There are silver tongued devils. There are silver spoon heirs. But there are only two Silver Screen Scoundrels and they gad about together, that Brandon Isaak and Keith Picot.
Alone they are acclaimed musicians, mostly of the blues persuasion. Together their sum is greater than their parts. There are props, period clothing, sound effects, theatrical flourishes, a lot of instruments and singing, and there is film. The Silver Screen Scoundrels revive the black-and-white spirit of silent film, which dovetails into their propensity for dusty blues, jangly jazz, fizzy folk and kindling country. They are a modern portal back through time, down the telegraph wires of entertainment.
Their show is more than a tribute concert to a bygone era. It is a multimedia, multisensory mashup of movies on a screen that help tell the story of the music on the stage.
"It's the age-old thing of the piano player playing in front of the silent movie screen - the modern take on that," said Isaak. He and Picot spend as much time filming and editing little silent films as they do writing the songs, and the two art forms go together in concert.
"It's a pretty cool thing and people have been interested in this," said Isaak, who has numerous band and solo acts that have toured Canada and internationally over the years. This one has turned out to be extra special.
"We've got these little vignettes but we do lots of songs without movies, lots of swing, lots of original music. It's not all night with the movies," Isaak explained.
The emphasis is, after all, on the music and people get a lot of visual stimulation just watching how they crack off the tunes in their dexterous way. "We have guitar, bass, drums, harmonica, kazoo, whatever. Keith plays bass and I'm a one-man band. I tour around as a one-man-band, I'm used to taking care of business by myself, so it's icing on the cake to have Keith there with me. All of a sudden I've got a world-class partner. We can do so much together."
The piles of performances he's wracked up over the years is just the echoing sustain of notes played by generations before him. His father, Ed Isaak, was a full-time touring musician who worked with the likes of Loretta Lynn, Waylon Jennings, Doris Day and many other stars before settling into a busy and applauded career in the Yukon band The Canucks (aka Canucks Ltd).
Father discouraged son from the hard life of a troubadour, but the youngster was drawn to guitars and drums like a shark to chum and soon he was swimming in international waters.
"I played last week with him at the Yale. Pop is still rockin'. He doesn't do it as much as he used to, he's 83 or 84, but he's still gigging every week," Isaak said.
Picot is also someone who couldn't shake the creative urge. In spite of the challenges of the common performing artist in its natural nomadic habitat, he loves the way music moves him in spirit and in physical form.
"I play the bass fiddle for a living and I can't imagine ever not doing so," Picot said. "This living I mentioned is not a monetarily gigantic one but it does allow me a chance to feed my silent movie habit and live very happily with my wife, son and our dog and cats."
Picot and Isaak have played in Prince George numerous times before, together and apart, but rarely as the Silver Screen Scoundrels.
"It's a cool little city, it's got soul, the people support the music and the arts," Isaak said. "It's one of the cooler music cities in Canada if you ask me. It just works in that town."
One of their favourite traits about P.G. is the local venues' willingness to allow performers the freedom to play several shows. Some cities have a habit of only working on exclusivity deals, but a working musician can set up for a few days in this community and ply their trade in a number of cafes and pubs showrooms, which eases their travel pressures and ignites a wider audience in the long run.
This is their Prince George itinerary, starting on Monday:
March 6, Nancy Os (music only).
March 7, Vanier Hall (school show for the students).
March 8, private function.
March 9, Vanderhoof.
March 10, Fort St. James.
March 11, The Old Library (Seniors Activity Centre downtown) with special guest opening act Sean Robinson.
Tickets are $20 regular or $15 students/seniors available now at Books & Company.
