty scrappy and beauteous overmuch successful tone with the archetypal band."

Although galore of the performers were precise accomplished musicians, that "ad hoc, advertisement libbed" dependable is simply "part of the charm" of Piggy, MacDougall says.

Stephen Kelly, who played banjo with the band, says the performances were sometimes connected the brink of devolving into chaos — particularly erstwhile Gailiunas would outcry "everybody solo!" and each the members would bash a solo astatine the aforesaid time.

"You conscionable went with it and tried to enactment successful tune … but grounded by the operation of these awesome songs," Kelly says.

Rooted successful community

At the bosom of Piggy's music was ever the assemblage — peculiarly the North End, wherever galore set members lived and wherever Gailiunas, a doctor, practised medicine astatine the assemblage wellness session connected Gottingen Street.

Kelly says helium remembers moving into Gailiunas 1 May Day successful Halifax erstwhile Gailiunas was wandering the streets with his guitar, singing.

"One of the ways helium wrote songs was to locomotion astir the vicinity with his acoustic guitar and deliberation astir Halifax and deliberation astir what was going connected arsenic inspiration for the melodies and the lyrics that helium came up with," Kelly says.

Gailiunas near Halifax successful 2001, moving to New Orleans with his wife, Helen Hill, an artist, animator and filmmaker who was portion of the originative genius down Piggy, wrote immoderate of the songs with Gailiunas and directed respective euphony videos for the band.

Hill died successful 2007 when an intruder entered the couple's New Orleans location and changeable them, sidesplitting her and injuring Gailiunas. The couple's lad Francis, who was a toddler astatine the time, was uninjured.

Although Gailiunas's clip successful Halifax was steeped successful his beingness with Hill, and those memories are definite to aboveground erstwhile helium visits, Gailiunas says he's feeling "really affirmative and excited" astir returning. 

"I loved being determination truthful much. That was a large clip successful my life," helium says.

Gailiunas volition beryllium visiting Halifax this clip with his lad Francis and his woman Lecie, and helium plans to marque definite they effort authentic Nova Scotia oatcakes, spot Peggys Cove and locomotion astir the North End.

Francis volition execute immoderate songs with the band, which volition besides debut a caller Piggy song. 

Gailiunas says Piggy songs thin to beryllium precise simple, truthful he's not excessively disquieted astir forgetting the chords oregon words.

"Most of them we conscionable sang them truthful overmuch that they're ever going to beryllium there," helium says.

One situation with the show, Gailiunas says, is that the Gottingen Street venue, Radstorm, is small, with a capableness of astir 50 people.

But for fans who are disquieted that they won't get in, conscionable retrieve Piggy's immortal words: "Down connected Gottingen Street there's ever country for you!"