Countdown to Mud City Meltdown – Interview with Marc à Paul à Jos

Photo Credit: Kevin Eisenlord

From July 25 to July 30, Mud City Meltdown takes place in Moncton, NB. The festival showcases some incredible local talent, as well as some national and international acts that are certain to please the crowds. We are happy to be working alongside MCMD to showcase some of the talented bands and artists that will be performing! First up, we had Moncton based The Galpines then indie folk group, Les Hay Babies. Today we’re speaking to Nova Scotia based, Marc à Paul à Jos. Enjoy!

First off, care to introduce yourself to the Canadian Beats readers?

My name is Marc à Paul à Jos, I’m from Little Brook, Nova Scotia and I write Acadian folk songs sung in the unique dialect of my home town.  I’ve been a metal head my whole life and I just got the idea one day to start writing songs in Acadian French.  Basically my music is me telling stories from home exactly as they would be told where I grew up.

Mud City Meltdown is back for its third year, how does it feel to be a part of this event?

It’s always a pleasure to play in Moncton regardless of who it’s for.  I got to play Acadie Rock in 2015 and 2016 which were both an absolute blast.  What I’m looking forward to by playing Mud City Meltdown is that most likely I’ll be playing in front of some people who’ve never seen me live or possibly never even heard of me.  Doing a show with the Galpines should draw a more bilingual crowd whereas normally my audience is predominantly francophone.  It’ll be interesting to see what sort of reaction I get from Anglophone listeners, just like I was very interested to see the reaction from francophone listeners the first time I played Moncton.  I do sing in French, but it’s a dialect most people have never heard before.  To my surprise the reaction was extremely positive from the francophone crowd, and I’m looking forward to seeing the Anglophone reaction.

The lineup for Mud City Meltdown is loaded with so much Canadian talent, who are you most excited to check out at the festival?

I remember years ago when I was in University in Halifax, I saw Iron Giant play at the “Old” Seahorse Tavern on Argyle Street.  It really struck me when I saw them listed as one of the bands playing the festival, because I had no idea they were still together after all these years.  Apparently it’s the original line-up too, so they’re on my must see list for sure.  I’m sure it’ll really take me back to my favorite hangout in Halifax “The Seahorse” which is sadly not there anymore, not the original one anyway.

While you’re in Moncton, are there any “must see locations” that you hope to check out?

For me it’s not so much locations, but people I enjoy.  I love running into people I know in Moncton, and I always seem to meet more and more new people every time I visit.  I’m always blown away by the crowds who come to see my shows down there, always really into it and full of energy.  Apart from that I’m sure I’ll stop in at the Tide and Boar for a Boar Poutine and a beer.  I love food and beer.

Are you performing at any other festivals this summer that you’d like to tell us about?

On August 15th I’ll be in Petit Rocher, NB for the national Acadian Day, and I’ll be in Memramcook on September 23rd with Menoncle Jason at the Monument Lefebvre.  There are a few other things in the works, but nothing for sure just yet.

If someone has yet to see you live, how would you describe your live show?

When I’m writing my music and performing my music I’m really just trying to be myself.  If you ask anyone who’s grown up with me, they’ll tell you my music and my live show are not an act, that’s exactly how I am.  So really my show is like if you’re sitting down with me for a beer and I’ll be telling you a bunch of stories and jokes.  My songs are those stories and jokes put to music.  When it comes to the overall atmosphere, I also enjoy getting the crowd involved in singing along with me.  There’s a wide range of people who are into my music, men and women from all walks of life and I’ve seen people as young as 4 and as old as 87 at my shows with all ages in between.

When you head out on tour or in this case for festival season, what 3 things must you make sure you pack?

1 – I really love the hot summer weather and definitely want to take advantage of it when it finally comes.  So I always make sure to pack my favorite summer wear.

2 – I always make sure I have a full set of spare Mandolin strings since they’re sometimes hard to come by in the brand and gage I like.  I’ve never broken a string during a show but I like to be prepared.

3 – Finally, I always pack my favorite pick.  I’ve been using it since 1997 and haven’t lost it yet!

Here at Canadian Beats, we’re all about Canadian talent, who are some of your favourite Canadian bands/artists?

Rush, Triumph, Anvil, and recently 3 Inches of Blood which I actually saw their final show before retiring last year at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver.

What’s up next for you?       

I pretty much play it by ear and take things one day at a time.  I’m very amazed at the opportunities that have presented themselves to me so far, and I’m excited to see what other opportunities lie ahead.  I hope to be doing more shows in new places that I’ve never been before and get meet more great people.  I’m also constantly working on new material.  Whenever I get ideas for new tunes I really enjoy seeing what comes out from those ideas.

Connect with Marc à Paul à Jos:
Bandcamp
Facebook