United Steel Workers of Montreal at the Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto, March 5 2010. Amber Anne Dawkins photo for www.thesnipenews.com

Preview–Vancouver Folk Music Festival 2010 featuring Avett Brothers, Kim Barlow, Bahamas and more

For the second year in a row, the Vancouver Folk Music Festival has a beer garden! Yay! That’s not the only thing we can look forward to, of course – there’s also the moms with tank-size strollers, topless lesbians and, well, the music itself.

Here are our picks, based solely on our actually having heard of the act or because someone in the band belly dances:

Annie Lou (Whitehorse) – A four-piece of “northern women” (see: Ladies of the Canyon, a quartet of “eastern women”). Selling point: features Kim Barlow, whose song “Get In the Car” off her album Luckyburden is a small marvel.

Natacha Atlas – Electronic beats with Arabic and North African music. Selling point: belly dances, has worked with Jah Wobble and Sinead O’Connor.

The Avett Brothers – Have had many people recommend these guys. (Friday night mainstage)

Bahamas – Basically one dude, Afie Jurvanen, a guitarist for Feist. The Bahamas album Pink Strat is quite a heartbreaker.

Bahamas’ Afie Jurvanen at the West End Cultural Centre, Winnipeg, April 3 2010. Gabrielle Touchette photo

Calexico – Everyone likes these guys, who have one foot in the alt-country genre and another in mariachi music. Actually that doesn’t begin to explain this American band’s wide-ranging sound. (Friday night mainstage)

Sarah Harmer – Of course. (Saturday night mainstage, plus workshops)

Colin Hay – Used to front Men at Work. Sort of an Australian Mark Knopfler. (Sunday)

Bettye LaVette – Veteran soul singer from Detroit. Isn’t everyone in Detroit a soul singer? Selling point: still wears black leather.

Ladies of the Canyon – Four harmonizing gals from Montreal.

The Malahat Revue – Jeremy Fisher, Said the Whale, Hannah Georgas and Aidan Knight are crossing the province on their bikes. They’ll refuel with a stop at the folk festival Sunday night. (Watch Malahat Revue at Sugar, Victoria, July 10 2010.)

Namgar – Wear weird headdresses and are from Mongolia.

Nathan – This Winnipeg folk-pop group, led by Keri Latimer, has some great tunes.

United Steel Workers of Montreal – The six-piece Montreal band has one of the sexiest singer/accordionists in Canada in its lineup. And Guttersnipe scribe eugene osudar swears by ’em.

Felicity Hamer with United Steelworkers of Montreal at Le Petit Campus, Montreal, April 25 2009. Amber Anne Dawkins photo