Metro Moncton musician Steve Leblanc has been a fixture within the Moncton music scene for more than two decades. Whether playing guitar for the long disbanded glam metal band Exotic Gypsy, the flamenco-inspired An Acoustic Sin, hard rockers Tracy Starr or work with other local musicians such as Dominique Dupuis, chances are you have seen Leblanc play live even if you might not realize it.
Slated to play no fewer than seven shows over the course of the Touchdown Atlantic weekend, Leblanc has even more happening once this weekend is wrapped up.
First up on Leblanc’s plate in the near future is a solo record that will see him pursue a folk-inspired direction.
“My solo record is going to contain both French and English material and is really inspired by the opportunities I have had to play with Dominiqiue Dupuis,” he says. “The guitar playing on the record is more of the Acoustic Sin style of playing – there is a real flamenco vibe running through a lot of these songs.”
Leblanc will have the chance to showcase his solo material when he has the opportunity to open for Zachary Richard at the Monument Lefebvre in Memramcook in November.
With Tracy Starr currently on hiatus, Leblanc is looking forward to the holidays as An Acoustic Sin are anticipating playing their first show in more than a decade during that most wonderful time of the year.
An Acoustic Sin had cultivated a very dedicated following of fans while they were together and much to Leblanc’s surprise, a new generation of music fans have latched onto the group’s music, helping give them an even broader fan base since they parted ways.
“I’ve been asked about An Acoustic Sin numerous times over the years and over the past few years, I’ve been noticing that the people asking about the band have been getting younger and younger.
“Today, I still think that the band was something that was very special. We had a great following and I think we did all that we could have done at the time. We didn’t necessarily split on bad terms and having the chance to play with An Acoustic Sin again is a very exciting. I am really looking forward to our show.”
While the venue and date for the Acoustic Sin reunion show are still to be determined, it is something that Leblanc is very much looking forward to:
“I know our old fans will be there when we play but I think there will be a showing of people who only discovered us after we parted ways. I’m proud of the records we did but I have always thought that our live show made the band. Getting the opportunity to play again is going to be great.”