Vancouver

I'm spending the very first two weeks of October in Vancouver. Coming back to Vancouver from Montreal always feels like a breth of fresh air, even if sometimes it feels like "where is everybody?". All the musicians I came up listening to are here, and I always try to see as many of them as I can.

Tonight I'm going to check a band at a certain loft venue called "the big much". The band features bari saxophonist Chad Makela, drummer Bernie Arai and guitarist Dave Sikula. I saw them back in May when I was here last and it was very cool. It's always so cool to see Chad play the saxophone because he really embodies many qualities I am trying to get into my own playing. I've studied with Chad and I hope to take a lesson with him while I'm here.

I've always been able to set up a few of my own playing situations. Next Thursday I'll be playing at a bar called El Barrio where my friend Cole Schmidt is curating a weekly gig. I'll be playing with Mike Kennedy on bass and Cam Stephens on drums. I know Mike from playing in a children's band led by Gord Grdina called the "Bluesberries". There was a very memorable tour we did to Kelowna where we stayed at a Bed and Breakfast complete with tennis courts and our own barbeque.

Then Friday I'm playing improvised music with two musicians I owe a lot too, guitarist Jared Burrows and drummer Stan Taylor. I'm really looking forward to next week.