A couple weeks ago I visited CIVL radio in Abbotsford and had an interview with host Nathan Moes. We talked about all kinds of things, including bow saws and life after death. You can listen to it here or go to www.civl.ca
They also have a podcast, so check that out if you’re interested.
I just tried googling myself (that sounds so wrong) and found out that my album is now up on various online stores. If you haven’t yet bought my CD, you can download the album for a lower price at the following stores:
iTunes (just search for “Jeff Hawker” or click the link below)
I would also appreciate it if you were to write a review of the album, so that other people have an idea of what I sound like and what to expect from the album. I’d really like to hear your thoughts on my music.
Thanks.
I used to work for a company called Classic Tents and Events. I would set up those big white tents for weddings, festivals, and corporate events. I would also deliver chairs and tables and whatever else the client might need for their party. It was a decent job and I had a very gracious and generous boss. I was never really able to attend any events, but I did get to take part in the “behind the scenes” activities. This sometimes meant experiencing the wrath of an executive or a mother-of-the-bride (who happen to be some of the most intimidating people on earth… not the executive… the mother) if something went wrong.
The biggest mistake I ever made at that job was when I was told I could park my truck on the grass at a garden wedding in order to be close to the set up area (well I guess it was actually the fault of the person who told me to do that, but I still felt bad). Little did I know, the earth beneath the grass was very soft… I got the truck stuck in muddy grass! This could have been fine if we were setting up for a wedding that was the next day, but we weren’t. Gardens (at least garden that rents out their property for weddings) tend to leave very little time for set up. The wedding started before we could get the truck pulled out of there. To make matters worse - the truck was parked in the spot where the bride was supposed to come walking through (sort of like walking down the isle, just without an isle). So instead of walking through this beautiful entrance to the garden, the bride had to tiptoe around an ugly work truck. I felt so bad for her. But from my hiding place, it looked like they still had a good wedding. I’ve never had a worse day at work than that day.
I remembered this old job I had because I’m starting to think of doing music for weddings and events. This would be in addition to playing concerts of my own. Things have gone fairly well with my week of hunting for gigs. I’ve gotten three shows confirmed and a couple still pending. I will continue looking for more opportunities to play my original music. However, I know that I could get some good supplementary income from performing cover songs at events. I’m trying to decide if I should do it acoustically or start some sort of band. What do you think?
If you or someone you know has a wedding or event coming up and you want some live music, send me an email: contact@jeffhawker.ca
If you need some professional photography, send Adam Loewen an email: info@adamloewenphotography.com
On the way to the Highland Pub, we got lost about five times and had to ask for directions. The venue is a bit difficult to find for people who don’t go to Simon Fraser University. My friends got lost as well, so that’s proof that I’m not just bad with directions.
When I finally found my way inside, I was greeted by the other artists and band members who were working on a sound check. The lead singer of Makeshift Innocence, Jesse James, tossed me a shaker and so I shook along to the beat of a song (at the end of the show, I actually joined them on stage and did the same). I think I impressed him with my sweet shaker skills. And he and the band impressed me with their humble greetings. It’s so nice to work with people that are easy to get along with.
My friends arrived not knowing that the show was going to cost anything (to be honest, I didn’t know it was going to cost anything either), and they didn’t have any cash on them, so I had to pay for them to get it. Not a great start… I was losing money already. They bought a pitcher of beer and shared it with me, so that helped.
There wasn’t a great turn out at the show. I think there were a number of reasons for that: it was Monday night (many students were probably studying), it was snowing, the venue was hard to find for outsiders, and all of the acts were fairly unknown. The people that did show up really seemed to like the music though.
My set went fantastically well. I think it was the first time I didn’t really make any actual mistakes. I could have still done better with some details (stage presence, etc), but I thought it was a great show. I had Alicia Krueger sing with me, so of course it went well (she always makes me sound better than I really am).
Makeshift Innocence and the other opening acts did really well too. They all had a bit of reggae flavor, which was cool. It made me want to go relax in the sun. Speaking of relax… I really need to get to bed. It’s been a long day (I just got back from the show before I started writing this).
It’s day one of my week-long hunt for gigs. I haven’t have a lot of time, so I decided to just look online rather than going out to places. I searched myspace for semi-well-known Vancouver artists such as “Said the Whale”, “Hey Ocean”, “Mother Mother”, and “Dan Mangan” . I sent them a message asking to be an opening act for them sometime. Dan Mangan replied saying that my music sounds good and it could be a possibility in the future (I don’t think he’s playing in Vancouver any time soon). I haven’t heard from the others yet.
I eventually realized that it would help to be asking to open for artists who are actually playing in Vancouver sometime soon. So I looked up all the upcoming shows in town and started sending out messages. This was taking a really long time and many of the artists were actually DJs, cover bands, metal, or electronica (none of which would fit well with indie-folk). So I limited my search to folk music and continued messaging artists. I made sure to listen to them a bit and compliment them on their music.
