The O’Pears are a Toronto-based contemporary folk trio made up of Lydia Persaud, Jill Harris and Meg Contini, three songwriters who weave stories that stir the spirit and capture the timeless character of folk music. Like Those Nights, their debut album, captures soaring harmonies and a seamless blend, evoking the profound intimacy of Nick Drake, the sister-like blend of The Staves and the dynamic harmony of Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Live performances turn the loudest bar into the warmest house concert, with their endearing, unabashed personalities balancing the intimate sincerity of the songs. They recently performed to high acclaim at festivals such as Summerfolk, Great Heart Festival, Lunenburg Folk Harbour Festival, garnered radio play across Canada, including CBC, and have been featured live with Royal Wood, Good Lovelies, Michelle Willis, and Coco Love Alcorn. Each band member a distinctly talented musician with a stand-alone voice, style, and stage presence, when these three come together it is breathtaking. A striking mix of tight a cappella and rootsy instrumentation, Like Those Nights explores lessons learned about love and loss through the eyes and hearts of young Canadian storytellers. The O’Pears continue to bring a strong, honest voice to the modern female perspective.
Opening with Olive Bestvater
Olive Bestvater is a violin player from the Prairies. The first non-classical musical project that she took part in was Saskatoon folk duo Little Criminals, singing and playing violin. She has since played violin and sang in numerous groups of diverse genres, ranging from streetband jazz (Old Time Honey, the After Eleven Blues Club) to doom metal (Black Tremor, Zaum). Since moving to Eganville to look after Pam and Paul McNeil’s house, write her thesis and train her dog, Olive has started spending more time with her guitar; several songs have happened as a result.