Aurora is always a homecoming for musician David Francey

February 24, 2016 · 0 Comments

By Brock Weir

Sitting along the side of the Thompson River, David Francey was transfixed by the endless double stream of ore trains going by.

On one side of the double track, trains groaning with their load were en route to their ultimate destination while, on the other side, more trains, relieved of their burden, were heading back to pick up more.

As he watched, he was inspired by the rattling of the empty trains and began to equate the empty cars with a lack of love.

After a long while on the road, Mr. Francey brings his new album, Empty Train, to the Aurora Cultural Centre for a launch party and concert this Saturday night.

The Aurora Cultural Centre is a familiar venue to this Juno award-winning musician.

His mother, who died last year, used to live in Aurora and the first time he played at the venue, there was a lot of love in the room from the packed crowd house.

There is going to be a lot of love in the room once again as Mr. Francey takes the stage with Mark Westberg, Darren McMullen and Chris Coole. While his mum is no longer here, it will still be a family affair as he is joined by his sister, still an Aurora resident, her kids, and their kids.

“It is going to be a nice night for me to get a visit in and that always makes it special for me because I don’t get to do that very often,” he explains.

Those empty trains along the river should be so lucky.

“This [album] came from two pretty hard years on the road,” he says. “I had worn myself out pretty good. I had a lot of stuff back-piled from past years of writing and a lot of stuff that was pretty much brand new. This is a combination of both. It is all about sitting there and watching everything that happens.

“I’m inspired by anything that moves the heart, it’s as simple as that. If you’re going to write it, it has to move you in one way or another, bring out some kind of response in you, positive or negative, enough to move you to do something about it. Love is a classic example of that. It is always there, it is always a motivator. It can be an enlightener or a complete depressant. There is very little middle ground happening there.”

Tickets to February 27’s David Francey in Concert are now on sale through the Cultural Centre. Advance tickets are $28 and $32 on the day of the concert. Doors open at 6 p.m. with seating beginning at 7.30 p.m. for an 8 p.m. show time. For more information, visit www.auroraculturalcentre.ca.