Patrick Watson

Patrick Watson first broke through to audiences in 2006 with his album Close to Paradise. The album went gold in Canada and won numerous awards, including the Polaris Prize. It saw international release in September 2007 and has since sold over 100,000 copies worldwide. Watson also began to receive attention around the same time for his song “To Build a Home,” which he performs with Cinematic Orchestra on their 2007 album, Ma Fleur. Fittingly, the seeds of his own band were cinematic and collaborative in nature, having begun as a multi-media project entitled Waterproof9 with Quebec visual artist Brigitte Henry. His core four-piece band of Watson (vox, keys), Mishka Stein (bass), Simon Angell (guitar) and Robbie Kuster (drums) began to take shape in the wake of the self-released Just Another Ordinary Day in 2003, and before long buzz on their live show had lead to performances with an impressively diverse group of artists, from Phillip Glass and Steve Reich, to Feist. In the summer of 2006, they were invited on a European tour with the late James Brown, just before the release of Close to Paradise.

His 2009 album, Wooden Arms, saw the band expand in the live setting to include a string quartet—not surprisingly, considering the lush arrangements present on all the albums. Indeed by this time Watson himself had established a reputation as a producer and composer of film scores, in addition to role as, band-leader, piano-player and singer-songwriter. The Wooden Arms tour fittingly culminated in 2011 with a collaborative performance with Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, which saw the renowned symphony performing Watson’s songs alongside the band.

Watson’s latest offering, Adventures in Your Own Backyard, will be released in April 2012.

Patrick Watson to perform with l'Orchestre Symphonique de Québec

Patrick Watson is proud to announce two shows with the Orchestre Symphonique de Québec on November 7th and 8th.

Patrick Watson and his band will be performing pieces from their most recent album, Adventures in Your Own Backyard, as well as other songs from their existing repertoire. The entire performance will be executed with new arrangements under the direction of orchestra leader Stéphane Laforest. The shows are presented as part of the Coup de foudre Hydro-Québec series and are on-sale now.

Here are all upcoming tour dates:
03/28/13 Boston, MA || The Sinclair &
03/30/13 Magog, QC || Vieux-Clocher de Magog % SOLD-OUT
03/31/13 Sainte-Thérèse, QC || Théâtre Lionel-Groulx #
04/02/13 Terrebonne, QC || Théâtre du Vieux-Terrebonne %
04/03/13 L'Assomption, QC || Théâtre Hector Charland #
04/05/13 Baie-Saint-Paul, QC || La Ferme # SOLD-OUT
04/06/13 Saguenay Lac Saint-Jean || Théâtre Palace Arvida %
06/15/13 Manchester, TN || Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival
06/28/13 Antibes, France || Nuits Carrés
06/29/13 Marmande, France || Garorock
06/30/13 Laval, France || Théâtre de Laval
07/04/13 Cluse, France || Musiques en Stock
07/07/13 Paris, France || Pleyel (Days Off Festival) *
07/12/13 Winnipeg, MB || Winnipeg Folk Festival (main stage)
11/07/13 Quebec City, QC || Grand Théâtre de Québec !
11/08/13 Quebec City, QC || Grand Théâtre de Québec !

& with Jocie Adams (The Low Anthem)
% with Leif Vollebekk
# with Thus:Owls
* with l'Orchestre National d’Île-de-France
! with l'Orchestre Symphonique de Québec

Brand new music video for "Blackwind"

After having received an incredible collection of entries from aspiring film-makers since its launch before Christmas, Patrick Watson and creative group Genero have since announced the winner of the ‘Blackwind’ video-making competition. Chloé Poirier-Sauvé from Canada has had her beautifully crafted piece awarded the title of the single’s official video.

On choosing a winner, Patrick Watson had this to say:
“We never thought there would be that many good entries. Crazy. And of course, we couldn't agree on what should win."

