Kelowna family band brings joy to children with debut album and video

“Songs and Tales from the Great Blue Whale” is the debut album from the Oot N' Oots, who are four Kelowna brothers and their 9-year-old niece named Ruth.

With it comes their first music video “Too Many Cookies” a delightfully hilarious video shot and edited by local filmmaker, 18-year-old Claire Donati-Simmons.

“The record is sort of a loose concept album,” explains Ezra Cipes, who plays guitar and sings in the Oot n’ Oots.

“There is a key track called 'Oot n' Oots Origin' that tells the story of these characters the Oot n’ Oots, how they are called by a great whale from out of the depths. The whale tells them to sing and to ‘do their thing’ and bring joy to the world. So that’s the mission statement of the band, and the rest of the songs on the album, like the first video 'Too Many Cookies', all come from that theme of joy.”

The Oot n' Oots is a family band made up of brothers Gabe, Ezra, Ari and Matt Cipes and Ezra’s daughter Ruth.

After touring and working as session musicians with acts like Tegan & Sara and Bif Naked, the Cipes brothers returned to their family's organic vineyard in Kelowna, BC to start their own families. It wasn't long before the need to play music took over again, and they dedicated themselves to writing and performing music for kids of all ages, full of comedy and heart.

While many of the songs are silly, fun or heartfelt, others approach the album’s theme from another perspective.

“There is one song on the album that’s about more complex emotions,” said Ari Cipes who also plays guitar and adds vocals.

“The kind of not-so-joyful feelings that are inevitable and natural. We feel it’s important for kids and for all of us to learn to be okay with them. Accepting and learning to have a healthy relationship with our emotions is part of a deeper joy.”

Songs and Tales from the Great Blue Whale is available for download on iTunes and Bandcamp. Physical copies of the CD will be available at Kelowna’s Milkcrate Records, or may be purchased on the band’s website to ship direct-to-purchaser anywhere in the world.

The Oot n’ Oots will make a special appearance to perform songs from the album at Bean Scene Coffee Works on Bernard Ave in Kelowna on Saturday, December 17th from 3 - 4 pm.