Catriona Sturton believes authenticity blooms at night.

The Ottawa, Ontario blues singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist spotlights the honesty and vulnerability people share after dark on “We Bloom at Night.”

“For years, I had wanted to write a song around an idea that Eniid Goodman, a great Canadian songwriter and interpreter of Joni Mitchell’s music, had shared with me,” said Sturton about her new track, which will be included part of the upcoming Night Bell 12-inch vinyl single via J.M.I. Recordings.

“It was about how there are times in life when we can be wide open to who another person is, but that it can also be stressful if [that experience] is [later] followed by them pulling back.”

At the start of “We Bloom at Night,” Sturton sings, “I see the moon / And the moon sees me / I’m used to hiding / Comes so easily / But the moon’s gentle light / Keeps shining on me / Patient and kind / Shining on what I want to be.”

“[Eniid] shared that she had learned … there are cycles in nature of [flowers] opening and closing. When I had mentioned to [another] friend about how flowers open during the day and close at night, he said, ‘What about the evening primrose?’” Sturton said.

“And in that moment, I got the idea of how to express the song I had struggled with for years. It did kind of change my life and is one of my favorites.”

The track also celebrates Sturton’s love of the nighttime and the tranquility that comes with it.

“I am most definitely a night owl and always have been since I was a child,” she said. “I like how people open up when it gets dark. When I’m myself, I feel like I can hear my thoughts better when the town is sleeping.”

I recently spoke with Sturton about her background, time in Plumtree, current recordings, new song and upcoming 12-inch vinyl single, this week’s shows with Detroit folk singer-songwriter Mike Ward and future plans.

Q: How has your summer been so far? What’s been inspiring you lately?

A: My summer has been going really well. I have been inspired by the ice cream at The Ploughman’s Lunch in West Dublin, Nova Scotia. It is soft serve that has real raspberries in it. Tomo Nakayama, one of my all-time, favorite musicians, has new music out, and I’ve also been listening to Ailani; I love her voice and vibe.

I’ve also been inspired to make more connections in Michigan. I’ve spent a lot of my summer based near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and I’ve been learning about lovely places and people in Michigan. If you have a good suggestion for me, then let me know.

Q: How did your musical journey start with playing violin while growing up near Ottawa, Ontario? How did that lead to playing the harmonica and inspiring your passion for the blues?

A: My grandfather was the fiddle player in the village. As a small child, I wanted to learn to play like him. I ended up learning from a Swiss-German violin teacher who was quite strict and who wasn’t keen on folk music. It was always a struggle for me to practice. I even showed up at a lesson with an empty violin case because I hadn’t practiced all week and didn’t realize I hadn’t put it back.

When I was 15, I had the kind of day and month where it felt like everything was going wrong. I left school early and ended up at the music store. I found an inexpensive harmonica with “Angel” written on it. From the moment I started trying to play it, I was hooked. Unlike the violin, I had no trouble forcing myself to practice. To this day, playing harmonica has always been the best way to quiet my mind. Before I felt comfortable singing, it also felt like my voice and the best way I knew to express deep feelings.

I think the violin is a good preparation for a lot of instruments. It helped with harmonica because with it being a fretless instrument it meant you could learn to play notes between notes. I began to listen to a lot of blues music when I started playing harmonica.

Q: What was it like to study the harmonica with Larry “The Bird” Mootham and Carlos del Junco? How did they help shape your love of the instrument?

A: Larry was giving a harmonica workshop at The Ottawa Folklore Centre, where I bought my first harmonica. To say it changed my life would be an understatement. I started taking lessons with Larry, and I saved up my babysitting money to learn from him. He loved music from the Ottawa Valley and incorporated it into his style.

Carlos del Junco is a master of the harmonica. I had wanted to study with him since I was a high school student. To pay for lessons, I started teaching harmonica, which is now a big joy in my life. Carlos is on another level of musicianship, but I did finally learn the importance of music theory and ways to not be as intimidated by it. I also learned ways to set up harmonicas to make them easier to play, which I had previously gotten an introduction to from Rick Jeffries.

Q: You spent several years playing in Plumtree. How did being part of that band help shape you as an artist, songwriter and musician? What was it like to have the band’s 1997 track, “Scott Pilgrim,” from Plumtree Predicts the Future inspire the graphic novel series (and later the 2010 film) of the same name by Bryan Lee O’Malley?

A: Being in Plumtree was one of the most formative experiences of my life. I was in a band with two sisters and a friend who I had met in high school. Before I was in the band, I didn’t realize the extent that it was possible to book tours or make a record label yourself, even while you were in high school. The band had started when the drummer, Lynette [Gillis], was 14 and the rest of the band was 15 and 16. By the time I had joined, it felt like they were already very experienced even though we were all still young. I learned so much with them, and we had a lot of funny memories from touring the expanses of Canada on a shoestring budget.

Apart from the musical lessons and learning ways of making things happen that I learned from them, I was lucky to have such good and lasting friends. I didn’t write a lot of songs when I was in the band, but they helped me to record one of my first—“My My.”

To date, Lynette is still one of my favorite drummers. Carla [Gillis] is a boss of a guitar player and snippets of Amanda [Braden’s] song ideas that I might have heard one time decades ago still get stuck in my head. Our manager, Walter, was a filmmaker and we learned a lot about making videos.

We met Bryan Lee O’Malley, who wrote Scott Pilgrim, after an overnight drive from Thunder Bay to London, Ontario. It was exciting to be part of the book and movie, which is filled with so many layers of neat references. Probably the most exciting one for us was in that movie—Elvis Costello’s daughter plays a character based on Lynette.

