Interview With Clouds Of Analog

Hey guys, we are back to another week in the Vamcouver local music scene, and joining me is a band who is charged with raw emotion. Fresh off their recent performance in front of 18,000 strong at Rogers Arena, at a Vancouver Canucks game, is none other than Vancouver-based Clouds Of Analog. One of their more recent songs they have released is ‘When I Was Young’ which features a 65 piece string orchestra arranged by Christian Howes. The 3 members of C.O.A. are Robin Younge (Guitars and Vocals), Dan Pennell (Drums and Percussion), and Joseph Lubinsky-Mast (Bass). One of the bands big focus' are powerful lyrics and musical themes which set them apart from the rest. so lets get to hearing from the guys.

ITS - Explain how COA got together as a band and how the band name came to be.

C.O.A.  "How the band came to be is a lengthy story but what I can tell you is Dan had just got back from North Texas and sent me an email while I was sitting at a Starbucks. I emailed him back (actually through Facebook) and we were having coffee half hour later.  He had noticed my dedication through previous bands and wanted to create a project together. Joe ended up entering the project through Dan as a session player.

 The name ‘Clouds of Analog’ is the movement into the natural state of anything.  Clouds being movement while analog being the original source. I.m a big believer in asking for something and then letting it go.  So one day I was just driving on the highway being stuck in rush hour when I became frustrated and decided to take a short cut when all of a sudden I thought of the band and the name just popped into my head.  It felt so right that I pulled over the car and wrote it down."

ITS - Who are your inspirations individually and as a band?

 
Robin - "In my teens I listened to a lot of Meatloaf, Tom Waits and Smashing Pumpkins. Huge Peter Gabriel Fan.  He was recently introduced into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and that made me so happy.  Actually I am very picky. Some of my favourite bands to date are Mono, Envy, Cracker, Meatloaf, yes I did say Meatloaf My all time favourite band which I’ve seen more than anyone is Depeche Mode. Absolutely the best performances I’ve ever seen."

Dan - "I first fell in love with Punk Rock.  Hearing the driving sound of Eric Melvin in NOFX drove me to play drums.  It was aggressive and tons of fun.  Later on my ear was drawn to drummers such as John Bonham and Billy Cobham.  Mr. Bonham’s playing just felt and sounded so great, while Mr. Cobham’s fierce fusion sound really owned up my ears to the technical possibilities in Music on the side of the Drum Set. Nowadays, I listen to a wide range of things for inspiration from Chopin to Queens Of The Stone Age. On drums, the sounds of Antonio Sanchez and Eric Harland really drive me for their musicality." 

Joe - "I think the band's influences are a sum of what inspires us individually. Dan brings forth a heavy jazz background in his playing which really fills in a lot of space along with Robin's lush, ambient guitar playing, and supports Robin's anthemic song writing. personally, I grew up playing in punk bands, and was inspired by a lot of the late 70's music as well as the faster street punk and hardcore that was coming out in the 90's. As a bassist I really dig bassists who play lines, Paul Simon, and Robbie Shakespeare are two of my favourites, I love the soul and r&b music from all ends of the States, listen to a lot of hip-hop, and love country music. I'm just a confused individual."

ITS - Being a band from Vancouver, how do you find the music scene in the city?

C.O.A. - "There are a lot of great bands here in Vancouver and not a lot of places to play.  Vancouver is so small.  A blink of the eye and your through to the other side heading into East Van.  We recently played Rogers Arena so that was definitely an amazing change from 100 people to 18,000 . We definitely live in a hub where the greatest acts come to record.  It’s definitely a city for recording. A lot of amazing talent choose to live here as well."

ITS - What do you think needs to change to take Vancouver to that next step in the music industry?

C.O.A. - "We are a city that thrives off daytime activities.  Hiking, cycling and all adventures seems to happen throughout the day.  Getting people out to shows is lil pulling teeth unless you are a DJ performing after 11pm.  Our nightlife consists of Dj’s, cover bands and pizza The EDM scene is alive and well but when it comes to Rock it’s a little tough.  What needs to change?  No clue."

