Great Big Sea to play at the Bird

Award-winning folk/rock band Great Big Sea is kicking off the second leg of its U.S. tour with a concert at The Bluebird Nightclub on Wednesday. The tour is to promote the band’s new album, “Fortune’s Favour,” which went gold in Canada.

The band hails from Newfoundland, an island province off Canada’s eastern shore. One of the first parts of North America to be discovered, it remained fairly isolated, leading to the development of its own distinct culture. It is this culture that the band strives to capture and share with the world through its music.

“We make pop music based on the folk music of Newfoundland and Labrador,” said

Bob Hallett, one of the band’s founding members. “By being ignored for 500 years, we were able to develop our own culture. Our music definitely has big Celtic influences, but if you know where to look, there’s also big French influences and Scottish influences and English influences.”

Great Big Sea formed in 1993 and has released nine studio albums since, each having gone gold or platinum in Canada. “Fortune’s Favour” went gold in September 2008 after its June release. The album features the band’s hit singles “Walk on the Moon” and “Love Me Tonight.”

Hallett described the band’s music as having two poles: the members’ folk roots and their more modern pop influences. He said while this album is more pop than some of the others, it is also a good blend of the differing styles.

The group is highly acclaimed in Canada, where it won the Entertainer of the Year Award for five consecutive years at the East Coast Music Awards before halting the submission of its name for nomination in 2001. The band also been nominated for nine Juno Awards, Canada’s premiere music awards, including two nominations for Group of the Year.

Great Big Sea has played shows in Indiana before, and its last gig here was in September 2008 at the Music Mill in Indianapolis.

“Indiana is the quintessential picture of the real America,” Hallett said, adding that he grew up watching shows like “Happy Days” and that Indiana fits that image of smalltown U.S.A.

This is the band’s first trip to Bloomington, however.

“We’re always seeking new lands to conquer,” Hallett said. “We wanted to play for some people who’ve never seen us before. There’s nothing more fun than watching people who are skeptical come to life, and to get the opportunity to do this in Bloomington, we’re looking forward to it.”

“I’m so excited for the show,” said Monica Brothers, senior and president of the band’s largest Facebook fan group.

“I’ve driven to see them in Chicago, Ann Arbor and Toronto,” she said. “Now to have them here in Bloomington is really amazing. They rock my world.”

World-rocking aside, Great Big Sea just want to play a great show.

“Rule number one is don’t be boring,” Hallett said. “People who come to see us who’ve never heard anything like it will walk away having been thoroughly entertained. What we’re offering is a genuinely enjoyable evening’s entertainment. That’s what we do.”