Melissa Payne

About the Artist

part velvet, part gravel and bursting at the seams

Payne, an accomplished musician who has been proficient on the fiddle since childhood, played fiddle in the Ontario-based band Express & Company in addition to writing and performing her own songs. In 2009, Payne crafted her early songs into a self-released album of demos that won the interest of Seventh Fire Records and culminated in her 2012 self-titled, full-length debut. After making an indelible impression with her playing on Express & Company’s 2013 album, Ontario, Payne, accompanied by producer Greg Keelor (Blue Rodeo) and co-producer/engineer James McKenty, took that momentum into the studio to write and record the songs that would become High and Dry.