ITS - What plans do you guys have for 2014?

C.O.A. - "Touring and a new record/singles. We really feel that performing is so important vital to our momentum.  Coming to see us perform is just that, a performance and we are continually working on getting that better and better at every performance."

ITS - Final question- a fun question I like to throw in, what are some pre gig rituals you have to pump you up for a show?

C.O.A. - "We actually don’t do anything crazy fun before a gig.  We go into the green room or wherever we can chill out and do our warm ups. Get our heads straight and focused. We're only playing clubs right now so we don’t really have any rituals. Eating food is always nice.Just enjoying the other bands and  taking in the atmosphere of the evening." 

If you want to follow Clouds Of Analog on social media you can here

https://www.facebook.com/CloudsofAnalog

https://soundcloud.com/clouds-of-analog

http://www.cloudsofanalog.com

https://twitter.com/CloudsOfAnalog

http://instagram.com/cloudsofanalog

And you can take a listen to the previously mentioned "When I Was Young" featuring a 65 piece orchestra here. https://soundcloud.com/clouds-of-analog/when-i-was-young

Interview with Kudos

Hey Guys, back at it again. I hope everyone had a fantastic Easter long weekend. This weeks interview is a very special interview, Joining me this week from East Kilbride, Scotland is a band called Kudos. The band consists of Josh Ladds on vocals, Stuart Poland on guitars and vocals, Gavin Kennedy on bass and Ross Mcewan on drums. Kudos is a Energetic, melodic, heavy rock band! Some of their influences are Deaf Havana, Mallory Knox, Don Broco, Funeral For A Friend, You Me At Six, but we will go more into those details. So lets get to the interview.




ITS - So explain a little bit on who Kudos is, how you formed and how you came up with the name.



Kudos - "We are 4 piece band from Glasgow in Scotland who are determined to make a name for ourselves and find a career in the music industry. Kudos have been a band for years. About 7 to be exact. It was Stuart who originally formed the band and came up with the name. We were all really good friends back in school, and we all come from a musical background. So it's something that we all enjoy doing together. Music plays a huge part in our life's. Stuart loves a band called Chiodos and for years he thought it was pronounced "Kudos" when it isn't. So once he found out he named the band Kudos. It was really that straight forward haha."

ITS - So being from Scotland, do you get a chance to listen to music from bands in Canada? More specifically Vancouver? If so who do you like?

Kudos - "Yeah we are open to all different types and variations of music. There is a Canadian band called 'Lights' that we all really enjoy listening to, manly because the singer is insanely hot haha but yeah there are a few Canadian bands we enjoy listening to."

ITS - Who inspired you personally and as a band to pursue music?

Kudos - "Well music is something we have grown up in to. We have done it nearly our whole life. And because we all come from a musical background I suppose it has been our parents and family members who have encouraged us to stick with it. Music has always been a hobby for us, it's something we really love to do. Yes we would love to make a career out of it at the end of the day, that would be amazing. However, at the end of the day if we enjoy it then that's all that matters really. We are inspired by loads of different bands who have made a name for themselves but we also have been inspired by the overall band experience (Recording, gigging, touring)."

ITS - What can the Kudos Army expect from you guys in 2014?

Kudos- "We have just finished recording our first album which will be released within the next few months both on all major online stores such as iTunes and Amazon, we will also be making CD copies. We are in the middle of planning a music video which we hope to release 1 week before the Album launch. Also we are looking in to starting our own online MERCH store as it has been high on demand for a while now. So this is what everyone can expect from us this year."

ITS - So a lot of bands from Vancouver are finding it harder these days to find affordable venues to play for all ages, what are some struggles that bands go through in Scotland?

Kudos - "Luckily Glasgow has one of the biggest music scenes in the world. So starting off as a band here isn't as hard. However there is loads of competition to keep up with. Every day a new band forms so one of the biggest struggles is trying to make yourself (your band) stand out from the crowed. Most bands tend to follow generic trends where as we learned just being yourself works best. But to be perfectly honest the struggle doesn't really hit us as hard over here. As long as you work hard enough you will go far. If you have the right attitude on and off stage and Of course if the music is good your band will grow."

