Before coming together as a couple, Saskatchewan lovers Belle Plaine and Blake Berglund both launched successful country music careers on their own. Now two years into their relationship, they’re embarking on their first professional tour together.
“Chemistry is chemistry, and the better chemistry there is, the better the music will be,” said Berglund. “And when you’re in love with someone you’re on the road with, you can’t ask for better chemistry.”
Starting from Saskatoon at the beginning of the month, Plaine and Berglund are stopping in more than a dozen locations as they make their way to Victoria. From there, they’re set to tour back to their hometown Regina, where they’ll cap off the tour with a special guest – Zachary Lucky.
Lucky is the writer of the two songs that Plaine and Berglund are taking on tour, which they recorded onto a double-single, gold-toned 7 inch vinyl record.
“We’ve both knew him for years and really liked his songwriting, so it seemed like a natural fit with the subject matter,” said Plaine. “He was the best person to help us create something that made our sense of community evident to people outside of Saskatchewan.”
While being interviewed, the duo was in between shows in the Prairies, and Berglund joked that he’s as excited to get out of the mountains as he is to get in them.
“I’m a flatlander – I like to see all of the sky in all directions. But the sense of community that the mountain towns have is very unique to the country. It’s always decent shows with good people.”
One of the songs recorded onto their single, titled Saskatchewan, is much like a love song that was written for the province. On the other side of the album is a track called Town to Town.
Berglund explained how the two songs contrast one another: Saskatchewan represents the comforts of home, “but the juxtaposition to it is the other song’s about being away from home and how we enjoy that as well.”
Music made in the Prairies offers a sense of locality that goes unmatched, Berglund said.
“When we sing about our home it’s genuine. Many artists sing about destinations or places they long to go to. But there’s a different mentality in the Prairies; people are slow-paced, they’re low-key, and not too much gets them worked up – and it’s nice to approach music with that mentality as well.”
Both songs were recorded more than a year ago, but having them printed on gold-toned 7 inch vinyl was a lengthy process.
“It’s practical right now – people are buying vinyl record – the CD format is a difficult sell these days. I think people have come around to appreciating tone and quality of sound, and not wanting their music compressed.”
Only 298 copies were made available, and Berglund said they’re going fast.
“Releasing it on vinyl gives us the opportunity to put something limited edition behind our projects – that always drives the career forward,” Berglund said.
Plaine and Berglund will be in Penticton on Sept. 12 to perform at the Dream Café. The show begins at 8 p.m. and tickets cost $15 and can be ordered by calling 250-490-9012.