I was surprised to see four replys (not including Dan Mangan’s) within an hour… all possitive! One of the bands said they could add another date to their tour if I can book the venue for us. The other three said that I could open for them. So there you have it - four prospective gigs, all from just a couple hours’ work. Not too shabby. If I can keep this up, I’ll be touring in no time.
Well I gotta get ready for my show tonight. It’s at 8pm at SFU’s Highland pub. Hope to see you there.
When I was a kid (and by kid, I probably mean teenager), I would daydream about being a rock star. I remember spending extended periods of time in the washroom staring into the mirror - pretending to sing to huge stadiums full of screaming fans, and conducting one-way interviews where I would explain what life is really like as a tortured artist. I think my toothbrush made a decent substitute for a microphone, but it wasn’t quite the same.
Now if I’m perfectly honest, I’ll admit that perhaps I still entertain the mirror from time to time. There’s something fun about picturing a distant life of prestige and stardom. However, in all reality, I don’t foresee any stadium-rock or MTV interviews coming my way anytime soon. But things are happening, slowly but surely, and I’m getting pretty excited about it.
Yesterday was my debut radio appearance. Tony Bookless, and I drove out to Abbotsford (singing along to Michael Jackson songs most of the way) to meet Nathan at CIVL radio. I had no idea what to expect. I didn’t even know if we were going to do an interview, or if I was going to co-host a show, or if I was going to play a song, or whatever other options there could be… so I brought my guitar and some CDs and hoped for the best.
Nathan greeted us at the door and that immediately gave me a good first impression of him and the studio. We proceeded into one of the booths and just started chatting casually. Tony joined in the conversation from time to time, but was mostly there to shoot footage for the new Jeffisode # 3, which will be coming soon. Nathan interviewed me with very well-phrased questions. He even did some research on me and quoted my bio a couple of times. I was quite flattered about that. I felt like I was some sort of professional (which, I guess, is what I’m trying to be). I am not very good at speaking off the top of my head. I tend to stumble over words, so I was a bit nervous about being interviewed. But Nathan asked questions in such a way that made it easy for me to sound interesting. The guy’s got skills.
After the interview, he had me record something called IDs, which is something like, “Hey! This is Jeff Hawker, and you’re listening to CIVL radio.” That was pretty fun. But not quite as fun as what came next… I got to perform “Shame on Me” in the studio. Interviews and IDs are part of the job and I enjoy them, but it is the music that I get excited about.
Anyway, I had a great time at CIVL radio. If you get the chance, look them up online at www.civl.ca They support local artists and they are doing something really good here. I’ll let you know when you can get the mp3 recording of our interview.
Somehow I got roped into this blogging competition, The Great Blog Off, with three friends of mine: Adam Loewen, Alan Schram, and Tony Bookless.
I think that blog-off sounds like a British swear. I can picture Gordon Ramsay yelling, “Blog off you bastard!” and then throwing someone out of his kitchen.
Anyway, if I understand it correctly, The Great Blog Off works like this: You join the facebook group and read as many articles as possible in all four blogs. At the end of the month, comment on the facebook group saying, “I vote for Jeff” (you could say something else, but I suggest that one)
All three of my competitors have their own advantage:
- TONY is the comic threat (plus he makes friends as fast as Jamison Dick… if you don’t know either of them, it’s a bad sign)
- ADAM is the creative threat (he did all the photography and production for my album)
- ALAN is the intellegent threat (plus I think he’s a hacker… he’ll find some way to rig the vote)
- ME, well… I’ll probably just lose… :( …vote for the underdog!
Here are the blog links:
http://alanschram.blogspot.com/
http://adamloewenphotography.wordpress.com/
http://tonynobooks.blogspot.com/
The show in Nanaimo was great. We had a full house at the Buzz coffee shop. Thanks to all who came out to enjoy local music and thanks to the Buzz for hosting us. It was great to see old friends and family (Nanaimo was where I grew up). I missed playing with my accompanying band, but I managed to perform a decent set by myself.
There’s something bitter-sweet about coming home to Nanaimo though - my parents feed me a month’s worth of food in a few days. I love eating, but it forces me to at least consider working out, which is frustrating because I’ve finally got a job where I don’t have to do anything physically. I’m getting used to being lazy. Poor me.
I also played at an open mic in Nanaimo, but that wasn’t too glorious…
The CD release concert last night was awesome! There was a great turn out and I had so much fun. The opening band, Oats, was fantastic too. Check them out at http://www.myspace.com/oatscollective
At first I was a little unsure of my performance since I forgot the lyrics a couple times, but I think I need to keep remembering that perfection doesn’t match up with my style of music. I’m a bit rough around the edges and maybe that’s a good thing. Plus a lot of people encouraged me and said they really enjoyed the show. Anyway, I love music and there’s no stopping now…
