BIRDS OF CHICAGO Comes to BRIC House, 3/8

BRIC presents "secular gospel" duo Birds of Chicago on March 8 in an evening of raw and soul-rich music that demands to be experienced live, co-curated with Joan Osborne's Womanly Hips Presents. Mixing folk, mountain gospel and soul, the husband-and-wife-led band return to New York in support of their new EP, American Flowers. Birds of Chicago formed in 2012 as a collaboration between Chicago's JT Nero (JT & the Clouds) and Vancouver's Allison Russell (Po' Girl). These two seasoned songwriters convey stark, elemental imagery that feels like scripture-or a lost folk song recovered-and they draw heavily on the gospel tradition, making music that feels boldly new while evoking a sense of familiarity. For Birds of Chicago, every word counts. Every note counts. No gold-dusting, no filler.

Upon recently relocating to Nashville, Nero and Russell decided the perfect welcome-to-town party would be an acoustic recording session of a suite of country-tinged songs. American Flowers rounds out Birds of Chicago's offering of healing, communion and celebration of life in a dark and troubled time. Proceeds from the EP go to Chicago's South Side-based Teen Living Programs.

NPR raved that in their most recent LP, 2016's Real Midnight, Birds of Chicago manage to "show us a way to fully live with the awareness that nothing's forever and everything's at stake." Speaking to the publication, Nero said, "I still have a certain amount of faith in the notion that...there's kind of a collective consciousness in humans, that we connect through song in a way that is not afforded to us in other avenues," while Russell emphasized the "visceral, deep, emotional connection that can happen with music," particularly when the world can seem so disjointed.

Prior to Birds of Chicago's performance in the BRIC House Ballroom, singer-songwriter and veteran busker Victory will perform songs from her debut solo EP, It's a New Dawn, on the BRIC House Stoop.

Tickets may be purchased online at BRICartsmedia.org or via phone at 877.987.6487. The Box Office at BRIC House is open on performance days, one hour prior to the event. BRIC House is located at647 Fulton Street in Downtown Brooklyn. BRIC House is open weekdays and Saturday at 8am and Sundays at 10am.

About BRIC

BRIC is the leading presenter of free cultural programming in Brooklyn, and one of the largest in New York City. We present and incubate work by artists and media-makers who reflect the diversity that surrounds us. BRIC programs reach hundreds of thousands of people each year.

Our main venue, BRIC House, offers a public media center, a major contemporary art exhibition space, two performance spaces, a glass-walled TV studio, and artist work spaces.

Some of BRIC's most acclaimed programs include the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival in Prospect Park, several path-breaking public access media initiatives, including BRIC TV, and a renowned contemporary art exhibition series. BRIC also offers education and other vital programs at BRIC House and throughout Brooklyn.

In addition to making cultural programming genuinely accessible, BRIC is dedicated to providing substantial support to artists and media makers in their efforts to develop work and reach new audiences.

BRIC is unusual in both presenting exceptional cultural experiences and nurturing individual expression. This dual commitment enables us to most effectively reflect New York City's innate cultural richness and diversity.

Learn more at BRICartsmedia.org.