“Running Coyote” to explore words and melody in debut concert

Laureen F. Guenther
Times Contributor
Photo Courtesy of Matthew Oliver Van Diepen

 

Zach “Running Coyote” Habermehl, a musician-songwriter who performed at this year’s 15 Minutes of Fame, will give a concert at Thorny Rose Cafe and Live Music Venue in Rosebud, Nov. 5, at 8:30 p.m.
Running Coyote is a second-year student at Rosebud School of the Arts, who also busked outside Rosebud’s Opera House most of this summer. He describes himself as a First Nations folk-rock singer “who grew up on country, listens to too much blues and wishes he was a rock star.”
His musical influences range from Josh Garrels, an orchestral folk composer from Indiana, he said, to Rosebud’s Lewis and Royal, to the local traditions in the diverse Canadian places he’s lived, to the ancient traditional sounds of First Nations people.
Running Coyote said it was the audience response at 15 Minutes of Fame that convinced him to accept the invitation to perform at Thorny Rose Cafe.
“The response I got, to both my performance energy and the words that I write, was new,” he said. “As a street and church performer, to have that response to my words was new and exciting.
“I have a bit of an unconventional use of words, and I’m a poet. My energy brings people in, and then they actually listen to the words. To share more of my words again, with more people, is an exciting opportunity. I’m pretty stoked about it,” he said. “I’m looking forward to experiencing my own words and my own sounds with a group of people.”
His songs are conversations, Running Coyote said.
“Faith becomes a lot of the conversation that I have, but First Nations themes are so intricately woven in. I say I’m inspired by fog, northern lights, embers and stupid choices,” he said. “I get a lot of my melodies from nature and I get my words from the city and from people.”
Recently, Running Coyote was walking down a Calgary street, and someone asked if he had a light.
“I said, ‘sorry man,’ and kept on walking,” he said.
But a moment later, he thought, “Yeah, I do! He’s in here,” referring to God living within him. “I do have a light. It’s not a Bic, but it’s a light!”
Running Coyote hopes to turn that idea into a song.
“I’m also heavily inspired by my childhood,” he said. “Growing up in a non-native home, where being native wasn’t something to be proud of, took a toll on my identity.”
Stolen identity is a common theme for First Nations people, he said.
“Art, music and theatre give me an avenue in which to re-gather my identity, who I am, and then speak to a wider world of people whose identities have been stolen and shattered,” he said.
One of the songs he’ll perform Nov. 5 is Whitewashed, a song he wrote about growing up as a native child in a non-native home. He’ll also sing Hangnail, which he calls “an exploration of pain through metaphor.”
He’ll also perform some of his poetry, and play old songs like Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right by Bob Dylan, and Simon and Garfunkel’s Sound of Silence.
“It’s a musical exploration, that’s what this is going to be,” Running Coyote said. “An exploration of music and poetry with Zach Running Coyote.”
For concert reservations, contact Thorny Rose Cafe at 403-677-2507 or on Facebook. There’ll be a $10 cover charge, and food and drink specials will be offered.