For the most part, I’ve given up doing interviews with bands, but once in a while, an artist or project with a compelling story will catch my eye. That’s the case with Kathryn Sutherland of Blue Dirt Girl and Sight Curve. Read on to find out why.

How are Blue Dirt Girl and Sight Curve different?

The 2 bands have polar opposite sounds and Blue Dirt Girl song structures are more traditional with verses, chorus, bridges.

Blue Dirt Girl line up can be singer/electric guitar and bass, or the addition of second guitar and synth or full band with drum kit added in to the mix.

Albert and Kathryn write all the bands song lyrics either solo or with tweaks form one another. 

The guitar and bass parts are always a collab between the 2. 

Whereas  SC songs start out with Josh Klassen’s beats. Josh sent them to Kathryn Sutherland to add her lyrics and vocal parts and finally the beats/vocals go to Albert Klassen for stand up or electric bass parts.

Kathryn does not play guitar her voice is her instrument.

Kathryn’s way of singing is stretched with SC. She uses whispering, sounds and words and does not always follow a traditional song structure.

Albert plays stand up/bow and electric bass equally with this project.

How do the bands complement each other?

Blue Dirt Girl’s Albert and Kathryn have a 25+ year working, creating, and performing music relationship. They trust and respect each other on stage and off. 

Albert and Josh have a familial bond and have worked on music in the past.

Josh and Kathryn respect each other and love each other’s music stylings.

Huge to have this bond between band members.

Both bands believe that each instrument including the vocals must both be featured and also play off of each other.

Josh is also a very talented multidisciplinary artists who created SC logo, made linocut image for the album cover and made up some cyanotype t shirts for the band merch. That took a lot of work away from Kathryn.

Kathryn creates all the posts, Youtube videos, updates the website for Blue Dirt Girl including blogs, created merch and books the shows for Blue Dirt Girl and Sight Curve. Josh will apply to festivals for SC.

With Sight Curve Josh and Kathryn work together on post ideas and visual themes for the band plus Josh does all the Youtube videos.

Both bands believe in occasional ‘give back’ concerts where our fee’s and sometimes % of ticket sales goes toward local non profits. 

What will fans of one find to love in the other?

Kathryn’s vocals are featured in both bands. With Sight Curve you hear a completely different range of vocals with Kathryn using sounds instead of words for some of the songs and traditional singing.

Albert’s distinct bass style is featured in both bands plus with SC you get to hear his emotive stand up bass with bow playing.

Both bands believe that each instrument including the vocals must both be featured and then dance with each other.  Both projects get positive comments because of it.

How do you balance the two? How do they both fit into your life?

It’s a balancing act all the time. Sometimes I tip over and fall. 

But/and both bands are a gift in my life and the creative work helps me breathe.

Releasing 2 albums within a month is super exciting, a once in a lifetime moment and a hell of a lot of work. 

I have less reviews for the 2 albums.  I am trying to do less business for the bands. The album socials posting is slow but smart. 

I do less blog posts on our Blue Dirt Girl website but it fits my philosophy of what really counts for the bands: our recording studio stories, our shows, new videos and album/song releases. I am not updating the website look except the front cover.

I apply to festivals and get Josh to apply for Sight Curve. 

Josh and I work together on SC social posts and he handles the YT videos.  Josh created handmade SC album covers. So I only created covers for Blue Dirt Girl’s album.

Blue Dirt Girl had less rehearsals and no live shows when Sight Curve was creating the original score and performing live for the dance shows.

Then Blue Dirt Girl focussed and sharpened up our songs and headed into the studio to record the LOVE ADJUSTED album. 

We actually did Blue Dirt Girl versions of 2 Sight Curve songs on the album. 

So we get new music that works in both bands!

What does each give you that the other doesn’t?

SC gives me space to just sing and use my voice in different ways. Dropping the guitar playing makes a massive difference.

SC process of creating music is totally different than Blue Dirt Girl and this in turn influences my Blue Dirt Girl songwriting, singing and playing.

i enjoy creating the more traditional structure of Blue Dirt Girl songs.

For anyone who’s completely new to your work, which do you recommend listening to first? 

For Blue Dirt Girl i think you can listen to our first album CRAZY BEAUTIFUL and then follow our sound change over our single releases, EP, No Street Signs no straight lines album and now Love Adjusted.

Or start with our latest album and go backwards.

Sight Curve has just the one album and lots of live performances on our Youtube channel.

How did Sight Curve come together?

After years of Josh and Kathryn talking about working together they just started.

Josh sent beats to Kathryn and the lyrics and vocals literally poured out of her.

Josh and Kathryn quickly realized we needed Albert to work with them. We sent the beats and vocals to Albert and he created bass parts. We had  7 or 8 songs completed.

Soon after SC came together the trio was commissioned to create an original score, and perform it live, for a modern dance troupe. 

Josh got a cancer diagnosis the day after we agreed to do the score.

Josh insisted we continue so most of the score was worked up, via zoom, from Josh’s hospital room during chemo treatments. It was a unique and deep process of creating music.

Thankfully Josh was well enough to  attend rehearsals with the dancers and perform 2 shows.

He is in remission and was able to mix and master the album release in June and perform live shows this summer.

Josh believes our creative work saved his life. 

What does the name mean to you?

Honestly, we just brainstormed band names, Josh checked if they were available and  we hit on Sight Curve and all loved it.

What’s the new Sight Curve album called, and how would you describe its sound?

Cancer Dance is the album title.

A genre defying indie project featuring Kathryn Sutherland’s strong and nuanced vocals,  well-versed bassist Albert Klassen on stand up and electric, and eclectic beatsmith Josh Klassen.

What’s on the horizon for you?

Both bands are creating new music:

Blue Dirt Girl has 5 new songs we are working up and Josh is sending new beats for Albert and I to work with.

We are rehearsing the Blue Dirt Girl summer set list with the addition of our second guitarist/synth and a drummer. 

Sight Curve is also rehearsing in preparation for:

Blue Dirt Girl and Sight Curve 

ALBUM RELEASE X 2 DANCE PARTY

with opening act Thinking Ship poetry with Josh Klassen’s beats.

I am producing this show October 17th in Vancouver at a cool cabaret venue that doubles as a storage spot for a theatre/puppetry troupe called Dusty Flowerpot Cabaret.

I am co producing a Fundraiser show, February 20th, 2027, on Saturna Island, BC. 

We will be using the gorgeous, historic Community Hall and have both Blue Dirt Girl and Sight Curve performing. 

My family bought a home here and our Island needs a new ambulance.

Both bands are donating their time and playing for no charge!