For some, a talent or ability can help to see the world and also bring people together. That’s definitely the case with Johnny Popoff.
Popoff, who is also known as Vanya Popov amongst the Russian population of Grand Forks, grew up in the city and last week played a sort of homecoming concert in the band LAVA. The band consists of the O’Connor family, a group of talented musicians from New Zealand.
Popoff went to the country a year ago under a working holiday and through luck and music met up with the family, who he is now touring with around the area, making up the fifth member of the band. After touring the West Kootenays, they will be heading down towards Nashville to continue the tour.
Popoff said it’s special to have the O’Connors touring along with him.
“I haven’t been in town for over a year,” Popoff said, when the band stopped by at the Gazette office last week.
“I’ve performed here (in the past) in the choral society and with some Doukhobor choirs, as a piano soloist, but never really as a band, as far as I can remember, so this is exciting to do that.”
And the rest of the band agrees, enjoying getting to see the area where Popoff is from.
The group that they have put together consists of the family of four, Sean and Amanda, the parents, and Acacia and Rosie, the daughters, as well as Popov adding another element to the band.
LAVA will be playing in Nelson this weekend and Kelowna on May 8.
The members also said that the set list is different for each show, as they like to mix up the songs and play a more flowing concert.
The bands music varies from folk song to reinterpretations of classic pop and rock songs, as well as some cultural Maori mixed in, keeping the songs lively and interesting as the set progresses.
Popoff and Rose both switch between piano and keyboard throughout, Amanda plays the flute, Sean a guitar and Acacia a violin, and all sing.
Popoff is a composer and also choir director, and composed some of the songs. The whole band contributes material, and much is drawn from Sean and Amanda’s library of songs.
LAVA hopes to continue touring for awhile and Popoff said that he has aspirations to return to New Zealand, perhaps as a music teacher.