The Acorn is the music project of singer-songwriter and musician Rolf-Carlos Klausener formed in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

in 2003. Their music spanned numerous genres, from art-folk and indie, to minimal electro and folk-rock, and members played with numerous other bands. Their songs have charted on Canadian campus charts and have been in rotation on

CBC Radio 3 CBC Radio 3 is a Canadian digital radio station operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, which plays a relatively freeform mix of indie rock, indie pop, alternative hip hop, folk, country and electronic music. The service, which la ...

and

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History

Rolf Klausener, the principal songwriter,

vocalist Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

and

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselv ...

, founded the band as a solo project, but was soon joined by guitarist Howie Tsui, bassist Jeff Debutte and drummer Jeffrey Malecki. They were quickly signed to Kelp Records, and produced the 2004 album ''The Pink Ghosts''. Their subsequent tour produced the album ''Live At

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

'', and they released the EP ''Blankets''. In 2006, they signed with the label Paper Bag Records and released the well-received EP ''Tin Fist''. They were also joined by singer and keyboardist

Keiko Devaux Keiko Devaux (born 1982) is a Canadians, Canadian composer of contemporary classical music. She is most noted for her 2021 composition "Arras", which won the Juno Award for Juno Award for Classical Composition of the Year, Classical Composition of ...

; Bryce left the band and was replaced by drummer Jeffrey Malecki. In 2007, they released ''

Glory Hope Mountain ''Glory Hope Mountain'' is a concept album by Canadian indie folk band The Acorn, released 25 September 2007 on Paper Bag Records. It is their second full-length. The album was recorded and produced by Jarrett Bartlett. Several members of Toron ...

'', whose songs describe the life of Klausener's

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

-born mother, Gloria Esperanza Montoya. That was followed by the albums ''Heron Act'' (2007), ''Ear Worms'' (2008), the EP ''Little Elms'' (2008), and a split EP with the band

Ohbijou Ohbijou was a Canadian indie pop band that was based in Toronto, Ontario. The music of Ohbijou draws on pop, folk and bluegrass influences. History Ohbijou began as the solo project of Brantford singer-songwriter Casey Mecija.Sayej, Nadja. "Un ...

. After ''Glory Hope Mountain'', singer-songwriter Rolf Klausener joined the band, as did multi-instrumentalist Shaun Weadick. Weadick and Devaux left in 2008. The Acorn then went on the road, traveling to the UK as the opening act for

Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes is an American indie folk band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 2006. The band consists of Robin Pecknold (vocals, guitar), Skyler Skjelset (guitar, mandolin, backing vocals), Casey Wescott (keyboards, mandolin, backing vocals), ...

Elbow The elbow is the region between the arm and the forearm that surrounds the elbow joint. The elbow includes prominent landmarks such as the olecranon, the cubital fossa (also called the chelidon, or the elbow pit), and the lateral and the media ...

Akron / Family Akron/Family were an American folk-influenced experimental rock band active from 2002 to 2013. Former members have lived in Portland, Oregon; Los Angeles, California; and Joshua Tree, California. Music and history Though each member of the band ...

and

Bon Iver Bon Iver ( ) is an American indie folk band founded in 2006 by singer-songwriter Justin Vernon. Vernon released Bon Iver's debut album, ''For Emma, Forever Ago,'' independently in July 2007. The majority of the album was recorded while Vernon ...

, and playing the End of the Road Festival,

Electric Picnic Electric Picnic is an annual arts-and-music festival which has been staged since 2004 at Stradbally Hall in Stradbally, County Laois, Ireland. It is organised by Pod Concerts and Festival Republic, who purchased the majority shareholding in ...

, the

Brighton Festival Brighton Festival is a large, annual, curated multi-arts festival in England. It includes music, theatre, dance, circus, art, film, literature, debate, outdoor and family events, and takes place in venues in the city of Brighton and Hove in Engla ...

, and

The Great Escape Festival The Great Escape Festival is a three-day music festival held in Brighton and Hove, England every year in May. It is operated by MAMA Festivals and showcases new music from a variety of genres. The festival was founded in 2006 and roughly hosts ...

, among other gigs. In Canada, they played the

Calgary Folk Music Festival The Calgary Folk Music Festival (also known as "Calgary Folk Fest") is held in late July each year at Prince's Island Park, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. July 2022 is the Festival's 43rd edition. The four-day Calgary Folk Music Festival annually featu ...

