February 24–March 2, 2000

critic pick|rock/pop

Brothers Creeggan

The way Jim Creeggan sees it, touring and recording with his brother Andy helps him be a "more grateful member of Barenaked Ladies." Both Creeggans, in fact, had been members of BNL for years — bassist Jim, 29, still is; his slightly younger keyboard-playing brother Andy split about five years ago to work on solo stuff and study music composition at Montreal’s McGill University.

Together they’ve put out three albums under the moniker The Brothers Creeggan. While some listeners might connect the dots to Barenaked Ladies, these two aren’t necessarily sure they want people to.

"This is about experimentation.… It opens our lives a little more," explains Jim from a phone booth in Toronto, where he was preparing for the duo’s 40-city U.S. tour. "We have a gravitational pull to do our own music."

Both skilled multi-instrumentalists, between them the Brothers play about 10 instruments, including hammered dulcimer, viola, bass and accordion. A few years back, Jim showed his musical versatility by playing upright bass on Sarah McLachlan’s Grammy-winning instrumental track "Last Dance," from the Surfacing album.

Their latest self-released CD, Trunks, is a melodic mix of catchy pop and jazz-influenced ballads, as well as snappier numbers that contain the type of quirky humor that Barenaked Ladies have made a career of.

"I don’t expect we’ll have a Top 10 hit, but if we did, it’d be an oddball, worthy hit," Jim says. "It would make people sit up and take notice, which is what we try to do with all of our songs."

—Nicole Pensiero

The Brothers Creeggan with special guest Julie Doiron, Thu., Feb. 24, 8:30 p.m., Tin Angel, 20 S. Second St., $10, 215-928-0978, www.tinangel.com.