Wheat Halo

New Album September 2024

Wheat Halo

Wheat Halo are an Indie Folk-Noir project from AB, Canada. Making a departure from, or maybe running parallel to, her previous “Alt-Country” and “Classic Country” roots, Tanyss Nixi leaves behind the “singer-songwriter” approach in favour of the collective with Wheat Halo- “where the material is our focus, instead of me, and the songs can become bigger than the people playing them.” Long time band mates Mitch Diesel and Scott Lingley remain at the core of this new project, with the addition of Isho Gunn on guitar and mandolin. A host of talented AB musicians contribute to the new album (Rebecca and Ryan Anderson of F&M, Lealand Grauwiler, Jason Kodie, Jason Colvin, John Dymianiw, Pete Turland and more) which is set for initial release September 27, 2024 at The Aviary in Edmonton, AB.

Tanyss Nixi: Voice, Songs, Acoustic Guitar

Mitch Diesel: Bass Guitar, Production

Scott Lingley: Drums, Assorted Junk

Isho Gunn: Electric Lead Guitar, Mandolin

Smart songwriting, delightfully dark brooding cadences and “deceptively sweet” vocals.

The Debut album “Laverne” with her previous band Wildwood put Tanyss straight to work- touring Vancouver Island twice, some festivals (Sasquatch Gathering, The Works Art and Design Fest, Calgary Stampede), charting on college radio in AB and BC, CBC’s Key of A with Katherine Duncan & CKUA’s Wide Cut Country with Allison Brock, nominated for a People’s Choice Edmonton Music Award, and a showcase at Indie Week in Toronto.

Press Reviews for Previous Projects

Edmonton Journal

http://edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/music/acid-tipped-lyrical-sensibility-on-wildwoods-debut

“Wavering somewhere between roots-rock, rave up and honky tonk, Edmonton’s Wildwood offers up a concise, 10-song debut that sounds like the members missed the last 25 years of country hokum… There’s a steely reserve hiding behind Nixi’s deceptively sweet voice, perfect for the cover of Kitty Wells’ proto-feminist anthem Honky Tonk Angels and her own Useless Torch, a song that would fit nicely in Margo Price or Whitney Rose’s set list. Highly recommended.”

GigCity.ca

http://www.gigcity.ca/2017/11/24/music-preview-needle-orphans-find-new-gigs/

“Wildwood – Here we have some Alberta classic country so raw, real and hurtin’ you’ll cry in the beer you told the guy to hold while you danced with his girlfriend, and then he drinks your beer, or something like that…The sweet and sultry vocals of Tanyss Nixi distinguishes the music of Wildwood, with “Not Fat Anymore” Dave Johnson (of the band Fuzz Kings) as the wingman. Not much Nashville bro-country here, so we must have to call it “alt-country.”

Exclaim!

https://exclaim.ca/music/article/tanyss_nixi-champion_of_lost_causes

“Tanyss Nixi may have been born and raised in a quaint Alberta town but that doesn’t mean she wasn’t exposed to the corporate blemishes that often dot the prairie landscape. From smokestacks to diesel trucks, fake tans to apathetic souls, Nixi’s latest album, Champion Of Lost Causes, doesn’t let anything escape criticism. "Refinery Row embodies the entire record’s premise, her lyrics constantly flashing before us those everyday images of cable television and things we really don’t need. "Showboat 2 Nowhere” dishes out the same sort of organic perspective, reminding us that even though we claim that we are individuals, we’re all part of a larger picture. But just as Nixi scrunches up her nose at those who fail to live in the moment, her beautiful voice and folk melodies remind us that changing the world really isn’t a lost cause.” (Independent)

News and events

News:

Recording a beauty of a NEW ALBUM, Produced by Mitch Diesel at Edmontone Studio (with Trevor Rockwell), and Cold Weather Studio, featuring some very special guest musicians- to be released September 2024.

Upcoming 2023:

March 22 @ SOHO in Edmonton, AB

Sept 27 @ The Aviary in Edmonton, AB, Album Release Event with Special Guests TBA

Shows 2020 (Pre Covid Global Pandemic)

Vancouver Island Shows with Hush Hush Noise:

Feb 6, Skol Pub, Gabriola Island BC

Feb 7, The Vault, Nanaimo BC

Feb 8, Vinyl Envy, Victoria BC

Feb 9, Hummingbird Pub, Solo Double Bill with Jack Garton, Galiano Island BC

Feb 29, The Commodore, Edmonton AB

Shows 2019

Nov 2, The Ship and Anchor

Sept 21, Elmwood Community 55th Birthday Party, Edmonton AB

Sept 7, Cask and Barrel, Edmonton AB

June 6, The Aviary, Edmonton AB for Amy Freelend Art Show Opening

(Writing and Preproduction in May)

May 26 The Aviary, Edmonton AB with Hush Hush Noise (Victoria) and Billie Zizi (Edmonton)

May 19 The Commodore, Edmonton AB

April 11, The Empress, Edmonton AB

March 3, Cartago with guest guitarist Ben Sures, Edmonton AB

March 2, The Black Dog with guest guitarist Ben Sures, Edmonton AB

Feb 23, The Commodore, Edmonton AB

Feb 9-16, Vancouver Island Tour Dates: Feb 14 Birdsong House Concert on Gabriola Island, Feb 15 Live performance CFUV Victoria Campus Radio, Feb 15 Cornerstone Taphouse Courtenay BC, Feb 16 Northern Quarter with guitarist Joel Fernandes Victoria BC, Feb 17 Hootenanny @ Logan’s Pub Victoria BC, Feb 17 The Nanaimo Bar Nanaimo BC

Jan 19, The Cask and Barrel, Edmonton AB

Shows in 2018:

Nov 10, The Paddock, Indie Week, Toronto ON

Sept 21, F & M Album Release, The Aviary, Edmonton AB

Sept 8, NDP Back to School BBQ for MLA David Shepherd, RailTown Park, Edmonton AB

Sept 2, Best in Show, Black Dog, Edmonton AB

July 28, Sasquatch Gathering, Metis River Crossing AB Main Stage

July 19, Muttart Conservatory Concert Series, Edmonton AB 7:00PM

July 7, Bell Live Music Series at The King Eddy for Calgary Stampede, Calgary AB

July 2, The Works Festival of Art and Design, Edmonton AB Main Stage 7:30PM

June 29, The Works Festival of Art and Design, Edmonton AB Main Stage 3:45PM

June 2, Black Dog, Edmonton AB