STAYING IN TUNE
The Steadies frontman finds ways to play music
We’re checking in with a different Saskatchewan artist each week to talk about their lives and their work during COVID-19.
This week, we hear from Saskatoon musician Earl Pereira, current frontman of rock band The Steadies and formerly a member of Wide Mouth Mason. Pereira has been busy during the COVID-19 pandemic, playing livestreamed concerts and collaborating with other artists.
Q What does isolation look like for you, literally and figuratively?
A At first, it was a dark time. I think the cold weather and not being able to really go outside at all — we were really isolated. Now it’s been better, still the same, but with the weather turning and it being nice and being able to just go outside, bring the guitar to the park just to get out
... I’ve set myself up to livestream like most people have, but it’s actually something that I’ve never done before. I actually made a conscious effort to put together an actual show by myself, and then it just kind of snowballed. I just kept getting asked ... it’s been amazing.
Q How has the way you’d normally work with the band to make music changed?
A You’d think that I wouldn’t be as busy, but that’s not the case. The business hasn’t changed — I find myself still planning ahead for the future for the band when things do start to open up ... it’s definitely been a huge change to not be around the guys. All of us haven’t seen each other in months, haven’t played together in months, so that’s been hard. But I think it’s just been getting more comfortable in my own skin, building up the confidence of playing solo.
But just having time to work on other things — when you’re touring, you focus so much on the tour, everything that goes around that. With that taken away, I can now focus on aspects of our business that we really needed to address, like Spotify ... also things like an online merch store. We’ve never had a good one before. Building that up — that’s going to be great, once we launch it.
Q So what are some of the projects that have been occupying your time?
A I finally did my first kind of collab, sort of a bridge between doing my own solo work but in collaboration with another artist. So a friend of mine up in Tofino (Alle Bernardi), we have kind of similar vibes, so we wrote a song together virtually, over Skypes and Facetimes ... we’re really excited about it. It’s coming together pretty awesomely, and the song is about being apart from loved ones during COVID, during these times.
Been focused a lot in the studio. I’ve basically revamped my whole studio space, actually make it more of a professional business instead of just a studio for my own personal use. Taking on projects for friends that reach out to me and want me to do stuff is great, but I’m in the midst of turning it into a full-fledged studio ... I have to mix four albums from now until November, so that’s great.
Q You mentioned you rehearsed in person recently for the first time in two months. What’s it like finally getting back into the space?
A It felt like a part of you that was empty was being filled again. It’s such a huge part of being musicians, especially collaborative ones like we are. You feed off each other, there’s an energy that just makes it — it’s the magic, you know, that’s not quite the same when you’re by yourself.
Q Everyone keeps talking about the “new normal.” From where you sit, what’s going to be the biggest change that’s coming?
A I’m a glass half-full guy; I try to always look at the positives in things.
One thing I noticed in my last bunch of years playing live music — not just for me personally, but observing what’s going on — I think people were taking live music for granted. It’s not a knock on anybody, I think it’s something that just happened. We just felt like concerts and live shows were something that were always going to be there.
When something gets taken away from you, that you love, it kind of brings back that love. You miss it. So I think that’s going to be the biggest change, is there’s going to be an overflow of bringing that love back, for live music, and that support that we’ve needed the whole time.
So I’d love to see that pay off for all the musicians out there who have been working so hard, who deserve to be heard and deserve great crowds.
Q So what’s the next step for the band? How do you keep things rolling when you can’t be in the same space?
A Well, it’s tough. And especially for us, because we all live in different cities ... it was a nice break. We kind of looked at it, these last couple months, as maybe a break that we needed. We’ve been touring pretty hard, non-stop ... so just trying to recharge and come back strong.
Our album has just come out, so it’s just been on pause, because obviously we’re not sure what to do next. But with this time, we’ve been able to figure it out — and that’s just to keep pumping music out there, let’s release some singles. We have a new single coming out right away called Undeniable, and we’re planning another one in the fall.
We’re going to get together in the summer on Vancouver Island and finally just get to play together again and maybe stream some live shows from whatever space we rent — maybe a cabin somewhere ... but everyone’s in good spirits.
We know this isn’t going to stop us. Being a band that toured heavily, it’s kind of nice right now to just not have to always be on.
You’ve got to kind of pivot during this time ... musicians and the entertainment industry are really creative people, so I think it’s been a fun challenge to figure this out, a “what else can we do?” kind of thing.
I think people were taking live music for granted. It’s not a knock on anybody, I think it’s something that just happened.