ABRAM-VILLAGE – July 15, 2022 – Those who love to dance to the sounds of vibrant Acadian music – essentially a combination of country, rock, folk and Cajun – will be well completely satisfied the weekend of the Evangeline Region’s Agricultural Exhibition and Acadian Festival in Abram-Village in early September, after two long years of waiting. Hert LeBlanc and his band will be back for a second year while the band Réveil will be back for a 13th time, both to play at the Festival’s dances on Sept. 2 and 3 respectively.
« People continue to tell us how much they have missed these dances over the past two years, so we are very proud to be able to proceed with our two dances this year, while observing the health measures that may be in place at that time, » says Exhibition and Festival president Jeanne Gallant.
HERT LEBLANC – FRIDAY
Hert LeBlanc – the very popular Acadian-Cajun-country-blues-rock ’n’ roll singer from Bouctouche, New Brunswick, played a few dances at the Festival when he was part of the supergroup Bois-Joli. As a solo artist (accompanied by several musicians), he played at one of the non-dance music nights last year; his show was greatly appreciated. So technically, this is his first time playing his own music at a Festival dance – the « Djâble dans l’corps » evening on Friday, Sept. 2, starting at 10 p.m. in the Evangeline Recreation Centre in Abram-Village. (Doors open at 9 p.m.)
Hert has recorded nine popular albums and has had the opportunity to play throughout the Maritimes and Quebec. Earlier in his 30+ year musical career, he founded several other bands: Sweet Temptation, Countrified and then Hert & The Running Rebels.
RÉVEIL – SATURDAY
The very popular band Réveil, from southeastern New Brunswick, is already celebrating its 15th anniversary this year. If it wasn’t for the pandemic, it would most likely be its 15th time at the Acadian Festival. But this is the group’s lucky 13th appearance in Abram-Village.
The band will be entertaining the crowd full speed ahead during the Evangeline and Gabriel Dance on Saturday, Sept. 2nd, starting at 10 p.m., again at the Evangeline Recreation Center. According to the band’s promotional material, the band provides “100 percent French music, a traditional Acadian feel and an energetic show that promises to get people dancing!”
Recognized as one of Acadia’s most popular musical groups, Réveil is now composed of Matt Hayes on fiddle, Joey McKinnon on drums, Marc Léger on bass, Nancy Blanchard on vocals, Brian Hébert on electric guitar, Kevin Arsenault on vocals and acoustic guitar and Richard Bourque on mandolin, acoustic guitar and banjo.
Over the years, Réveil has recorded four albums: Sans problème (2007), Ah! Qu’il fait beau! (2009), On y va!!! (2012) and Allez, buvez (2016). The original songs on the albums were written by the brother-sister duo of Kevin Arsenault and Nancy Blanchard. Their music has been played extensively on francophone radio stations in the Atlantic region and their presence is a must at any major celebration in Acadia and the Magdalen Islands.
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PHOTO 1: Hert LeBlanc and his band are ready to inject a ton of Acadian musical energy into the « Djâble dans l’corps » soirée on Friday, Sept. 2nd, starting at 10 p.m.
PHOTO 2: The band Réveil will celebrate its 15th anniversary as well as its 13th appearance at the Acadian Festival when it plays at the Évangéline and Gabriel Dance on Saturday, Sept. 3rd, starting at 10 p.m. The band is made up of (from left) Matt Hayes (fiddle), Joey Mckinnon (drums), Marc Léger (bass), Nancy Blanchard (vocals), Brian Hébert (electric guitar), Kevin Arsenault (vocals/acoustic guitar) and Richard Bourque (mandolin/acoustic guitar/banjo).