“In the end, we decided to go with a video that impressed us with its artistic qualities. It struck us as more than a music video: it stands on its own as a work of art, which just happens to be inspired by our music. This wasn't an easy choice. Some we liked for the story, some for the beautiful images, some surprised us, others simply touched us. And they go in every direction, which amazes me: who would think one song could inspire so many different feelings and ideas?”

"Adventures in Your Own Backyard" receives end-of-the-year accolades

Adventures in Your Own Backyard, Patrick Watson's critically acclaimed album is showing up on many End of the Year Best Of, here are some of them:

#6 on NPR's Bob Boilen's Top 10 Albums of 2012

#8 on NPR's Robin Hilton's Top 10 Albums of 2012

#67 on NPR's listeners pick Top 100 Albums of 2012

#5 on Bande à Part's listeners pick Top 10 Albums of 2012

#30 on Nightlife.ca's Top 40 Albums of 2012

One of the best 2012 albums for Quebec City's Le Soleil writer, Nicolas Houle. and one of the best shows too.

Patrick Watson's performance at our SXSW showcase at the Saint-David's Episcopal Church is the best 2012 show from Mike Katzif at WNYC.

More to come before December 31st we are certain!

Raving reviews for end of year Patrick Watson concerts

Picture courtesy of National Post

Patrick Watson had quite a fabulous year and with his last concerts of 2012 he's ending it with brio. Raving reviews are pouring on the web as well as love from fans on twitter.

Here are some quotes:

"At this point, Patrick Watson has defined himself – and by extension the band – as a consummate and reliable performer who couldn’t do a bad show if he tried."
- Ryan Patrick, National Post

"Patrick Watson continued the evening with an impressively dynamic performance. His casual persona and stunning vocals captured the venue in minutes, and the show ventured into unexpected territory with vibrant, explorative jams."
- Syncopated Sound

« Les concerts de Patrick Watson à Québec sont toujours des événements courus parce qu’on sait que la qualité sera chaque fois au rendez-vous. N’empêche, d’une fois à l’autre, le groupe montréalais réussit à nous jeter sur le cul. »
- Cédric Bélanger, Journal de Québec

Daytrotter session with Patrick Watson

Patrick Watson and his band recorded a Daytrotter session in Austin a couple of weeks ago, you can listen to it here.

Read the original article

NPR recording of the Washington concert

Patrick Watson played a phenomenal show in September in Washington, D.C. at the 9:30 Club. NPR Music was there to record it and it's finally gone up in time for the band's fall North American tour, click here to watch.

Enjoy!

Read the original article

Direct Patrick Watson's next video

Patrick Watson has launched a contest for an aspiring filmmakers to create the official video for “Blackwind” from Adventures in Your Own Backyard. You could even win £2000!
Deadline for submissions is November 12th. Click here for all the details.

Take a look at their recent World Cafe performance, as well as the Village Underground Rooftop session if you need inspiration.

"Noisy Sunday" from Patrick Watson on season premiere of Walking Dead

Those who were tuned into the season premiere of AMC’s The Walking Dead last Sunday night were treated to a snippet of Adventure’s cut Noisy Sunday. "I love this show," tells us Patrick Watson, "nothing makes me more happy than watching zombies eat each other to my music."

For a limited time, you can watch the entire first episode on their website here.

You can also buy Noisy Sunday on iTunes here.

Adventures in Your Own Backyard certified gold in Canada!

Proud to announce that Patrick Watson's Adventures in Your Own Backyard has been certified gold in Canada. This is the third consecutive album of Watson’s to reach that sales mark, and the quickest to do so, in only three months.

Grab your copy here if you don't have one already.

New backyard video in Brooklyn for Patrick Watson

Patrick Watson today unleashed the second in the ‘Backyard’ mini-documentary videos in support of his latest album, Adventures in Your Own Backyard. The latest installment, which premiered on MSN.com earlier today, brings Watson and his band to Brooklyn, New York, and introduces painter Rodney Dickson — a longtime friend of the band who inspired both the title of Close to Paradise, and the artwork for Wooden Arms.

More tour dates have also been announced, you can see them all by clicking here