From logging camp to the big stage
Annette Strean will return to the Flathead Valley for a Christmas visit. The talented vocalist grew up in Whitefish before moving to Nashville and making a name for herself with her electronic-pop band Venus Hum, as well as her performances with the legendary Blue Man Group.
Strean is the daughter of John and Karen Strean, of Olney. She has two sisters living in Flathead Valley — April Boveng, a teacher at Flathead High School, and Collette Taylor, who works for Montana Coffee Traders in Whitefish.
The Streans were a working family. John Strean was an independent logging contractor, and the entire family traveled into the woods together. April and Collette and their brother Lyle ran chainsaws and drove heavy equipment since they were teenagers. Annette, the youngest sibling, was the cook at base camp.
The upcoming show will be Strean’s first in her hometown since high school. She performed as lead vocalist with the Blue Man Group in a Missoula performance last winter.
Strean and her husband Kirk Cornelius will perform a special concert in Whitefish on Saturday, Jan. 3, under the name Anniversary Party. Cornelius is a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist whose own alternative rock band, The Suns of Norway, released an album in 2006.
Venus Hum, originally based out of Nashville, was signed to MCA and BMG records, releasing their popular album “Big Beautiful Sky” (2003), with several songs featured in films such as “Catch That Kid” and various TV commercials in the U.S. and Europe. They won the International Dance Music Award for Best New Dance Artist in 2005.
Their most recent album, “The Colors in the Wheel,” was released independently in 2006 to high acclaim. With the Blue Man Group, Strean recorded a remake of Donna Summer’s hit “I Feel Love for The Complex” album, and after touring extensively with them, performed several times on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno as well as on Carson Daly Live.
The song was also featured on a Super Bowl commercial for Monster.com as well as the hit TV show “Alias,” on which Strean and her husband also had acting cameos at the producer’s request.
After moving from Nashville to New York City, Strean and her husband formed Anniversary Party as a creative outlet to perform around New York while Venus Hum was on hiatus.
They recently finished recording an album together which is due out in 2009. The duo features an acoustic-electronic sound reminiscent of Bjork, Radiohead, and Sigur Ros.
The concert will take place at The Church (historic former Whitefish Foursquare church), 345 Spokane Avenue, on Saturday, Jan. 3, at 8 p.m. Kalispell indie rocker Luke Dowler will open the show with a solo acoustic performance. Tickets are $10 at the door and all ages are welcome.