We had the opportunity to interview Royal Tusk! They're a Canadian alternative band with a sharp rock edge to their sound. Check out what they had to say in our Artist Spotlight!
1. How did you come to pursue music and how long have you been at it?
"My parents are kind of Boomer age and were enthralled by music. My Mom is a violinist and my step-father played guitar. We had jam sessions on Fridays, I would join in on guitar before being sent to bed. I took violin lessons and played classical music. Most of the guys of the band had similar experiences whether they picked up a guitar and just fell for it."
2. Could you walk us through your process of writing music?
"My process is my enemy because we don't want to go through the motions. Often, I find myself thinking about a familiar arraignment but then I second guess myself. I try to keep it fresh from a songwriting perspective. I don't like to limit myself to saying this is the way we do it. We're in the business of catching lightening in a bottle."
3. What artists have inspired you in your career?
"We try to definitely sound like the way we are. However, artists like Deftones, Soundgarden, Metallica, Nirvana, and of course stuff like Led Zeppelin, or even the Stones. When you put the four of us together all that comes to play, but we don't try to reverse engineer anything." 4. Do you have any favorite music gear (guitars, amps, effects pedals, keyboards, etc.) that you love to use? If so, what’s the story on them?
"Right now I'm rocking a guitar made by Friedman it's a Cali. My amp is a Synergy. We went to what we thought was a random music shop, turned out to be Dave Friedman's shop and I've been lucky to stay in touch with those guys and they hooked us up with some of that. I can say our bass player Sandy is loving Darkglass."
5. Can you describe the vibe at your live shows? Also, what do you enjoy most about a venue when you do a show?
"With our live show we try to bring it. We grew up in hall shows in punk bands. We try to put on an aggressive energetic show and get our demons. Each venue is like it's own being and brings it's own energy. If the PA is blown out it's more of a punk rock show. If the PA is crisp it's more of a rock show. If it's a smaller venue then it feels like a basement show."
6. What is one thing that you want the public to know about your music?
"We're there because we love playing. It's a crazy industry and you get people there for all different reasons. But for us it's because we love to play. It's simple and unpretentious. If you get a chance come check it out. It's a passion and we try to be honest and real. We don't try to think about how to get famous or anything like that."
7. Do you have any upcoming projects you would like fans to know about?
"We have a tour in Canada and some dates in the U.S. coming up (see dates below) and Shiprocked, the cruise ship tour. We're also almost finished writing a new album."
Royal Tusk 2020 Tour
2/09/2020 - Bo's Bar & Grill, Red Deer, Canada
2/11/2020 - The Exchange, Regina, Canada
2/14/2020 - Better Than Fred's, Grande Prairie, Canada
2/16/2020 - The Blue Grotto, Kamloops Canada
2/17/2020 - Fox Cabaret, Vancouver, Canada
2/19/2020 - Club Sapphire, Kelowna, Canada
2/20/2020 - The Gateway, Calgary, Canada
2/21/2020 - The Starlite Room, Edmonton, Canada
2/22/2020 - Coors Event Centre, Saskatoon, Canada
2/23/2020 - Park Theatre, Winnipeg Beach, Canada
2/25/2020 - Cubby Bear, Chicago, IL
2/26/2020 - Rum Runners, London Canada
2/27/2020 - Lee's Palace, Toronto, Canada
2/28/2020 - The 27 Club, Ottawa, Canada
2/29/2020 - Bar Le Ritz PDB, Montreal, Canada
3/01/2020 - L'anti Bar & Spectacles, Ville De Quebec, Canada
3/03/2020 - The Mansion, Kingston, Canada
3/04/2020 - Gordon Best Theatre, Peterborough, Canada
3/05/2020 - Maxwell's Music House, Waterloo, Canada
3/06/2020 - Warehouse, St. Catharines, Canada
3/07/2020 - The Sanctuary, Detroit, MI