San Sebastian embraces Fanshawe frosh concert opportunity
One of those amazing opportunities
is performing at Fanshawe
College's Express Yourself
Orientation, alongside South
Ontario rock alumni Arkells on
Wednesday, September 8 in the
SUB courtyard. It's a long way to
come for the group, considering
only last year several of San
Sebastian's members were attending
the very schools they're now
performing at.
“(Last year) for Mohawk
(College), we played with Young
Rival and Tokyo Police club at a
Frosh Week show. We were the
second of five bands on, and it was
fine, but then with our band there
was nothing really going on …
This year we're playing McMaster
(University) for Frosh Week, and
Sean went to McMaster, and he
was like, ‘I remember that Frosh
Week so well, there's a big outdoor
theatre. I can't believe we're playing
this! ... Last year I was the person
watching the bands play.'”
And though San Sebastian's jangly
Strokes-esque rock tends to
appeal to a younger demographic
than their counterparts in Arkells,
the bands have much in common,
both hailing from Hamilton,
Ontario, where rock and roll has
long been a staple of its working
class residents. “It's just the ...
mentality that comes out of being
in Hamilton.” Veerman said, “It's a
steel town, [and] everybody works
for their living. Rock music suits
that kind of mentality and it's only
natural that it comes out.”
“Everyone makes friends with each other, because everyone is kind of doing it the same way ... It's a weird kind of bond or camaraderie you have, (but) it's easy to make friends with them ... Everyone's happy to share secrets and even like, how to get to places, to watch out for a certain hills because your van can't take the stress. Things like that, we're super grateful for.”
San Sebastian have had to learn quick, since their signing to Universal Music Group Canada earlier this year. Their performance on MuchMusic's disBAND sold them to the show's judges, and with the help of their “music guru,” Greig Nori (former lead singer and guitarist of Treble Charger) the band (who were formerly called Pumps) have not only become a touring machine, but have a Noriproduced full length soon to be released, entitled This Madness.
Of Nori's aide to the band, Veerman recalled, “We had to go take a road trip to Montreal (for disBAND), and that's when he came in the van with us and we just drove out and had a super fun time. We were getting him to play us old Treble Charger songs and we'd all sing along and ... afterwards we all just got super drunk having a super fun time, out to five in the morning in Montreal. From that point on, we were instant friends and then through recording we just got tighter and tighter.”
Now, with a single having charted on MuchMusic's countdown, and several upcoming tour dates with Hedley and Lights in the fall, San Sebastian are about to take on the rest of Canada, stadium style. Be sure to check them out, and Express Yourself at this year's orientation week before San Sebastian are playing stadiums themselves!
San Sebastian will be performing with Arkells on September 8 in the SUB Courtyard. Gates open at 7:30 pm.