A group named for the mythical Osmond brother who “didn’t get the same nurturing” as the others, and who “likes to play with guns,” is coming to The Vat on Saturday.
Hamilton rocker Tom Wilson, of Junkhouse and Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, is founder of the group Lee Harvey Osmond. He has explained that the band’s name, a juxtaposition of the dangerous (killer Lee Harvey Oswald) and the good-goody (the Osmonds), has long been his alias.
Lee Harvey Osmond is what Wilson billed himself as whenever he wanted to create a more dangerous-sounding folk music.
More recently, the same name has become an umbrella moniker for Wilson’s garage band of all-star Canadian musicians.
Wilson’s “musical collective” involves collaborations with Skydiggers and Cowboy Junkies members, and a dozen others.
The ensemble’s debut album, A Quiet Evil, is made up of tunes with a certain groove and darkness that Wilson has referred to as “a bottom end.” Critics across the country have been buying into the release’s hypnotic “acid folk” sound, and praising Wilson’s gravelly vocals for being hauntingly atmospheric.
Lee Harvey Osmond performs at 9 p.m. Saturday at The Vat, with special guest,
British singer/songwriter Jon Amor. There will be a $10 cover.