Vancouver’s 
Lion Bear Fox will open the Victoria Playhouse Musical Mondays on July 4. Originally known for their respective solo careers, Christopher Arruda, Ryan McMahon and Cory Woodward joined forces as Lion Bear Fox in 2012 and were immediately selected as one of the top 20 unsigned bands British Columbia (Peak Performance Project). The fall of 2013 saw the band release their self-produced breakthrough EP “We’d Be Good Men” and take Western Canada by storm, touring 15 times over the next two years including stops at Canadian Music Week (Toronto), Contact East (PEI), OSAC (Regina) Mission Folk Festival and The Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver, BC. Terry David Mulligan with The Nanaimo Daily News called the group “a musical force of nature” and “emotional awakening”.
With the help of friend and producer Nygel Asselin (Half Moon Run), the trio spent ten days in the Vancouver Island wilderness crafting “the record of their lives” – a collection of songs steeped in character and full of warmth. One part folk, one part rock – a pinch of gospel and a dash of growl, the self-titled LP is a testament to the trio’s strength as songwriters.
“All three artists are known for the passion they bring to their performances and the honest songs they write,” writes the Ladysmith Chronicle, “and they have succeeded in creating gripping, dynamic songs while capturing a sincerity rarely heard this side of the 2000’s.