Shhh! It's Great Lake Swimmers, on their quiet tour

Much-admired Ontario folk-rock group Great Lake Swimmers isheaded to the East Coast once again, but this time as a very different band.

While most musicianshit the road to cause some excitement and turn their amps up to 11, this time the Swimmers are deliberately going to quiet things down.

It follows a downsizing in band members to the core trio of the group, and a first tour with that configuration, said leader Tony Dekker.

"We did our first trio tour last year, in Europe," Dekker said. "I thought it would be interesting to scale things back and revisit some of the quieter side of the catalogue, since we had already done a proper tour over there for the release of (latest album) A Forest Of Arms with the full lineup, as a much bigger production.

Older material back

"I thought that our fans there might appreciate seeing some of the older songs come back to life. We were a much smaller outfit 10 or 12 years ago. The thing is, it just went so well. I came back from that tour feeling rejuvenated."

That led the band to continue the quiet shows back home.

"We played some very beautiful theatres, halls and clubs overseas," Dekker said. "So then I thought, we should do this across Canada. We put the word out that we were taking requests and honoured every single one. That tour took us out west to B.C. and back last fall, and I wanted to follow up this spring with the East Coast, so that's what we're doing.

Smaller venues

"We're purposely playing some smaller places than we normally do, and really focusing on the intimate aspect of the songs. It's been rewarding to revive them."

Violin player Miranda Mulholland has been a major part of the live show in the past, but has now moved on to her own projects, including the band Harrow Fair.

New stage roles

That's led to the group having to reinvent all their roles on stage.

"We were able to throw a lot of different songs and arrangements into the mix, could move a lot more freely with three guys playing a bunch of different instruments rather than having a dedicated set list that everyone had to be on board for," he said.

For Dekker, this version of the band feels closer to what he was after when they began.

"I almost started to feel like some of the real original intent of the band and the music was starting to get lost as we grew into a larger band and stepped things up," he said. "With this setup, there's even more of a focus on the songs, lyrics, and the craft of songwriting. It's like we're bringing things down to their basic elements again.

"We've never been a loud rock band, but this setting allows for something even more intimate. We have so many songs to choose from now, with six or seven albums under our belt, that it's nice to switch gears and play some of the ones we haven't got to play in a while that just might not have worked in the same way with a bigger band. I guess it's just a nice reminder that there is this other dynamic to the band that can be quietly intense."

The set list, apart from the requests they'll take, will come largely from the groups' first three albums, as well as recent songs done in a whole new way, Dekker said.

Opening the tour is Ontario singer-songwriter Megan Bonnell.

• Friday, March 24: Fredericton - The Capital
• Saturday, Mar. 25: Saint John - Pepper's Pub
• Sunday, Mar. 26: Parkindale, N.B. - ParkindaleHall
• Monday, Mar. 27: Miramichi - Miramichi Home Concert Series
• Tuesday, Mar. 28: Charlottetown - Baba's Lounge
• Wed., Mar. 29: Breadalbane, P.E.I. - The Dunk
• Thurs, Mar. 30: Riverport, N.S. - The Old Confidence Lodge
• Friday, Mar. 31: Margaretsville, N.S. - Evergreen Theatre
• Saturday, Apr. 1: Halifax - Seahorse Tavern