Call

poster for event

When

Occurs on Sunday June 25 2023

Approximate running time: 2 hours

Venue

Big Top Chautauqua Tent Venue
32525 Ski Hill Road
Bayfield WI 54814

Event Notes

× Mat Kearney
The Acoustic Trio Tour
with Marc Scibilia
Sunday, June 25, 2023 • 7:30 PM

$32/$46/$58

Blue Canvas Club pre-sale begins Tue, Mar 28, 2023 - 12:00pm CT
General Public sale begins Tue, Apr 4, 2023 - 12:00pm CT


Unexpected, unplanned moments often yield the most beautiful results. That’s how Mat Kearney arrived at his sixth album, January Flower, a collection of honest, stripped down songs that brings the Nashville-based, Oregon-born musician back to his singer-songwriter roots.

In January of 2019, Mat packed up his recording gear and decamped to an isolated house in Joshua Tree with his childhood friend Marshall Roeman, a painter, and songwriter Eli Teplin. The plan was to use their two weeks in the desert to create a full recording studio, but a massive storm hit, deluging the area in record rainfall and shutting down their power. With the light of the wood burning stove to guide the way, Mat took the opportunity to explore music from a new angle, armed with only his voice and an acoustic guitar. It was in this desert house, accompanied by his friends, that Mat also realized that his next album needed to be as vulnerable and open as possible. He wrote affecting acoustic ballad “Blame” in under an hour, but found himself hesitating thanks to the sheer honesty in its lyrics. Marshall encouraged him to embrace the words and speak from the heart - a sensibility that pervades January Flower.

When Mat returned to Nashville he carried that spirit into the rest of the writing and recording process, re-teaming with his longtime producer Robert Marvin, who also helmed his 2006 breakout Nothing Left To Lose and 2011’s Young Love. The goal was to create songs with no other intention than simply the joy of making music. For Mat, the year-long process was about rediscovering why he loves writing songs in the first place. He brought in several older songs, including “Can’t Look Back” and “Running In Circles,” reimagining them to fit in with the newer work and kept the instrumentation simple. “Pontiac” was inspired by Bruce Hornsby, with the band tracking live to a pop backbeat, while “Stuck In the Moment” emphasizes an organic, approachable aesthetic that allows Mat’s emotional vocals to lead the way.

January Flower recalls Kearney’s early work on his gold-selling album Nothing Left To Lose, veering in a different direction from his 2018 album CrazyTalk. The album was also inspired by his acoustic tour in the fall of 2019 to promote the 10th anniversary of The City of Black and White, which was the last time Mat was on the road before everything shut down in the pandemic. His vast touring history, which includes treks with John Mayer, Sheryl Crow and NEEDTOBREATHE, is evident in the vibrancy of the songs, as is his enduring success as a recording artist. The musician has released five albums in the Billboard Top 200, with three in the Top 20, and has seen his dynamic songs placed on Grey’s Anatomy, 30 Rock and NCIS. Overall, he has over 2.5 billion global streams. It’s been a long and winding path to where Mat is now, but it’s a journey he’s happy to still be taking.


Born and raised in Buffalo, NY, chart-topping singer/songwriter Marc Scibilia 's on a steady rise ever since the 2012 release of his breakout single, “How Bad We Need Each Other.” In the last several years alone, he’s racked up more than 125 million streams across platforms; scored the most Shazamed moment of the 2015 Super Bowl with his stripped-down take on “This Land Is Your Land”; seen his music featured in a slew of film and television soundtracks, including a recent Water.org PSA narrated by Matt Damon; written for artists as diverse as superstar DJ Robin Schulz (the pair’s “Unforgettable” is a certified Gold, #1 single, currently boasting more than 75 million streams on Spotify alone), singer/songwriters Ben Rector, Kid G, Seal, Lennon Stella and rappers Jim Jones, Rick Ross, and Fabolous; garnered praise from the likes of pop star Demi Lovato and Matchbox 20’s Rob Thomas; and toured with James Bay, Zac Brown Band, Butch Walker, and Nick Jonas, among others.

Scibilia was forced to put his burgeoning career on hold for the better part of 2019, though, when he welcomed his first child into the world while simultaneously caring for his ailing father, who would tragically pass away from brain cancer shortly thereafter. He chronicles the profound, emotional journey on his riveting new album, ‘Seed Of Joy,’ which he recorded alone in his basement studio in Nashville in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. While you might expect the finished product to be a dark and somber affair, ‘Seed Of Joy’ is, true to its name, just the opposite, fueled by soulful vocals and soaring melodies and overflowing with rich, anthemic exuberance at nearly every turn. Calling to mind everything from Paul Simon and Cat Stevens to Bleachers and Vampire Weekend, the result is a powerful slice of self-reflection that balances nostalgia and optimism in equal measure, a thoughtful, defiantly optimistic work that insists on finding silver linings, even in the face of gut-wrenching loss.

In April 2020, Samsung picked up the original 2009 demo of "How Bad We Need Each Other" for their Stay Apart, Stay Together campaign. The vitality of the initial online release led to a worldwide campaign using Marc's song. Upon welcoming his second child in 2021 Marc began releasing new singles and music videos and is currently completing work on his third full-length album set to release later this year.



Ticket Options

Lawn/Grounds Pass (Outside/Uncovered)

  • General admission access to grounds. Seating is not provided by the venue. BYO chair or blanket. Weather may impact sight lines. No access to tent seating.

Reserved Seating (Inside/Covered)

  • Includes seating provided by the venue inside the tent and covered by structure. Available seating options include 1st tier, 2nd tier, box seating, and table seating.


Ticketing Policies & Fees

*Plus applicable taxes and fees

  • 5.5% State and local sales tax
  • $3 Facility Fee per ticket (facility fee is used for tent, building, and grounds needs)
  • 2% Handling Fee per order, up to a maximum of $8
  • "All-In Gate Pricing" Purchases at the gate (totaled with taxes and fees) will be rounded up to the nearest dollar to expedite the line
  • No refunds or exchanges for any shows

Ticket holders and attendees are subject the following conditions:

  • Attendees grant unrestricted rights & licenses for use of their likeness in any form of public broadcast and production, and for promotional purposes.
  • Big Top Chautauqua reserves the right to refuse admission or evict anyone from the venue premises due to disorderly behavior without issuing a refund.
  • Big Top Chautauqua reserves the right to search all persons, packages, bags, and other items entering venue grounds and/or other properties owned by Lake Superior Big Top Chautauqua. The safety of our guests, volunteers, staff, and artists are top priority.
  • All venue policies and procedures are subject to change without notice.

Make an annual donation of $125 or more and receive exclusive access to ticket pre-sales, usually a week before the general public. Learn more about the Blue Canvas Club HERE

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