Dean Brody has taken a popular segment from his live shows and expanded it to a nationwide tour.
During his regular concerts, the B.C. country singer would typically take a moment to play a stripped-down acoustic set. Those arrangements have been so enthusiastically received that he’s decided to build a tour around them.
“We thought, ‘Let’s just take that and go across Canada with it,’” Brody said. “Because it’s a nice break for us, too, to be able to explore different instrumentation on these songs and dig up some songs we don’t necessarily do in the higher-octane shows.”
The Dirt Road Stories Tour comes to the Port Theatre on Nov. 27. The 37-date tour takes Brody to some smaller stages. He said that’s a refreshing change after seven years playing large venues.
“It’s like new to me again, being in a theatre and having that close proximity to my fans instead of some kind of a barrier or even the height of the stage,” he said. “So it’s been so cool and it’s just a more relaxed environment. We almost feel like sometimes we get too comfortable on stage.”
Brody said reworking his material to fit the acoustic theme has allowed him to see his songs differently. In one song, the horn section has been replaced with kazoos, and Brody sounds impressed when he notes his bandmates have discovered how to play three-part harmony on the tiny buzzing instruments.
He said revisiting his songs has reminded what it was like to write them in the first place.
“You forget after you record them and sing them 1,000 times,” Brody said. “And then you go back and just play it with your guitar and it’s like, ‘Oh yeah, this was how this all started before all the bells and whistles. This is what it was.’”
The intimate sounds of the tour have been coupled with intimate sights, with Brody decorating his stages to resemble a cozy, kitschy lodge. He said it reminds him of the kind of place where he used to party when he was younger.
“It kind of brings me back to home and to B.C. and growing up in the Rockies and the East Kootenays there,” said Brody, who originally hails from Jaffray, near Cranbrook.
He said the acoustic tour is something he’d like to do again. Next time he hopes to add more “theatrical elements.”
“Right now we have a static grizzly bear named Billy Bear who’s up on the wall … but I think it would be cool to get an animatronic Billy Bear or somebody in a big suit that comes out,” Brody said with a laugh. “I’ve got a weird sense of humour, so I have to be careful.”
WHAT’S ON … Dean Brody performs at the Port Theatre on Tuesday, Nov. 27 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $45 to $75, VIP upgrades available.
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