ITS - Where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

Kudos - "In 5 years we hope to see ourselves playing major festivals all around the world. A dream of ours is to play Warped Tour. As long as we are still a band in 5 years and we are still enjoying making music then I will be happy. But a band can only grow bigger and bigger each day so anything is possible."

ITS - Final question a fun question I like to throw in, what kind of rituals do you have to get you pumped up for a gig?

Kudos - "Well every band gets nervous before playing a show so what we find works best is if you do a pre gig workout. Press-ups, sit-ups, jumping jacks...it helps settle the nerves. There is one ritual that our drummer Ross has done at every gig for years now. He likes to call it the "Pre-Gig Shit". This is Rosses way of settling his nerves before a show. We also go out for a McDonalds or a KFC before we play a show ;)"


If you want to follow Kudos on social media, to get all the latest news check them out


www.twitter.com/KudosTheBand
www.youtube.com/user/KudosTheBand/videos
www.soundcloud.com/kudostheband
www.facebook.com/kudostheband


Check out their cover of Paramore's "Ain't It Fun" here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oP98Kx1mack&list=PLE7A2ABE25E9212EB

Interview with The ViDOS

Welcome to another week of interviewing. This week I was joined by The ViDOS. The ViDOS are a 3 piece rock band from Langley, British Columbia. These guys are comparable to an early Blink-182, The members of the band are Brett Hornall, Kirk Musfelt and Nolan Nielsen, and The ViDOS was first formed in August of 2011. 

ITS - So explain who The ViDOS is and how you came up with the name of the band?

Vidos- "Well, we is a rock and roll band with an indie-surf-lemon twist. Nolan Nielsen plays drums and sings vocal harmonies; Kirk Musfelt plays guitar, vibraslap, and sings backup vocals; and Brett Hornall plays bass guitar and sings lead vocals. We'd maybe say we're "grunge", but the whole thing with grunge is that you're not allowed to call yourself grunge. Everyone else has to call you it and you're not supposed to be happy about it, either. But we never really decided on a genre or even what our music was going to sound like, and that feels like it's a more free way of writing; you know, when you aren't trying to fit a specific mold. It's honest and pure that way. We know we love writing happy, melodic tunes just as much as we love throwing in strange guitar noises and odd lyrics. The two seem to come together rather nicely, and we're very happy with the way it all sounds." 

"As for the origin of the band name, Kirk's grandpa (and our makeshift manager) kind of bears a resemblance to Don Vito from "Viva La Bam". We owe the nickname to Austin Mallar (from Servo)...he's got this uncanny knack for finding doppelgangers. We entered a battle of the bands and needed a band name, so we decided to go with "The Vitos". Somehow, somewhere along the lines the "t" was turned into a "d", and we thought it looked cool so we stuck with it! It's a made up word, and made up words are obviously cool as hell."

ITS - So this year you guys were in the Top 4 of The Cellar Launch project, what did this mean for the band?

Vidos- "It meant quite a lot! We're flattered to be considered Top 4 in really anything, but a contest like that is especially awesome. It's crazy. A whirlwind of emotion, lots of tears, candlelit baths and rose petals everywhere. The CLP Finale on April 12 is going to be a fantastic concert; the other bands we share the bill with are very good company! It's the hottest ticket in town, kidz!"

ITS - You recently signed a 10 show contract with Rednyne productions, how can this help the band expand?

Vidos - "Yeah! It's pretty cool, it gives us a lot of stability and comfort. Like a nurturing mother, Rednyne will allow us the room we need to grow ourselves, give us a few pearls of wisdom along the way, and, of course, bathe us. Having them behind us is great, we're very excited." 

ITS - How would you explain the Vancouver music scene right now? And what do you think could be done to make positive changes?

