On April 25 at 9 p.m., Winnipeg-based band Living Hour will be performing at Ed’s (no name) Bar.

Gil Carroll (guitar), Adam Soloway (vocals and guitar), and Alex Chochinov (drums, trumpet, and organelle) have been friends since childhood, and have played together since they were eight years old.

Sam Sarty, who sings and plays keyboard and trombone, began playing with the three after meeting them at College and playing together.

After cycling through a few bass players, Brett Ticzon joined the group.

Since starting in 2015 in a basement, the group has released two albums, the latest of which came out on March 1.

“It was so much work—both emotional and time-consuming—to release that album, but it was so worth it,” Sarty said. “What’s really rewarding is that we released the album and fell in love with it all over again. We went with our emotions when we produced it and I couldn’t be happier with it.”

After the release of their album, the group embarked on their tour throughout the United States. Since then, the band has been to cities like Minneapolis, Chicago, Washington D.C. and Las Vegas, NV. Some of their favorite places to tour include places where they have to travel along the coastline or go past interesting landscapes.

While the band enjoys playing in the big cities, they also recognize that some of their favorite places mirror their hometown of Winnipeg.

“Winnipeg really has a thriving music and arts community that people don’t know about,” Sarty said. “Sometimes, people don’t realize we are here because Winnipeg is so far away from everything. But that’s what makes it fun—going to states and tour and explore other music communities, especially those like Winnipeg.”

Their favorite part of touring is meeting interesting people and going to new places. Sarty said because she comes from a smaller place like Winnipeg, music gives her an opportunity to travel and meet people she wouldn’t otherwise have had the chance to.

“Winona is this smaller community that might get skipped over a lot because of its size,” Sarty said. “Winnipeg is the same way, so we want to make sure to get to those places along with going to places like New York City. We want to be heard in as many places as possible and Winona is a great place to help us do that.”

Upon hearing how important Ed’s is to the Winona music scene, the band said they were excited and honored to play in such a place. Sarty said she hopes that the new sounds and words from their second album will be that much more interesting in such a meaningful place.

“Come with some friends,” Sarty said. “Be prepared to be open and listen to the emotional words and music that we created.”

While Ed’s (no name) Bar is only 21+, those interested can still listen to Living Hour’s music on their website, Soundcloud, Youtube and Spotify. Patrick Lyons, album reviewer for Bandcamp Daily, said Living Hour’s “‘Softer Faces’ is easy to enjoy immediately and superficially, but listen more closely, and it’ll surprise you with its depth.”