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For Evelyn, for Whistler

Singer-songwriter Hannah Georgas performs a free concert at Whistler Olympic Plaza
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With depth Toronto singer-songwriter Hannah Georgas performs music from her new album For Evelyn. PHOTO submitted

For Evelyn, the latest album by singer-songwriter Hannah Georgas, comes across as an exercise in conquering fear.

The Georgia Straight described the music in it as turning "angst into eye candy," a line too good not to share.

And it's apt; Georgas is now aged 32 and having moved back to Toronto from her longtime home in Vancouver, she is coming from a place of experiencing life's ups and downs.

For Evelyn came out in June.

"I definitely had a different mindset going into recording. I wanted to be very particular about things this time around and took time working on it. This one took a lot of heart and soul; a slow cooker," she says.

"I put my last album out in 2012 and spent two-and-a-half years touring it. I didn't write a lot and I came back and started all over again."

The Evelyn in For Evelyn is her 98-year-old grandmother.

"I'm very happy with it, I'm proud of it," Georgas says.

"When I first started making the record and even during the process of it, I didn't have the notion to acknowledge her this way until I moved back to Toronto. I was visiting family a lot and visiting her and reflecting on her. I thought a lot about what kind of person she has been in my life, her influences.

"I've seen her as this energy that has been caring and giving and selfless. The record is a lot about my personal stuff, my fears and anxieties — overcoming those things and being powerful."

The fact that her grandmother has been through ups and downs herself was an inspiration, she says.

"Thinking about the people who have come and gone in her life. She's lost both of her sons; she's lived through it all.

"I see her as someone who sits back and looks at all of us with this wisdom — and also maybe laughing a bit."

The four-time Juno nominee performs a free concert at Whistler Olympic Plaza as part of the Whistler Presents Summer Music Concert Series on Friday, Aug. 5, at 7:30 p.m.

"I will be playing a lot of the new record. I have a different set-up than my live shows in the past, there's a lot more keyboard-driven stuff. It's a fun show and pretty fresh — we've been busy since early June and it feels really good on stage," Georgas says.

"It's refreshing to come out West since I lived there for so long."

She has been open about dealing with depression and anxiety, bringing those themes into her music. She says her music is cathartic for her.

"A lot of things happen on stage that I think people don't realize. When there's a really good show, you can let go and join in. I want people to enjoy it," she says.

"It's my main focus when I play live."

For more information visit www.hannahgeorgas.com.