When made with intention, an album can become a cultural artifact that reflects the values and aesthetics of the people who created it. This is my dream whenever I make music. A bit of this idea came through on Inopia; the project was the result of an unlikely pairing between Sam Hansell and myself. With the help of my friend and colleague Emanuella Stratas, we founded a record label with myself as head of production. The label is called Mistapes, and it was created with the intention of providing the students at Western with an opportunity to get professional about music. We selected Sam Hansell as our first artist, and devised the ambitious plan of creating a full-length album. The album sounds like the culture of our music faculty, where progressive punk bands, talented songwriters, and piano majors were all rehearsing under the same roof. When it was done, the CDs sold out immediately. The release party was the greatest feeling in the world. The album had dropped that very day, and people were already dancing and screaming the lyrics. Following that debut concert, you’d see someone with a Sam Hansell shirt at every local rock show. Inopia isn’t making us rich or winning awards, but is easily my best memory from university.

Following that, I joined Nathan Nykor’s Juice Joint to get a sense of the greater music scene. Our band secured a weekly slot at The Poachers Arms; our open jams became the centre of London’s growing jazz scene. We made an album, played Sunfest and Lee’s Palace, and signed to indie label Lovetown Records all in the span of a year. After this, I was hired by a local rock band Whine Problem to engineer their release EP. It was recorded in the same space as Inopia, but Sleam is completely different. Everybody involved in this project put real emotion into it, and the resulting music is fun, raw, and edgy. Emrys Bourdeau planned an incredible rollout.. I am beyond gracious to be going on my first Ontario tour alongside such great friends!