I think my biggest lesson from the experience was that you never know what will happen and to make art and get out there. The show we played in London after a 20-hour overnight drive only had about three people at it, but two of them were Bryan and his sister.

Q: You recorded a cover of Valerie June’s 2013 track, “Somebody to Love.” Why did you decide to record your own version of that track? What’s special to you about it and Valerie June’s 2013 album, Pushin’ Against a Stone?

A: I have been covering this song for ages and it is one of my favorites to play live. I learned it one freezing winter night after I saw a mouse jump back into a trap because its friend was still stuck in it and couldn’t get out. It hit me how brave and loyal this little mouse was. I love thinking that this song could be a love letter to a friend, a love or even to yourself.

I love the record Pushin’ Against a Stone! I saw Valerie June play and her storytelling was so good. At the time, I was intimidated by the idea of recording an album, and I liked hearing how she recorded different parts of hers in different places with different musicians. She’s a great artist.

Q: Your song, “Drop Kick,” reveals the personal defeat and heartbreak that arrives each November. How did the month of November inspire this track for you? How was writing this track cathartic for you?

A: Most everything in the song was inspired by a conversation with an incredibly deep soul of a musician I had met in New Orleans. I wrote it based on her experience and it arrived almost fully formed in one go. It isn’t autobiographical to me, but I try to sing it as if it was. I wanted to offer her a gift for all the loss she had experienced and for the dark moments she’d had to face on her own. I think as you go through life you can end up with weeks, months or seasons where too many tough anniversaries, or a really hard one, can be too much. Even in those moments where it all seems too much, or maybe because of it, I like the idea that a moon on a clear night can bring a moment of stillness.

Q: Why did you decide to include “We Bloom at Night” and its three different versions on the upcoming Night Bell 12-inch vinyl single via J.M.I. Recordings? How does “We Bloom at Night” complement the single’s other two tracks, “Take a Walk” and “Mongoose Moan?” When do you plan to release the single?

A: The record came about around the song “We Bloom at Night.” Ray Angry made such a beautiful string version, and we wanted to be able to highlight the music on its own. I hope people will be as stirred as I was by it.

“Take a Walk” was written by Samuel Parker and Giveton Gelin’s trumpet part ties it all together. “Mongoose Moan” is an instrumental I wrote at the start of my solo career, and I loved including an older song.

There’s no release date yet because it depends on the timeline of the analog recording pressing, but it’s available for pre-order now.

Q: How long did you spend recording “We Bloom at Night” at New York City’s Reservoir Studios? What was it like to co-produce the track with Steve Mandell?

A: We recorded three songs in two days and the string arrangements were added in another session. Steve Mandell and Jake Cohen were instrumental from start to finish with making sure we chose takes with the best feeling. I really trusted them to know when to keep going or move on. I admire their taste, and I was very lucky to work with them. Their label sets a high bar, and they made me feel comfortable but also encouraged me to aim high. I think Steve shaped the whole record by having high standards, deep music knowledge and an impeccable aesthetic; he should get a lot of credit. Thanks to Jake, I got to hear Giveton Gelin play and that was amazing.

Q: “We Bloom at Night” also features collaborations with Ray Angry (keys, string arrangements) and Giveton Gelin (trumpet). How did they help take the track to the next level?

A: It took one millisecond of hearing Giveton Gelin’s trumpet to know he was adding real-life magic to the song. His tone is so exquisite, his choices are so perfect and he also brought really lovely energy to the session. It was the first time in my life to experience anything like Ray Angry adding his composition, arrangement and conducting talents to the song. He is an otherworldly talent in these times. I think both Ray and Giveton also helped to tie this record to the rest of the J.M.I. catalog, which primarily showcases jazz artists.

Q: You’re performing with Detroit folk singer-songwriter Mike Ward on August 22 at Ghost Light in Hamtramck, Michigan, and August 23 at Berkley Coffee & Oak Park Dry in Oak Park, Michigan. How and when did you come to meet Mike?

A: Ron Leary, a great Windsor, Ontario songwriter interviewed Dave Toennies and me on the same day, and I learned about Dave’s weekly show at the Ghost Light. I went to the Ghost Light with Ron and Ed Janzen, a good friend, singer and visual artist from Windsor. The Ghost Light had a great atmosphere, and I’m so glad to have met Mike [Ward] and his sweet wife, Angela [Ward] that night. I also remember crossing the border with a mini trampoline in the back that I had been using to jump on during shows and had forgotten to take it out. It had raised a few questions at the border heading back to Canada.

Q: You used to lead the Sunshine Gang, a daily breakfast livestream. How did that come about for you? How did Mike Ward become involved in it with you? What else has evolved out of the Sunshine Gang?

A: During the pandemic, I missed touring so much, and like many musicians, I stepped up my streaming pace. I’m not naturally a morning person, but I began a daily breakfast livestream and committed to playing every day. I knew a lot of people were on their own and isolated, and I thought if people had a routine and a familiar face each day it might help somehow.

It also helped me to see people who regularly tuned in. We kept it up for eight months, and Mike was always a great and thoughtful participant and he filled in as a guest host. I wrote a ton of songs; many were influenced by people’s suggestions and contributions and now the biggest legacy is a February art challenge, where I set people up with pen pals to create and exchange something during the winter months.

Q: What’s up next for you? Any plans to write new material or go back into the studio?

A: I’m going to be touring this fall with Darby Wilcox, a songwriter from South Carolina, which I’m really looking forward to. I have some songs I’m working to finish and no immediate studio plans, but I’m working on them.