Review for PJ Kingpin Wilson new upcoming album Rise Of The KingPin

Hey guys so this week I'm changing things up a bit. I normally would be doing an interview however, on Saturday, I was sent over some music from an artist from Barrie, Ontario by the name of PJ Kinpin Wilson. So I thought I would review his upcoming album tilted "Rise Of The KingPin". PJ brings back the sounds of Motown and the sound of soul with his music. Sounding like a young Marvin Gaye, PJ brings smiles to the faces of his listeners, with tracks like "Sinners" and "Give Goodbye A Try". Working with Grammy-nominated Kuya Productions, "Give Goodbye A Try"was written by hit-maker Ryan Toby (Usher’s Confessions Album and formerly of R&B group City High) and Canadian R&B Artist Dru Grange, it delivers a feel-good, throwback soul anthem. PJ will certainly make a lot of noise when his album gets released. When I listen to this it puts me in a fantastic mood, and I promise, no I guarantee you, that it will for you to.

So If you would like to follow PJ on Social Media you can on twitter - @PJKINGPIN also check out his YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxcq6zlP0pWlI3pCTs92xCg

While you are here watch his video for "Sinners" here

 

 

Interview with No Operator

Hey guys, hope you all had a great Mother's Day. For all you moms out there hope you got spoiled, and for all the kids out there hope you spoiled your mom, because she deserves it. So this week I was joined by an out of town guest, From Victoria I have No Operator. No Operator is a five-piece Rock/Metal Band whose sound blends heavy, intricate riffs with melodic vocals, and an extreme commitment to writing great original music. No Operator is TJ Muhl-Lead Vocals, Oliver Galloway-Guitars&Vocals, Ben Hughes-Guitars, Steve Holtby-Bass and Vocals, Dave Wiebe-Drums. Lets get to the interview.

ITS - So who inspires you individually and as a band? 

 

NO - "Some common influences we all share are AlexisonFire, Protest the Hero, Avenged Sevenfold, System of a Down, Tool, and Chevelle. A few of us are into heavier bands like Killswitch Engage or Trivium, and a few of us are into more melodic rock like The Foo Fighters and Biffy Clyro. Over all we're pretty well rounded in our influences, so we don't aim to be a genre-specific band when we're writing." 

ITS - What were some of your shining moments in 2013?

 

NO - "Expanding our line-up to a five-piece was definitely a big step up for us. Up until mid 2013 we were a four-piece, with TJ Muhl on guitar as well as lead vocals. We added Ben Hughes on guitar, allowing TJ to focus strictly on vocals. It's really made our performance that much more energetic and entertaining, and gives us a bigger, tighter sound. Another great experience in 2013 was playing our first outdoor festival; "The Summer Shinedown Carnival" which took place last August over on the island."

ITS - What does No Operator have planned for 2014?

 

NO - "Our biggest plans for 2014, and of our career so far, is our "Going for a Rip" BC/Alberta tour this June. We'll be kicking it off in Vancouver, June 10 at The Roxy, with other stops in Kamloops, Vernon, Calgary, Red Deer, Medicine Hat, Edmonton, Rossland, Kelowna, Victoria, and Nanaimo. We're really excited to hit the road, and spread our music to new audiences in new places.

Once the tour is over we'll be focusing on writing some more new songs. We have a couple new tunes completed, with lots of loose ideas, and we're a band that never stops writing. By the end of 2014 we'll definitely have our sophomore release planned out."

ITS - Being a band from Vancouver Island, what are most bands struggles on the island compared to Vancouver?

 

NO - "The most obvious challenges on the island are less people and less venues. There are also less industry people (photographers, promoters, managers, writers, etc.), so it kind of forces island bands to be very self sufficient. We don't feel like being from the island is a disadvantage by any means. There is a lot of great talent over here, and a few really cool places to play. Gigs at The Cambie (Nanaimo) and Logan's Pub (Victoria) are always great shows. They are strictly rock bars, they let the bands play until close, and they are always packed."

ITS - Now you guys have played some shows in Vancouver, what would you like to see happen for the music scene in the next 5 years?

 

NO - "Our experiences playing in Vancouver have been great so far. We've gotten a lot of positive feedback from our audiences and fellow musicians, and we're grateful for the help we've had from Hammer Records, Rednyne Productions, and 99.3 The Fox. One thing that Vancouver seems to lack is a bar that puts rock bands first. We've played some awesome gigs for awesome crowds at The Cellar and Joe's Apartment, but both places push aside the live music in favor of DJ's at 11pm. Vancouver needs a place like The Cambie or Logan's, where live music can close down the bar, and be the main attraction of the night. We know that it's ultimately up to the bands to fill the venues over and over, and prove to the bar owners that they can make just as much money off of live music as DJ's. Other than that we're excited about the direction the Vancouver scene is headed, and we're happy to be a part of it."

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

 

NO - "Watching other bands play is the only one we can all agree on for this one. Any show we play where there's a great band playing before us, we really feed off their energy. Other than that its different for each member: coffee, beer, redbull, singing in the car, etc."

