Recently I had the chance to interview We Are The City out of Kelowna, BC. The band was recently chosen as one of the twenty finalists for the Peak Performance Project. The Peak Performance Project is sponsored by the 100.5 The Peak FM and Music BC.
The PEAK Performance Project is a seven-year, $5.29 million contest open to all musicians in British Columbia. The project was created by 100.5 The PEAK and Music BC to develop BC based emerging artists. Every year, twenty finalists from BC will receive an intensive, one week training program in the music business, live performance, songwriting, marketing and promotion. Artists will benefit from mentor-ships from some of the music industry’s top professionals and performers. All of these artists will have the chance to perform live in Vancouver on the PEAK Performance Stage. Of these twenty artists, the top three will be crowned as the PEAK Performers of the year and will share $275,000 in cash for career development. First place receives $150,000; second place receives $75,000; and third place receives $50,000.
Interview:
Brian: Tell us about your band and what your musical history has been.
We Are The City: We’re three guys from Kelowna who make music that could be described as progressive-indie-experimental-alternative-rock. We’re nice as well. Cayne, the pianist and vocalist, took piano lessons as a boy and hardly enjoyed them until he was older. David, the guitarist, started playing bass five years ago but quickly moved to guitar. Andy, the drummer, has been playing for seven years and got his start air drumming to P.O.D. and Linkin Park.
Listen to the track Time, Wasted
Brian: Tell us a little bit of how your summer went, from being selected as one of the artists to participate in the project to being selected as a finalist.
We Are The City:The summer was completely great. Being selected as a finalist was amazing. We were so blown away and the experience has been so awesome and so worthwhile and so fulfilling. It was so many positive adverbs.
Brian:What has been the most rewarding aspect throughout the project thus far?
We Are The City: The relationships that we made with other bands and people in the industry was invaluable. A week long secluded camp was the perfect environment for that! There have been so many great things that have come from the Peak Performance Project and it was quite literally the experience of a lifetime. So awesome. Not to mention the long, long zipline. Totally sweet.
Brian: There are some great artists and bands and you are in great company with the list of finalists. What sets your music apart from the other finalists?
We Are The City: There are DEFINITELY all amazing artists in the group of finalists. We feel so humbled to be among such crazy good bands. The group of finalists is full of different genres and styles and I would say that what sets our music apart is purely because it’s different.
Check out the bands Youtube Channel http://www.youtube.com/wearethecityband
Brian: How do you feel about The Peak, Music BC and Jim Pattison Group of Companies stepping up to assist the growth of BC musicians while the provincial government has reduced funding to many programs. This is a significant contribution of $5.29 million over seven-years.
We Are The City: It’s great! That’s a very important connection to make I think, this project and the huge funding cuts to arts in BC. The decision to reduce provincial funding to the arts was a serious, serious insult but as a part of this program there has been so much we have gained and we owe it all to Jim Pattison, The Peak, and Music BC.
Peak Performance Project Sponsors:
