Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Sam Feldman on the Vancouver music scene...


....with Juno week finally here....some good advice about the 'world stage'; you have to use the tools we have for getting music out there - Melissa was actually stopped on the bus the other day by someone who said they had heard her on the radio in Australia...

"And while some may grouse that Toronto and Montreal's music scenes have been getting all the attention from international media, Feldman maintains that Vancouver not only can, but does compete on the world stage.

"It's pretty amazing that given our relatively small population base, we have so many artists that are internationally successful," he says.

"I think there's pretty significant support for the music industry in this city. I mean, you've got three major companies, if I may be so humble as to call our company major. You've got Bruce Allen's company, and Terry McBride and Nettwerk, and even 604 Records, who are all major players on the world stage. Just those three alone provide a lot of help and knowledge to the artistic community. I mean, we can't help everyone who ever picks up a guitar, but there's a lot of knowledge and support that comes out of the community."

In terms of a secret to success, Feldman advises local artists to keep in mind that they are not just competing on a local, but an international stage.

"If an artist plays a venue, you know, once a month, they need to make sure that the crowd are enjoying it, and that more people want to come out for the next show. There's a responsibility of the artist to make sure they are putting on shows that people want to come to. To realize that you aren't just competing with other local bands, but bands all over the world. That's how good you have to be, if you want to make it. . Then there's those who just want to do it for the music, and don't care how many people come, and are just doing it for their own artistic pleasure, and that's fine too."

As for the future of the Vancouver music scene, Feldman is level-headed.

"It's cyclical, cities will be popular for whatever reason, whether it was grunge in Seattle, or way back when, with hippies in San Francisco, or Toronto has had it, or Montreal, or even Vancouver, back with Bachman Turner Overdrive and Bryan Adams. Whatever it is, record companies just tend to focus on one or two artist from that area and try to duplicate it with a 'sound' from that region."

With that end mind, Feldman see Vancouver's music scene emerging into the spotlight for just the opposite reason.

"With Vancouver, with both the geographic location and the smaller popular location, you're not going to get this sort of mini-star system. It's too small to have one sound, so you get people doing lots of different styles. You can't just play one sound here, because you can only play so many times in Vancouver, and then you've gotta get yourself across the Rocky Mountains and play to larger audiences."

For now, however, Vancouver musicians can rest easy, as the industry comes knocking at its door for a change. And with a great Juno Awards ceremony, plus a fantastic local festival, it's impossible to imagine they'll go home disappointed."

An excerpt from a Vancouver Sun interview today..

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