Vidos- "The Vancouver indie music scene right now is just brimming with potential. We have several bright-tailed and bushy-eyed bands coming out of the 'burbs to join the mob in Van City, and it's just awesome. It's become this wet, wild wave of great high school bands that's sort of invaded the bar/nightclub scene in the last year or so, and it's such a cool thing to be a part of. In summation: it's just a tremendously exciting time to be a young musician in Vancouver."

ITS - All ages venues or 19+ venues?

Vidos - "This kind of ties in with the second half of question 4...the "positive changes" thing. The only downside, really, to playing in an underage band in the Vancouver scene is that there aren't many places to play in front of our underage friends.... There is, however, some cool stuff that happens at Astorino's, this ex-banquet hall-turned empty hall-turned concert hall in East Van. We did The Cut Losses' 1st Annual "Get Lei'd" show there with them and Northern Rain, and it was a blast. For a lot of our friends that was the first time they'd ever seen us live, which is nuts. There's this idea going around about raising money towards the erection of a permanent all-ages music venue downtown, so if that were to come about, it would really complete the package."

"19+ venues are a lot of fun though too, because you have a room that's stuffed full of 150 shameless drunk people, half of whom are girls that love to dance. There's just so much energy there. They also allow you to expand your audience, because the majority of the people who are at the bar were going to be there that night whether you were playing or not. If these people dig your energy, you've got yourself a few new fans! Which is always swell."

"The appropriate response to your question is, ultimately, "both!"

ITS - Final question - a fun question I like to throw in, what are some pre gig rituals you guys have to pump you up for a gig?

Vidos- "Hahaha, that's a good question! Actually, we each kind of have our own thing. Most of it happens purely by coincidence every time, but some of it we do now just out of superstition. Kirk starts a twenty-minute shower about five minutes before we're supposed to be leaving for the show; Don Vito gets angry about something hilarious; Nolan pounds back a Starbucks Pike Roast; and Brett eats one half of a grilled cheese sandwich." 

"Right before we go onstage we vomit, do our top secret Vidos handshake, and, most importantly, put our equipment on the stage so we can play it." 

If you want to follow The ViDOS on social media you can here

http://instagram.com/thevidosband
twitter.com/thevidosband
facebook.com/thevidos
youtube.com/thevidosband
soundcloud.com/the-vidos

Check out their newest single "Horseshoes" here

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wGmBQcoFLM&list=UU0BjhG1VUZrwUa8BoyMRcZw

Interview with The Deadset

So we are back with another week in the books, This week I had the pleasure of interviewing Vancouver's very own Pop Punk royalty. None other than Rednyne Productions The Deadset. Hailing from Vancouver, BC, The Deadset stand tall as pop-punk royalty. A fresh sound that's both familiar and unquestionably their own, The Deadset are poised to bring their energetic brand of indie-fused punk to the masses. Don’t say you weren’t warned. The band consists of  Jt Criminal - (Lead vocals, guitar) and  Steven Appleyard - (Drums, vocals)

ITS - Tell us who is The Deadset and how did you come up with the name?

 

JT - "We are Pop Punk Royalty. A friend of ours came up with the name... She said it suited us and we liked the simplicity of it, so we kept it. Kinda boring .. But true!!" 

 

ITS - Who has been your influence in life personally and as a band? 

 

JT - "We influence and inspire each other constantly, we feed off of each other's ideas and energy both on and off the stage, it's easy when your bandmate is also your best friend. Our friends in Vancity Royalty play a major role as well, they're always pushing and inspiring us to achieve our best, and we love it." 

 

ITS - So you guys were named as performers during Canadian music week 2014 in Toronto, explain the feeling of this and why it's important for the band? 

 

JT - "We were SO shocked and delighted. We applied thinking we wouldn't get considered at all ha.. seriously,. we didn't even tell anyone that we applied, that's how much we didn't think we would get in. Tiny punk rock bands from the other side of the country don't get a lot of breaks when it comes to the corporate music world, it's so exciting for us! It'll be an honour to share the spotlights with so many great Canadian artists, as well as music industry professionals. We'll get out there and try to meet them all, play our hearts out and try to establish the best name for ourselves we possibly can - we really can't wait! There's never an opportunity wasted!" 

