Touring Western Canada with a Rock Band: Day Three (part 9)

When we arrived in Fernie BC, we were immediately struck by its beauty. By the the time we had considered where to stop for a break however, the town was nearly completely behind us, so we saw a place where a couple of other cars were parked in a pull-off near the river, and joined them there. We noted a couple people in hip-waders fishing, then pried ourselves out of the truck cab to have a cold drink and some snacks. We took in the pretty natural scenery, and I noted to myself that I’d like to come back at some point with more time to spend.

By now we were mostly revived, aided by the cold mountain air, in lifted spirits we hung out on the side of the highway for half an hour or more before continuing on through the Rockies and enduring the long, straight, mind-numbing drive across the prairie to Lethbridge, Alberta.

~Cheers, Rev. D

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Touring Western Canada with a Rock Band: Day Two (part 7)

The reality is the biggest adventure of The Adventure Hotel was trying to find our room. Tucked in the far recess of the building was our tiny dorm. Up two flights of stairs, passed the the laundry room, passed the staff room, hang a left, to the end of the hall, turn right and to the end of the hall. Do all this while navigating some optical illusion 3-D trippy “only-in-a-hotel” crazy carpeting.

If that wasn’t enough, I had the idea to get high on some (legal) BC weed. I’m a lightweight when it comes to cannabis, but that particular night I had shared a whole joint. Not on purpose, but because I was enraptured in good conversation and by the time I knew it the joint was gone. This made navigating to the room the second and third time even more arduous. We had previously picked up some hotel room drinks (gluten-free, low sugar vodka sodas of course), but I doubt we even made it though six of them after the moderate drinking at the bar, so after some barely coherent conversation, we all crashed for the night so we could get at least a few hours of shut-eye before making the long-ass drive to Lethbridge the next day.

Next: We leave BC, we cross the Rockies, we arrive weary and worn in Lethbridge, Alberta.

~Cheers, Rev. D

Touring Western Canada with a Rock Band: Day Two (part 6)

The hospitality at The Royal on Baker was gracious. After some sound checks and a couple cold drinks I surveyed the scene for places to set up cameras. Mostly satisfied with placements I settled in to enjoy Vogue Villains play an ambitious two hour set.

On the first notes of the first song, the bar was basically empty, save for a couple “superfans” who came out specifically for the occasion, but as the show continued a steady trickle of people joined. Some specifically came out for the show I’m sure, but some enticed by the melodies spilling out into the streets. By the end of the first hour a modest but very enthusiastic crowd had formed and were rocking out to the sounds. The stage, large enough in size and in most respect quite nice, was also directly in the path of a blasting heater perched above the entrance door. While I was shooting on the floor the temperature was warm but tolerable, but when I took the three steps to stand on the stage the heat was almost unbearable. The poor Vogue Villains had to endure two full hours playing hard while being baked like a pizza!

After the first half of the set was done, the band got to take a break and tried to cool down with some icy drinks, but before long they were back to it playing a diverse set list that ran the gamut of Vogue Villains originals as well covers of Tom Petty, Depeche Mode and others. The crowd was really getting into it at this point and they were rocking out and dancing harder than larger audiences might. After what I’m sure must have felt like an endurance race in the dessert, the band thanked the exuberant audience and made room for the next performer, a Reggae act.

As we tore down the stage, we mingled with the locals, a really cool bunch. Friends were made, invitations to future endeavours were accepted and we all just generally took in the very cool vibe that is Nelson BC. We loaded up the trailer and went back to the hotel we were staying at, the “Adventure Hotel”. Was it aptly named? Stay tuned.

~Cheers, Rev. D

Touring Western Canada with a Rock Band: Day Two (part 5)

We were making good time, passing through sections of the province I personally had never seen before. Passing though Rock Creek, Midway, Greenwood and a curious little place called Anaconda, we stopped in Grand Forks BC to reorient ourselves and figure out where exactly the venue was in Nelson Vogue Villains were to play that night. After a bit of Google-fu we punched in the address of “The Royal” into the maps app and headed towards our destination. Despite our vigilance, we at one point took a south where we should have gone north and drove for fifteen minutes in the wrong direction.

I haven’t visited Nelson BC in at least a decade up until now, but I always have had fond memories every time I have been there. It’s a laid back town, full of character and characters. The locals have their own flavour, some second generation hippies, some old timers who have dropped out of mainstream society years ago. A vibrant cast of artists and generally an eclectic mix of people, almost surreal in nature. As we arrived into town, the vibe was palpable. The Royal on Baker was near the close end of town and we found it no problem to find a spot near the entrance to park and load in gear for the show. As we carried armload after armload of band equipment, a few locals gathered to regale us with stories of their time touring with bands such as the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan, and others to diligently explain conspiracy theories like why humans didn’t ever go to the moon.

Once we were finished unpacking, our moods lifted, I set to work finding a power outlet inside the bar to charge all my many diminishing batteries, and grabbed a cold beer.

Next: Vogue Villains play a two hour set at The Royal.

~Cheers, Rev. D

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Touring Western Canada with a Rock Band: Day Two (part 4)

We hit the road. Aiming to be in Nelson BC by dinner time, we didn’t have much time to spare. we pushed through to Princeton BC, where we stopped only briefly for a smoke and pee break, stretched our legs and continued on all the way to Osoyoos. Once there, needing gas, I suggested we first stop downtown for a Vogue Villains photo op. It was a warm, sunny day and Osoyoos Lake provided a picturesque background for some photographs and video. After a half hour break from the cramped truck cab, we went to a gas station filled the tank, got snacks and headed on our way, first climbing Anarchist Mountain then hugging the Canada-USA border eastward.

~Cheers, Rev. D

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