, the

Hillside Festival The Hillside Festival is an annual three-day, five-stage (including one kids' stage) summer festival occurring in Guelph, Ontario, Canada, hosting musicians, spoken word artists, workshops and more. The Hillside Festival occurs in late July on Gue ...

, and the

Winnipeg Folk Festival The Winnipeg Folk Festival is a nonprofit charitable organization with an annual summer folk music festival held in Birds Hill Provincial Park, near Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The festival features a variety of artists and music from around the ...

. In 2009, The Acorn was a long-listed nominee for

Uncut Uncut may refer to: * ''Uncut'' (film), a 1997 Canadian docudrama film by John Greyson about censorship * ''Uncut'' (magazine), a monthly British magazine with a focus on music, which began publishing in May 1997 * '' BET: Uncut'', a Black Enter ...

Magazine's Uncut Music Award, for ''Glory Hope Mountain''. The album was also nominated for the

Polaris Music Prize The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 with a $20,000 cash prize; the prize was incr ...

, making The Acorn the only Ottawa band to ever be so nominated. In early 2010, they released the EP ''Restoration'' and, in June, the album ''No Ghost'' and went on a two-month tour. In the interim, they recorded a remix album of ''No Ghost'', called ''Make The Least Of The Day: No Ghost Reinterpreted'', which includes remixes by

Four Tet Kieran Hebden (born September 1977), known as Four Tet, is an English electronic musician. He came to prominence as a member of the post-rock band Fridge before establishing himself as a solo artist with charting UK albums such as '' Rounds'' ...

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and Diamond Rings. Tsui and Maleckie left the band in 2010; they were replaced by drummer Pat Johnson, multi-instrumentalist Adam Saikaley and bassist Martin Charbonneau. In 2011 Klausner began working on an electronic dance project called 'Silkken Laumann' with Johnnson and Saikaley. The group released their debut album ''Not Forever Enough'' on January 1, 2014. They regrouped as The Acorn to release the 2015 album ''Vieux Loup'', which was nominated for the 2015 Polaris Prize. In 2011, Klausener had co-founded Ottawa's Arboretum Festival which, in 2018, re-branded as 'Bon-Fire'. Klausener is the festival's creative director. The Acorn last performed in 2017; Klausener speaks of The Acorn in the past tense.

Discography

Albums * ''The Pink Ghosts'' (2004, re-released 2007), Kelp Records * ''Live At Royal Albert Hall'' (2006), Kelp Records * ''

'' (2007, re-released 2017), Paper Bag Records * ''Heron Act'' (2007), Paper Bag Records * ''Ear Worms'' (2008), Independent * '' No Ghost'' (2010), Paper Bag Records, Bella Union * ''Make The Least Of The Day: No Ghost Reinterpreted'' (2010), Paper Bag Records, Bella Union * ''Vieux Loup'' (2015), Paper Bag Records EPs * ''Blankets'' (2005), Kelp Records * ''Patches'' (2005), Duotone Records (Japan) * ''Tin Fist'' (2006), Paper Bag Records * ''Little Elms'' (2008), Independent * ''The Acorn + Ohbijou'' Split 12" with

(2008), Kelp Records * ''Restoration'' (2010), Bella Union Compilation Inclusions * ''

Friends in Bellwoods ''Friends in Bellwoods'' is a compilation album, released in 2007. It was the first release on Out of This Spark, through a distribution deal with Sonic Unyon Records. The album is named for a house on Bellwoods Avenue in Toronto, shared by two ...

'' (2007), Out of This Spark. Song: "Brokered Heart" * ''

Friends in Bellwoods II ''Friends in Bellwoods'' is a compilation album, released in 2009 by Out of This Spark as a benefit for Toronto's Daily Bread Food Bank. The album is a sequel to the 2007 compilation ''Friends in Bellwoods''. Where the original album was, in par ...

'' (2009): Out of This Spark. Song: "Slippery When Wet"

References

External links

The Acorn

The Acorn
on MySpace
The Acorn
on

{{DEFAULTSORT:Acorn, The Canadian indie folk groups Canadian indie pop groups Musical groups from Ottawa Musical groups established in 2003 Canadian folk rock groups Paper Bag Records artists 2003 establishments in Ontario Bella Union artists

History

Discography

See also

References

External links