 

If you want to follow No Operator on social media you can in the following ways

 

https://www.facebook.com/nooperator

http://www.nooperator.com/

https://twitter.com/nooperator

 

and you can check out their track "State Your Allegiance" here http://nooperatormusic.bandcamp.com/track/state-your-allegiance

Interview with Rose Weekes

Hey guys, welcome back to another week here in beautiful Vancouver. Hopefully a lot of you got a chance to hit up the very last Sharks! On Fire! concert. I heard it was awesome. So this week I was able to interview the Co-owner of Hammer Records Rose Weekes. Rose is very talented and very busy, from singing to rapping, Filiming concerts, doing photography, being a mother of an eighth month old son and even doing a web series with her husband James, called #Vancouvermusicians. Where they interview local Vancouver musicians. Very recently Rose and James have decided to take their adventure to Toronto, where I'm sure they are going to make just as big of an impact as they did here. So lets get to talking with Rose.

ITS - Who inspired you to pursue a career in music?

Rose - "My Dad originally inspired me to pursue a career in music. He's a Winnipeg musician through and through. He plays the drums, so, I grew up listening to a very eclectic variety of music. From Pop and Rock to Polka, Metal, Punk and Classical. "Anything with a good rhythm," as Dad always says. Having that early connection to music really pushed me in the direction of wanting a career in The Arts from a very young age."

ITS - Your husband James and yourself started a new web series called #vancouvermusicians. Explain the premise behind it and how you guys came up with the idea.

Rose - "James and I are very committed to supporting the local music scene. That means everything from seeing live shows from bands, going to the venues, to even simply connecting with the fans of local artists by providing awesome video and picture services for a reminder of a good night of music. It also means we're dedicated to bringing out certain thoughts and opinions from those people in order to keep the scene alive, thriving, and ever changing. All great things have come about through revisions and editing! 

#VancouverMusicians is all about getting your voice heard. It's about people in the music community as a whole, coming together to share similar (and different!) thoughts and ideas, make new connections, and bring light to certain aspects that just may need some "editing." We have artists, musicians, engineers, producers, venue owners, fans and friends of all genres, backgrounds, and experience levels sharing what they have to say. It's great to see this community of music lovers come together, blur the boundaries of what genre is which, and get behind the movement of making Vancouver a hub for music of all kinds. An eclectic city where you can entrust any night of the week to have some good, live music going on somewhere."

ITS - So you have been to quite a lot of shows lately and have seen numerous bands, if you were to headline a show who would you want to have open for you.

Rose - "If I were to headline a show? Hm. That's tough, as I'm not as experienced with a band as most of the musicians I'd love to play with are. There's also many bands in the Vancouver scene that I would consider to be personal favourites of mine (Aviator Shades, Rude City Riot, Pigeon Park and Red Eye Empire I'm talking about you! Among others of course), but we wouldn't match up genre wise. I think one hell of a great night of music would come from a lineup like My project, Bullets Over Beauty, then Incura ending the night with an epic bang."

ITS - You recently released a new song called "Blurry" with Rebecca Boux. Where did the inspiration come from for this song?

Rose - "This song is all about having a good night, with good friends, doing whatever you want to, and looking good while doing it. The inspiration came one wild night of catching up with an old friend I hadn't seen in years, who finally made the short jump to Vancouver from the Island for a visit. The two of us, with James, were listening to some of the beats we've produced here at Hammer Records and thought this track would make a fun, current, club style song you could blast anytime and feel like dancing. The three of us wrote and recorded the song in a night, and the rest is history! It's not the genre I typically perform- I'm definitely more comfortable on the rock/metal side of music, but the sing/rap style of vocals was a lot of fun to do, and something I'll probably do again in the future."

ITS - What are some plans for 2014 that you may have going and that your fans can expect from you.

Rose - "Actually, there's some BIG things in the planning stages right now. James, our son Eliseo and I are going to be relocating and taking Hammer Records out East, to Ontario. James and I have some cool projects on the go currently. We'll be crafting up some new merch, writing more songs, and launching the first album from North Van artist, "Rayne," under our label. We're also going to be working on a full fledged documentary for Vancouver bands and musicians to watch as a How To guide to entering and surviving the Vancouver Music Scene, and Rebecca and I will hopefully be shooting a music video for "Blurry" in the next couple of months. Keep your eyes and ears on our Facebook page for everything that will be coming up." 

ITS - A fun question I like to ask, if you choose 1 type of food to live off of what would it be?

 

Rose - "Probably sushi. Or stir fry. You can sort of rope all, or most, of your food groups into those and I like to eat healthy! Give me veggies over chocolate any day"

 

If you would like to follow Rose and see what's going to be in store for her great career you can check her on social media.

 

twitter.com/RoseWeekes   

www.youtube.com/user/RoseMarieAnson   

www.facebook.com/RoseMWeekes  

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

 

You can check out the lyric video for Blurry here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JfXKlfN-Wg