Kathleen Edwards downplays rave reviews Self-deprecating singer plays Pemberton tonight Kathleen Edwards has had some significant endorsements of her musical talent of late, but the Ontario singer-songwriter is still clinging to self-deprecation as a survival tool when navigating the murky waters of the music world. The alt-country rocker - who also happens to be a brilliant ballad writer - was invited to play the Pemberton Festival, where she'll be tonight, headlining the Lillooet Stage. Her most recent album, Asking for Flowers, has been getting rave reviews, as have her live performances in the U.S. and at home. And she was nominated earlier this month for Canada's Polaris Prize, alongside acts including Black Mountain, Stars and Caribou. But Edwards, 30, still often feels like she doesn't belong on certain lists and stages. When it comes to the Polaris Prize, she says it's "cool" to be nominated, but her attitude about the whole thing is less than enthusiastic. "I feel very awkward having my name on that list," Edwards said over the phone from her parents' home in Ottawa. "It's really just a matter of [the jurors'] taste. Not to sound disrespectful, but it doesn't mean somebody's better than the other, and the assumption is that it is." "I'm also surprised because it's generally been a list of people who are on the alternative side of the Canadian music scene, and I certainly don't feel like I'm part of that." It's hard to say exactly what scene Edwards falls into. She's not quite country - even though there are hints of twang and plenty of melancholy storytelling to her music. She's not quite a hard rocker - though she seems to have an affinity for loud guitar and the occasional angry vent. Nor is she hipster enough to fall under those non-descript labels of indie or alternative. Even with the Pemberton Festival's large and diverse line-up, she suggests she feels a little uncomfortable being on that bill, as well. "I'm managed by somebody who represents the Hip and Sam Roberts, so I have a feeling I'm riding the coat-tails of legitimate rock acts," she says in what's becoming a signature tone of self-deprecation. But she adds that she's excited about the festival and is particularly looking forward to Tom Petty's Saturday night performance. "Of course, anything to be in the same vicinity as Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers makes me very happy," she laughs. Even if Edwards doesn't like to acknowledge it, Asking for Flowers has brought her a new level of success. She thanks her intuition and gut instinct for the album sounding the way it does because there were a few people - whom she refuses to identify - who were initially critical. "When I finished it and I sent it in, I never got a phone call from somebody saying, 'Wow this is really good.' I only got phone calls saying, 'You should take that song off the record,' and 'We don't know how well this is going to do,' " she says. "It has set me up to be in a position where every day that something good happens is a victory." Her songs make frequent mention of things Canadian, from the CBC to Marty McSorley to a desperately sad retelling of the story of Alicia Ross, who was murdered in 2005 by her next-door neighbour in Markham, Ont. One of the songs that her initial critics had the most difficulty with was Oh Canada, an angry attack on the hypocrisy and ambivalence of Canadians. But Edwards knew in her gut there was nothing wrong with getting political in her music. She says it's a constant challenge to trust her instincts, but she's getting better at it with age. 'There are a lot of days when I don't think I'm very good at all and there are days when I think, 'Yeah, this might be my calling,' " she says. "It's a weird thing, putting your heart and soul into something and also having this ego-based type of experience. I realized that instinct or intuition is a much better gauge for doing things that make you feel fulfilled." It certainly sounds like Edwards has a confident, healthy approach to her craft - to which she responds: "Well, you caught me in my five minutes of positive thinking." Amy O'Brian The Vancouver Sun				Album reviews Feature articles Interviews Show reviews