For an independent musician like Corin Raymond, who views himself as much a storyteller as guitarist and singer, a house concert is as close to perfect a venue as he can play.

He’s done about 100 house concerts during the last 10 years, playing from one end of the country to the other as the medium has become more popular.

“They’re very popular in Canada. There’s a really strong circuit of house concerts,” said Raymond.

Raymond has two house concerts coming up, one in Kamloops and the other in Sunnybrae near Tappen.

He performs in the home of Shawn and Robyn Haley on Wednesday, Feb. 13. The Sunnybrae show takes place the following night.

To reserve a spot at the Haleys, email robyn@erwinsbakery.ca. A seat at the Sunnybrae show can be reserved by emailing lody@sunnybrae.tv.

Raymond said the house shows are a micro-network of concerts that hover around the numerous folk festivals across Canada.

A good house concert can seat 30 to 50 people, but Raymond has entertained houses with 80 to 100 guests, or more. He said it all comes down to the size of the living room and what the hosts want.

“It’s a listener's experience,” he said. “People meet and become friends. It’s a great way to get together.”

The Haleys are fans of Raymond’s music, and spearheaded a campaign to help him raise Canadian Tire money to fund the Toronto-based musician’s next album.

Raymond has raised $6,500 so far, and is just $800 away from paying the studio bill, he said.

He’s just released a double album/144-page book called Paper Nickels, which he calls an exploration of Canada and music lore. He said 17 of the songs are covers of work by musicians he’s discovered during his 10 years of travelling and performing.

“I’m so proud of it. I’m so excited to get it into people’s hands,” he said.

The book is available through www.dontspendithoney.com.