Last month, popular Kelowna rock ‘n’ roll quartet, The Newks, released their debut EP, Grandfathers. The release is a five song romp that touches on a range of musical genres from country, to bonafide rock, through to pop. There’s a genuine raw, edgy quality to the band’s sound and that aspect of their music is neatly captured on Grandfathers.
The Newks is made up Austin Axenty (lead vocalist and rhythm guitar), Douglas Canning (bass), Jordan Garcha (drums) and Charlie Tucker (lead guitar). The Newks are a debonair band. Without wanting to sound trite, they have that certain ‘rock star’ je ne sais quoi. For instance, the first time I saw the band perform, Axenty was drunk on a bottle of wine, but still delivered a strong performance.
My favourite track from Grandfathers, certainly at the time of writing, is “Goodbye Juliana”. The EP is available for free download over on the band’s SoundCloud page, and I highly recommend taking advantage of the offer and adding some more awesome Okanagan music to your collection!
You can listen to, and download, Grandfathers here:
The EP was recorded with Sean Perdue at Kelowna’s Half Capo Productions. Many of you will no doubt know Sean, he’s a big supporter of the local music scene and his unmistakable Sideshow Bobesque hair can often be sighted at shows around town. Interestingly, he also made his recorded singing debut on Grandfathers, when he joined the band on the group vocals for “Goodbye Juliana”.
Here’s a video of The Newks performing live:
The Newks will be performing at Habitat on Thursday, November 20th. Full details are yet to be released, so keep an eye on my column (I’ll include the show in my next list of upcoming Kelowna live music events) or the band’s Facebook page for further news of that performance.
Have a great halloween!
Do you want to contact Vince? E-mail him at: vincent@kelownanow.com or connect with him on Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn or Instagram. You can also catch Vince as the host of Alt Rock Radio Now, a weekly alternative/indie music podcast, or talking music on CBC Radio West as an on-air music columnist.
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