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The Paper Boys

'One of the most exciting bands to come out of the folk-roots corner'

Touring Dates

2008

Date	Venue	Location
19th May 08	Zebra - 01622 744481	Maidstone ME14 1BA
20th May 08	The Cellars - 023 9282 6249	Southsea PO4 9PN
21st May 08	The Ent Shed - 01234 269 519	Bedford
22th May 08	Spilsby Theatre - 01790 752936	Spilsby PE23 5DY
24th May 08	Ireby Village Festival - 01697 371645	Ireby Wigton, CA7 1EA
25th May 08	Off the Tracks Festival - 07899 826 955	Isley Walton DE74 2RN

Biography

It's been said The Paperboys' music is hard to describe. Truth is, you could add rock, Son Jarocho, and world beat to that list too. Call it 'Guinness with a tequila chaser while listening to an Americana Jukebox'. Or 'a place where Irish, Mexican and Roots music collide.'

Of course, this multicultural mix is hardly surprising from a bilingual band, whose founding member is Mexican-Canadian and whose players cover a range of musical backgrounds from Bluegrass to Funk to traditional Scots and Irish music.

"A lot has to do with where we're from," says lead singer Tom Landa. "Vancouver is a culturally diverse place which feeds what we do and the music we make."

"Yes, we cover a lot of musical territory and have a lot of influences. There is a lot I can tell you about the music. But what it isn't is something that you can easily put into a little box and say "oh, this is Celtic" or "this is folk." We are much more than that."

Meanwhile, critics from Billboard to the Washington Post don't have any trouble describing the Paperboys sound.

"Astonishing eclectic folk-rock from acclaimed Canadian quintet."

Mojo's Jonny Black.

"A mix of Eagles laced alt-country, Tower of Power horns and gospel choirs, reminiscent of early Elton John and Van Morrison."

Americana UK Magazine

'One of the most exciting bands to come out of the folk-roots corner'

fRoots Magazine'

"If you don't believe a jig can shred, listen to The Paperboys."

Seattle Rocket

And then there's the hardware. They received a Juno Award (the Canadian Grammy) for Best Roots & Traditional Album of the Year (Molinos); and Juno Award nominations for the three of their albums; two West Coast Music Awards for Best Roots Recording (Molinos, Postcards) and three more nominations in that category.

Add to this list, an American Indie nomination; a Genie Award nomination for Best Musical Score for the film 'Lunch With Charles' and appearances in both that film and the movie 'Marine Life.'

In 2001, the Red House Records Label invited The Paperboys to contribute a track to 'A Nod to Bob' – a 60th Birthday Compilation to honour Bob Dylan. Their dizzying rendition of 'All Along The Watchtower' was a critical favourite, consistently mentioned as one of the highlights of the album.

The latest release 'The Road To Ellenside' (2006) was wholly recorded at a country manor in rural England. Ellenside was recently listed in the Top Ten critic's poll in The Village Voice, while the video for the single 'Fall Down With You' camped out in MuchMoreMusic's Top Ten for a staggering ten weeks - peaking at Number Four alongside Nickleback, Madonna, and Nelly Furtado– a feat almost unheard of by an indie band.

The follow-up video for the single 'Fragile' was shot entirely on location in Morelia, Mexico and enjoyed constant rotation on video channels, not to mention thousands of hits on YouTube and other video websites.

But what really sets The Paperboys apart is their live show. And for that, the only opinion that matters are the fans who routinely sell out some of the most popular and prestigious clubs throughout Canada, the U.S., Mexico and Europe. They've played everywhere from The Kennedy Center in Washington DC, to The Borderline in London. The Paperboys burn up stages at countless festivals including New York's Falconridge Festival, The Folk Alliance Festival, The Boston Folk Festival, San Francisco's Guinness Oyster Festival and Seattle's Bumbershoot. They've headlined at the UK's Warwick and Trowbridge festivals, and Denmark's Tonder and Skagen festivals. The band averages well over 150 shows a year.

"We get paid for the travel time," Landa jokes, "but we play the gigs for free."

Despite the accolades and sell out crowds, the Paperboys still remain philosophical about it all.

"We're not saving lives," says Tom. "We're not building rockets or running for office. But every night I get to go out there and play my music with great people. I get to sing to a crowd of smiling, dancing people who know the words to every song. And I think, man, am I'm lucky. I have the best job in the world."

Quotes

"The most exuberant record I've heard in ages...breathtaking."

Folk Roots Magazine

"Road songs can be the cliché of the Americana genre, but the Paperboys make a commendably original contribution with sharp, vivid lyrics and smooth harmonies on a serious dark-edged string of songs..the quietly lonesome songs that could have come from Gram Parsons."

Tom Nelligan - Dirty Linen

"Vancouver 's Paperboys have come a long way from their first Seattle support slot seven years ago. These days they're a guaranteed club filler across the U.S. and Canada . They've won a Juno Award (the Great North's equivalent of a Grammy), tour constantly, and pack them in at festivals all across North America and Europe . And they've kept growing from their Celtic party-band beginnings. The personnel has changed, allowing songwriter and frontman Tom Landa the chance to explore a lot more ground, whether it's the Latin roots he exposed on Postcards or the Western snapshots that make up the band's ambitious new double CD, Dilapidated Beauty (Stony Plain). The first disc, subtitled "Night Driving," is fragmentary, a series of evocative rural images from places like "Omak Hotel" and "Lillooet." Disc two, "Saturday Afternoon," catches its breath, clinging to visions of home on songs like "It Takes So Long" and the achingly gorgeous "What Would I Miss," before returning to the road at the end with "Windshield Cracks." There's still a Celtic heart beating under it all, as evidenced most strongly by the instrumental "If I Could Be There," but it's muddied over here in prairie dust for a coating that verges on alt-country. Landa is rapidly developing into a world-class songwriter, and the band is keeping pace with him, spreading its wings and flying to a place where anything seems possible. The Paperboys definitely deliver."

Chris Nickson - Seattle Weekly