On Saturday August 24 four separate acts provided an eclectic evening of musical entertainment. The show started with an electronic performance by Lesssound. This is the brainchild of Aaron MacInnis.

He provided a mix of looped keyboard and guitar sounds at different tempos. The result was quite amazing. He was joined by saxophone player Alex Ward for a few tunes.

The second act was Ian Skorscha. He  is a musician born in Patagonia, Argentina. He alternates his solo songwriting projects and shows with session work for different bands in Mexico and Canada.

He has performed in Kamloops a number of times and is on his seventh tour of Canada. He spoke briefly about some of his travels and influences. He played world/folk music and sang in Spanish and English. He, also, performed a pretty bolero and a Brazilian tune that had a beautiful bluesy air to it.

There were Argentianian, Cuban, Brazilian and Mexican influences in songs performed during his set. It was a real treat to hear a wonderful musician from another country.

The third act of the evening was Ears from Vancouver. Ears includes members of Vancouver’s Highland Eyeway group and are currently recording locally with Emilio Pagnotta at Holy Cow Studio.

Ears is a group of talented multi-instrumentalists. They all provide lead and backing vocals at different times. Two of them switched off on drums and guitar and the bass player also played keyboards.

Their set contained hot rock tracks, cool punk vibes and even one with a tender melody. A small dance floor opened in the back and the audience grooved to Ears’ tunes. It was nice that these accomplished musicians could fit in a show during their busy time in the region.

The final act of the evening was Jared Doherty and Friends. Essentially it was a showcase for some new tunes that Doherty had composed.

Three of the musicians, including Doherty, are part of Mother Sun. This time Doherty was on guitar and vocals, Alex Ward was on saxophone, Kamal Morelli bass, Jared Wilman drums and percussions and Mark Fagg on drums and percussions.

Essentially the songs were pop based with a good amount of improvisation from the band. Jazz and world music influences mixed with a pop aesthetic could be heard. As these new tunes were played by first-rate musicians, it made for a great set.

It was a very enjoyable evening. Patrons happily enjoyed the pizza, hot dogs and cold drinks along with the cool atmosphere of Pizza Pi.

The show was well attended. It is great that a small, local venue, such as Pizza Pi, embraces bands with original tunes and improvisation.