Catching up with an artist in Wells there is a question whether he sings rock songs with folk sensibilities or folk songs with rock sensibilities.
Either way David Newberry performs songs with some insight to them and will join James Lamb on stage at Art Space Sunday.
"All roads lead to Wells," laughed Newberry, who comes from Southern Ontario. "I went up there to work in Barkerville four or five years ago and I just can't stop coming back. There's something magical about Wells. It's outrageously stunning. It almost cracks me up every day when I go outside -- I look around and think -- are you serious? It looks like a painting."
Newberry also writes songs for Ontario public television like The Bill about how a bill gets passed and his songs accompany animation created by his brother Steve.
"It's neat to have a project going with him," said Newberry. "It was a lot of fun. That's actually how I financed my latest recording When We Learn The Things We Need To Learn by earning money from TV Ontario," said Newberry, whose undergraduate degree was in Canadian Studies and has a masters in Political Science. "So it's almost like applying my schooling." Mom is proud.
Newberry said he's a big fan of very lengthy album and song titles.
The album title When We Learn The Things We Need To Learn is supposed to have two sides to it.
"It's meant to be a simultaneously optimistic and pessimistic title indicating that we have lots to learn but perhaps we can learn it," said Newberry.
During the show Newberry and Lamb, who just met last summer, will each have a solo set and then they will come together to share the stage to rock the audience.
This two-week tour of B.C. is on the road via the Greyhound bus.
Lamb said there's not a lot of ego going on in his partnership with Newberry.
"When we met this summer we just had a really good connection and we're on the same page musically," said Lamb. "We really appreciate what the other does and there's no level of weirdness or jealousy that maybe some artists have."
Lamb said he's a people person and gets inspired by conversation.
"I enjoy seeing everyone else's perspective because everyone has a completely different take on things and that's a big influence," said Lamb. "Just living creates plenty of writing material."
Because he has done a lot of work in construction, including stone masonry and framing he tends to sing about life instead of love.
"I feel there's a lot of great love songs out there and they're hard to match but I think everything is good material to write about," said Lamb, who lately has focused his writing about his friends and travel.
"The show is going to be great," said Lamb. "We are pretty light hearted people so it makes it up for possibly being too insightful at times. We've got really good songs and we have a really good time being on stage."
Tickets are $10 at Books and Company and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. at Art Space.
