When my good friend Josh told me that his cousin was in a band, I had fairly low expectations. I picked him up one day after work and he popped an album with the words My Dearest Friends printed on it into my car stereo. We began to drive and as soon as I heard the first three-part harmonized word I told him to shut up.
My Dearest Friends is a self-described
Nap Rock band from right here in Vancouver. Well, Langley, but close enough. The band is merely a hobby that a group of varied guys take part in when they have some spare time. Luke Nielsen is the lead vocalist and guitarist and just so happens to be an incredibly generous, friendly, genuine guy. I was lucky enough to attend their CD release party on Saturday at The Railway Club, a local bar in the city with more character than the band themselves; and that’s saying something. The show was one of the best I’ve ever seen at a small venue. The entire crowd was in absolute awe of Luke’s incredibly powerful vocals and obvious passion for what he was singing about.
I was blessed with the chance to ask Luke some questions about the himself and the band. He happily agreed. It’s strange to think that he used to be in a Punk band. Funny how the world works like that.
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SSOM: First question I’ll ask has nothing to do with music. Josh and Ronna told me to make sure to ask you what you do aside from music, as it’s an amazing story. I may as well ask now in case I forget.
Well it is a bit of a long story, but it starts with my brother. I grew up with an incredible family. My older brother was born with multiple complications and lived his life with a series of disabilities. Growing up I never saw my brother as different, I just saw him as my brother. When I was in college trying to figure out ‘what I was going to be,’ he passed away unexpectedly. It was a devastating blow. When you lose a sibling its it’s like a part of who you are is gone, it’s hard to explain. Soon after a friend asked me if I would ever be interested in being a care-aid. I’d never even considered it as a career path. I’d obviously had tons of experience, like going ‘swim and gym’ with my bro on Saturday mornings… a beautiful gong show of about thirty or forty individuals with disabilities attacking the local public pool. So, I became a care worker. The healing process of losing my brother and some-how making up for wherever I lacked as a whinny little brother had begun. I’ve been working as a care-worker for ten years now. It’s an incredible thing to be able to go home at the end of the day and know , that today I know I made someones life a little bit better.
SSOM: How long have you been interested in playing music?
I went to a small private school in Campbell River, I believe I was nine years old when I did my first inter-school singing competition. I started my first band when I was fourteen. We played one show at a town talent contest. I Learned the cranberries’ ‘zombie’ on bass before I even knew how to play bass.
SSOM: You obviously have an enormous amount of control over your voice, how long have you been singing for? Any training or are you just one of those naturally talented vocalists that I’m incredibly jealous of?
I can remember doing a school choir event where I had a solo, I was around twelve or thirteen. A lady in the crowd was videoing the event and when I eventually saw the video she had taped a girl in the choir who had been lip- syncing the lyrics and it totally looked and sounded like she was singing it. So I guess I’ve paid my dues for singing like a girl. My school was huge part in learning to sing, but I never really took any formal lessons. I didn’t really start exploring my vocal range until I started songwriting .
SSOM: So tell me a little about My Dearest Friends. Who are the other members and when did you start making music officially as a quintet?
MDF is Mike Keisz, Jeremy Friesen , Adrian Metcalf, James Molnar, and Luke Nielsen…no real flashy beginnings. It was more of an awkward stumbling into what we are now, but we found our way and kind of crafted our sound through trial and error. Some songs survived, but a lot just were left behind because our sound was changing and eventually became what it is now.
SSOM: I’m having a tough time putting my finger on what genre I would classify your music as. Your songs include sounds ranging from classic country guitar slides to a Harmon muted trumpet. How would you describe it?
Ahhh yes the dreaded ‘what kind of music do you play?’ question. I’ve always had a hard time with that one. We’re not really sure where we fit so we’ve jokingly made up our own genre names for our music. We’ve called it ‘Post-Traumatic Stress Rock’ or ‘Mood Rock,’ but the one that has really stuck is ‘Nap Rock.’ So now when people ask we just say we play ‘Nap Rock.’
SSOM: Any particular artists or events that have influenced the music?
Absolutely! The first time I heard Jeff Buckley, I was blown away at his ability to use his voice. I get lost in his music and it really influenced who I am as a singer. For the most part, I come up with the basic song idea and together we play through it and really cultivate the song’s vibe and direction. It’s a really fun process. I’m really lucky to play with such brilliant musicians. I’d say as a whole, our band’s major influences have been bands like The Beach Boys, Radiohead, The Allman Brothers, Mogwai, Fleet Foxes, Elbow, Jeff Buckley, Ryan Adams… to list a few.
SSOM: So this new album, Be Careful Be Quiet, how long has it taken to complete it?
We really wanted the making of this record to be an experience. We had all done the ‘jam ten or twelve songs into a forty-eight hour period and hope for the best’ type of records. Because of a small budget and limited time we were going to have to stretch out our recording process and work on the record whenever we could. It ended up taking us about nine months to complete the record. Our dear friend Jay Stewart played a pivotal part in making this record happen. We finished up with spending a week in a warehouse in Ft. Langley that was being used as a dance studio. They let us take over a full bay so we used blankets and foam and anything we could find to make the room sound like we needed. The packaging of the record was a family endeavor. Jeremy’s brother and sister in law are brilliant and really helped with the artwork. Jeremy found the cover art artist. It’s a photo from a Japanese photographer who specializes in taking picture of fireflies. Jeremy had to use Google Translator to ask if we could use the photo. We loved the cover photo because we felt it captured our sound and really looks like it should be a vinyl LP. We are hoping to release Be Careful, Be quiet on vinyl sometime this year.
SSOM: If people couldn’t make it out to the release show on Saturday at the Railway Club, where else could they purchase the album?
You can order the album from our website. It will also be available on iTunes and CDbaby within the next month.
SSOM: Any plans to go on tour soon?
Considering we have two babies joining the MDF family (which will make the grand total nine) in June/July any sort of big tours are on hold. We’re hoping to play some shows on the Island and possibly do some shows in Seattle and Portland, but mostly were going to focus on making our presence known in BC and start writing our next record.
SSOM: Any particular groups or artists that you’d most like to perform or collaborate with?
We’ve talked about doing a split with our close friends Prairie Dance Club. It’s an interesting situation when connecting with other bands because the general outlook is competitive. We honestly just want to connect and create relationships with other artists and promote each other. Why can’t we be a huge gang looking out for each other, as opposed to cutting each other off in competing for promoters attention. On our next record were going to get a lot of our friends involved with guest vocals, guitar solos etc.
SSOM: Last question, any other ways that fans can support your obvious talent?
Obviously coming out to shows is huge, sharing our music, calling local radio and asking for us, posting video or songs online.
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If you ever get the chance to see these guys live, do not miss the opportunity. You will be kicking yourself in the face later if you do.
Trust me, it’s totally possible,
Grant.
My Dearest Friends – Waiting For The Stars To Fall
My Dearest Friends – Just One Word
My Dearest Friends – You Can See It In Their Eyes
Tags: Acoustic, Folk Rock, Indie, Indie Rock, Interview, Luke Nielsen, My Dearest Friends, Nap Rock
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