Sleddogs, the classic rock trio from Kelowna, BC Canada, are back with a bang and the promise of a brand new album, Save Your Vinyl. Following the success of sophomore album Take Me Away which featured surprise hits including ‘Give Me a Sign’, and the eponymous ‘Take Me Away’, the band promise an equally vocally-driven collection, with more upper register vocal work from lead singer and bassist Kenny Byrka, and bigger guitars than the band have attempted before.
Ahead of the new album’s coming release, Indie Suite caught up with Kenny to talk about the band’s origins, being charged by elderly audience members, and real live artists versus auto-tuned charlatans.
Underground Rehearsals and Free Pints
Suite 101: Tell me about how the group came together.
KB: We had our first rehearsal in an underground apple storage facility on my farm. A very loud and extremely ripe session. We liked the chemistry…took us a year or two to find our sound though.
Suite 101: What’s the weirdest thing that’s ever happened when you’ve been performing?
KB: We were booked in to Essex University on the wrong night…during study week. 65 people showed up. We bought them free pints for hanging out the whole night. It was a great show, but strange playing to a mostly empty room…how often can you say you met every fan in the audience after the show?! Also, an 85 year old man charged me on stage once in a club in Kelowna BC. Luckily he ran out of breath by the time he crawled up the stage. Apparently I offended him with a remark about women’s underwear!? Wonder what he was wearing? Eewwww.
Suite 101: You’ve toured pretty widely haven’t you? The UK, US, Canada and New Zealand. Where were the audiences craziest?
KB: Without a doubt…Wales, especially on Rugby nights!
The Future and Auto-tune Fakes
Suite 101: What does the future hold for Sled dogs? What would you like to be doing in a year’s time or 5 years time?
KB: Playing the stages!
Suite 101: What are you guys listening to these days? What bands are you into?
KB: I find it hard to listen to the auto-tuned world of ‘new’ artists. I now have to hear it live first before I will listen and dig anything! As a result, I continue listen to the cats that I know can play for real without backing tracks and pitch adjustment software! My latest like is the latest Lindsay Buckingham solo release.
Further Reading
Find out more about Sleddogs in these further exclusives: Vocally-driven classic rock
Or visit the Sleddogs website.
Lisa Sutlieff - Lisa is a freelance music journalist and copywriter from Reading, UK, with a penchant for indie bands and an ear for shiny new ...
