The Wailin’ Jennys Friday, July 30, 8:30 p.m., Mauch Chunk Opera House (14 West Broadway, Jim Thorpe). Tickets: $28. Info: thewailinjennys.com, mauchchunkoperahouse.com
by Nikki M. MascaliStaff Writer
They were supposed to do just one show at a friend’s guitar shop in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Eight and a half years later, though, The Wailin’ Jennys are still going strong and have a slew of awards under their belt, including a Juno — the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy.
“The (original) show sold out pretty fast, so we added another show, and that sold out,” Ruth Moody, the trio’s soprano voice, told the Weekender recently from her home in Toronto. “We kind of got the sense that there was really some energy behind this and that people really liked the idea of us playing together. Pretty soon it became obvious that it wasn’t going to be just a one-off.”
The Wailin’ Jennys — made up of Moody, mezzo Nicky Mehta and alto Heather Masse — will bring their haunting melodious sound to the Mauch Chunk Opera House in Jim Thorpe Friday, July 30 at 8:30 p.m. Fiddler and mandolinist Jeremy Penner accompanies the band.
The picturesque town of Jim Thorpe is a favorite stop of The Jennys.
“Nicky always describes it as ‘the town Tim Burton created on a cheerful day,’ because it’s really a nice place, but there’s something really different and quirky about it that we’ve found,” Moody shared with a laugh, adding that the trio loves the Opera House’s acoustics.
“We’ve always had a nice connection with the audience there,” she continued. “The first time we were there, the power went out, and we sang unamplified for the audience. I think from that point on there was sort of a special bond.”
The bond continued last year when The Jennys released “Live at Mauch Chunk Opera House.” The CD hit the Top 10 on Billboard’s Top Bluegrass Albums Chart. To strengthen the bond even more, officials will award The Jennys keys to Jim Thorpe at Soundcheck Records, just down the street from the Opera House, at 5 p.m. Friday.
A new CD will be released in October. The outing will feature, for the first time, a co-written song by The Wailin’ Jennys. Usually, the women write individually, then collaborate on arrangements.
“Recently we’ve talked about writing together, and there’s going to be one song on the new album that Heather wrote that Nicky contributed a couple verses to,” Moody said. “I think that might be the beginning of perhaps some new co-writing explorations for us.”
In addition to their voices, each member of The Wailin’ Jennys is multi-instrumental. Moody plays guitar, accordion and banjo and taught herself the bodhran, an Irish drum. The three women also maintain their own solo careers.
“It’s tricky,” Moody said of the balancing act between projects. “We all have sort of these other lives that we have to make time for, but The Jennys is our main project, and we just try to balance it as best we can and not to burn ourselves by kind of limiting the amount that we tour and having enough time off that we can recharge from the road and also work on solo stuff or other projects.”
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