Lora Bidner, The Split bring holiday cheer to local venues

Lora Bidner @ The Black Sheep Inn on Thursday, 8 p.m., $10

It's called To the North and Lora Bidner's debut album does sound northerly. The songs are blustery and dramatic, with elements of folklore that lend them a forlorn, haunting feel.

An Ottawa native, Bidner studied music at Carleton University, where she honed her craft as part of their competitive singer-songwriter program. With hertaste for epic build-upsand layers of piano and voice, Bidner stood out.

These days, she's living in Toronto and applying that cinematic flairto writing film scores. On Thursday night, she'll be home for the holidays and will play for a local crowd alongside Wakefield's Lindsay Ferguson.

Amos the Transparent @ The Black Sheep Inn on Friday, 7:30 p.m., $15

Some venues are choosing to take a well-deserved break over the holidays, at least when it comes to live music. But the Black Sheep Inn has a busy weekend planned.

On Friday, they'll host longtime folk-rock favourites Amos the Transparent as the band carries on its tradition of playing an annual holiday show. Expect to hear theband's moseying new single, Change My Mind,as well as some otherfresh material.

And if the idea of driving to Wakefield and back isn't enticing, fear not.For $25, your ticket price can include a ride on a shuttle bus, with pick-ups at the Kanata Centrum and Ottawa City Hall, leaving you free todrink all the special eggnog you want.

The Split @ LIVE on Elgin on Friday, 9 p.m., $15

If you're like me, Friday will be spent scrambling in and out of downtown stores in a desperate attempt to finish your shopping. Whether or not that's the case for you but especially if it is there areplenty of ways to unwindcome Friday night.

At Babylon, a gang of rowdy punk Santas invades the stage for XXXMAS' annual pre-Christmas bashto raise funds for For Pivot's Sake. Meanwhile, over at The Rainbow, Suits 'n' Toquesdelivers seasonal ska for the benefit of the Ottawa Food Bank.

Then, there's LIVE on Elgin. They've got a night of soul planned, thanks to The Split. The band's core members are brothers Matthew and Curtis Chaffey and lately, they've played shows as a duo with an electronic set-up.

Not so,on Friday night.Expect a seven-piece incarnation of The Split, busting out classic Christmasy tunes with vintage soul stylings.

Chime of Wrens @ The Record Centre on Saturday, 2 p.m., free

Unless you've got the rare luxury of sleeping in on Christmas morning, you probably don't want to be out lateon Christmas Eve. So with that in mind, The Record Centre is a win-win place to go on Saturday.

In the afternoon, the shop hosts Chime of Wrens a solo pedal steel project from Tom Thompson of Still Winter Hills. Thompson's gorgeous instrumentals are sparse and rich at the same time, with his pedal steel ringing and resonating like a meditation.

The show is a family-friendly affair, complete with espresso and tasty eats and if you're a super-last-minute Christmas shopper, you might even scratch a couple of vinyl-lovers off your "still to buy for" list.