ENTERTAINMENT
Sprag Session, formerly Colin Grant Band, has developed a unique style and repertoire of music. Lingering somewhere amidst the rich, soulful roots of traditional Cape Breton music and the grooves of a thousand branches of rock and funk, Colin Grant embarks on his latest project: a dynamic and thoughtful mingling of beats and melodies from an extensive host of musical influences. Far from the awkward malaise of mohawked bagpipers and kilted punks, Sprag Session has created a kind of Celtic fusion that is as much Béla Fleck and the Flecktones and Frank Zappa as it is Ashley MacIsaac.
With a traditional trio comprised of the manic Jason ”leaden-left-hand” Roach (piano, Dawn and Margie Beaton) and embarrassingly talented Darren MacMullen (mandolin, guitar, banjo, J.P. Cormier) Grant hooked up with the rough and red-eyed blues/funk rhythm section of Merlin Clarke and Donnie Calabrese (Tom Fun Orchestra). Together, the group produces a fervent yet calculated rhythm that backs an expressively diverse range of tunes. While the lively sound never strays too distantly from its Cape Breton roots, Sprag Session has found an open ear in everyone from indie scenesters to blue-haired bingo stampers.
2010 brought the release of the album 'Fun For The Whole Family', winner of Music Nova Scotia’s Roots/Traditional Recording of the Year, and nominee for Instrumental Album of the Year at the Canadian Folk Music Awards. 2011 has been the biggest yet for the boys with tours of New England, Ireland, and the U.K., and appearances at Celtic Fest Vancouver, Salmon Arm Roots & Blues Festival, and Kansas City Irish Fest, in addition to time in-studio to record their debut album, which is due for release in Spring 2012.