 

ITS - So big things look to be happening in The Deadset's world this year, other than CMW what else can fans expect in 2014? 

 

JT - "We've been working hard and tons is in store! We've got a load of new material and a new single set to release, we're super excited to share our newest sounds with the world. Our newest single is still a TBA release date, but we've been working tirelessly on it with our good friend Rachel Ashmore and we'll have all the details for you very soon. We've got all sorts of projects underway and we're always up to something, keep up to date with our endeavours via any of our social media outlets and you'll never miss a release!"

 

ITS - So it looks like the Pop-Punk scene is starting to grow in Vancouver, what is your take on it? 

 

JT - "We love the pop-punk/punk-rock life and we are super excited about it! It's been a long time coming, and having been one of the few pop-punk acts in the local scene for a long time, it's nice to watch the genre grow in popularity and have more and more similar acts to share the stage with. It's not just a rock and pop world anymore, even though it never truly was. ;)"

 

ITS - A fun question I like to have, what are some pre gig rituals you have to get pumped for a gig? 

 

JT - "We often go for dinner somewhere together and hide away from everyone and the oncoming craze so we can gather our senses and do a few vocal warm ups.  It doesn't always work out so luxuriously though, we often end up carrying out our rituals in a bathroom or back alley, maybe with a beer or two in hand and shot glass somewhere.. maybe." 

 

ITS - Final question - what's it like working with the guys at Rednyne Productions? 

 

JT - "It's been an overwhelmingly large learning experience."

 

If you want to keep up to date details on The Deadset follow them through their various social media.

 

https://www.youtube.com/user/DEADSETCANADA

http://thedeadset.bandcamp.com/

http://www.twitter.com/thedeadset

http://www.facebook.com/thedeadsetband

http://thedeadset.tumblr.com

http://instagram.com/the_deadset

http://www.itunes.com/thedeadset

 

Check out their latest single "New Anthem" here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZKvoCe5aXU 

interview with Lucas Cole

Hey guys welcome back to another week with Inside The Scene. this week I was joined by Lucas Cole who is a singer-songwriter from North Delta who plays in a blues/folk/rock style. So lets get to it.

ITS - Who have been your influences in your life personally and musically?

LC - "My influences are people like Bryan Adams, Neil Young, Cat Stevens, Slash and Michael Bolton. Michael Bolton is an absolute god. These guys should be deified across the globe.

ITS - How would you describe the music scene in Vancouver?

LC - "The music scene is pretty average in Vancouver. There are some good acts and some garbage ones too. I hope to see more good bands come out of here soon."

ITS - What do you think would need to happen to help the Vancouver

Music scene evolve?

LC - " I think more original bands would really help the scene evolve. There are a lot of copy cats with the indie bands. I would enjoy a total change from that. We need something like One Direction."

ITS - What achievements did you accomplish in 2013?

LC - "In 2013, I released my first EP, "The Hookage EP", and signed with Scooter Braun. He will be helping me evolve into an unreal artist that is tantamount to my hero, Justin Bieber." 

ITS - What can the Lucas Cole fans expect out of you in 2014? 

LC - "My people can expect me to release another EP and get more gigs in 2014. I understand you all are waiting on pins and needles, but just be patient. More music and more gigs are coming."

ITS - Just a fun question - what kind of ritual do you have to get yourself pumped up for a gig?

LC - " Before a gig, I like to look at my picture of Jennifer Lawrence. This really gets the juices flowing and motivates me to get out there and absolutely destroy the stage. What's better? Learn what it is. I'm the Woots4 and King Hookage."

If you want to follow Lucas on social media you can find him at

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lucas-Cole/574539152570185

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LucasCole05

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/thelucascole

Check out his song "Delta Blues" off his EP "The Hookage" here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tw-0mY5Wyc0