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Petunia and the Vipers play The Wild Goose Canadian country rockers Petunia and the Vipers bring new music to The Wild Goose Cafe. petuniamusic.bandcamp.com Monday Dec 12, 2016 at 9:00 AM Laurie Heuston Mail Tribune Petunia and the Vipers springboard off the roots of rock, country, swing, ragtime and jazz to land squarely on a bold new sound that is nothing short of brilliant. "It's theatrical and full of action, adventure and romance," Petunia says during a telephone interview from his home in Vancouver, British Columbia. "There's a lot of stuff going on in it. We like to attract interesting people. They're a lot of fun." The band's newest album, "Dead Bird on the Highway," released in May, includes a mix of cowboy yodeling, guitar rock mixed with African rhythms and sung in French, gritty rockabilly, horn-driven swing, ragtime, a touch of 1920s jazz, and a nod to the punk rock of the '70s. "We're working on another album to be finished in January," Petunia says. "We've recorded the preproduction arrangements of the songs, and we've been playing them live since October." Electric guitarist Stephen Nikleva, lapsteel guitarist Jimmy Roy, drummer Paul Townsend, bassist Joseph Lubinsky and trumpeter Jack Garton accompany Petunia on acoustic guitar, vocals and kazoo. The band will perform at 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14, at The Wild Goose Cafe, 2365 Ashland St., Ashland. There is no cover for the show. "Our last album, 'Dead Bird,' only had five or six originals," Petunia says. "All of them were roots based. They all had recognizable origins. We have 12 original songs lined up for the new album, along with two covers: 'Blues in My Heart,' a Tin Pan Alley-style blues with a bit of jazz thrown in, and 'Too Long (Between Loving),' made popular in the '50s by 'Miss Rhythm' Ruth Brown. "With all the originals, the new album will keep a roots-music sound, but lose the distinction of any origins," Petunia says. "It will be hard to tell where the music comes from." A standout on the new recording will be "I Don't Have to Go to F---ing High School," written by minimalist jug band Al Mader. "He's just one guy. A poet with a washtub bass here in town. He and I go on a three-week tour every fall to the eastern parts of Canada. We recorded his song 'Bloom Bloom Bloom' on 'Dead Bird.' I know a lot of his songs. He's a terrific songwriter." Songs on the new recording also will be a little more political than the Vipers' past albums. "There are two songs that deal with Native American issues," Petunia says. "The topic interests me because the events are a big part of our indigenous history." "Urban Landscape" is an ode to Anna Mae Aquash, a First Nations activist from Nova Scotia who joined American Indians to become part of the Wounded Knee incident in 1973 at Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Aquash was murdered in late 1975. The reservation is the site of several events that mark tragic milestones between Native Americans and the United States, including the Wounded Knee massacre in 1890. More recently, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers denied an easement for the Dakota Access oil pipeline in southern North Dakota, a project that has sparked protests for months. "Another song, called 'Blindly Wander,' spans 150 years of history on the same land," Petunia says. "Wounded Knee and the American Indian Movement took place on the same land and took up cause with the same treaties. Standing Rock is of the same story, deals with the same treaties and the same land grabs. Because YouTube and the internet have made Standing Rock so prevalent, it's received more attention. It's a big topic. That's why I'm interested in it." "Urban Landscape" and "Blindly Wander" are not overtly driven by subject matter, Petunia says. They are more driven by rock 'n' roll and punk. "It's hard to describe our style," he says. "I will say that the audiences have resonated with the new songs. We've been playing them every Monday night at the WISE Hall lounge in Vancouver. The idea is to get the album up on its legs in front of an audience and solidify the emotional drive that comes across in our performances. We want those emotions to carry over to the recording." The Vipers will continue to perform the new songs Monday nights at the WISE until the album is recorded in January at Crabapple Downs in Alberta — coproduced with Steve Loree. The album will be released in May or June.