An Evening with The Trews in Moncton

Spend an evening with The Trews at Casino NB in Moncton on Friday, January 30th, 2015.
Spend an evening with The Trews at Casino NB in Moncton on Friday, January 30th, 2015.

Casino New Brunswick presents an evening with Canadian rock band, The Trews in Moncton, Friday, January 30th at 8 pm.

Judging by the boldness of their choices, one would never guess The Trews are 10 years, five studio albums and thousands of gigs into their highly celebrated career.

Evidence of a stubborn refusal to play it safe abounds, most notably in the East Coast-bred, Toronto-based rock squad’s eponymous, electrifying new disc, The Trews (released April 2014). Produced by Gavin Brown (Metric, the Tragically Hip, Billy Talent), the album tallies so many firsts that even band members Colin MacDonald, John-Angus MacDonald, Sean Dalton, and Jack Syperek cop to being a smidge flabbergasted by their own achievements, 15 Top 10 Canadian radio singles (including two #1s) notwithstanding.

Brown brought a whole new way of working to bear when he gathered with the Trews – including long-time keyboardist Jeff Heisholt last fall in their rehearsal space for pre-production before moving the show to Toronto’s Noble Street Studios for “a concentrated two-and-half week session with some additional recording in November, mixing in December and mastering in January,” Colin MacDonald recalled.

“Gavin takes awesome bands and makes them awesome-r,” the singer cracked playfully. “And I think with our band, self-production would be a one-way ticket to divorce. We all respect each other but it’s always good to have that sounding board.”

“For us, working quickly is a function of having our material together,” John-Angus added, noting that the group amassed some 30 songs between January and May 2013 despite all members “doing a lot of other things. Life was being lived, we were travelling, but I think that fed the writing.

“From there we went about arranging it and making it sound great in the studio which, in my opinion, is much easier than songwriting. With Hope & Ruin (the Trews’ chart-topping 2011 release cut with Hip bassist, Gord Sinclair) we were writing and recording at the same time and that record took seven months. Taking a kind of church and state approach to writing and recording this time worked really well.”

“I think we are getting better at pinpointing when a song is good and when it’s not,” Colin MacDonald says. “That’s what happens when you make five albums and tour all the time – you can tell a timeless idea from one that rocks hard but gets old fast. If I have to sing these songs 200 nights a year,” he smiled, doubtless envisioning the Trews’ itinerary for the foreseeable, “I want them to be good.”

For more information on The Trews, visit: thetrewsmusic.com like on Facebook and follow on Twitter @theTrews.

Tickets for the Moncton show go on sale this Friday, October 31st at 10 am and range in price from $19.99 to $34.99 (plus tax and applicable surcharge). Tickets are available at the Casino Gift Shop (located at 21 Casino Drive in Moncton, exit #450 off the Trans-Canada Highway), by calling 1-866-943-8849 and online at casinonb.ca.

Doors open at 7 pm. This is an all ages show.

Casino New Brunswick is a full-service casino, event centre, hotel and spa. It features over 600 slot machines, 20 gaming tables, (including a private poker room with five tables), as well as a variety of restaurants and lounges. In addition to its luxurious hotel and spa with 126 rooms and suites, the complex also offers a multi-purpose entertainment centre. The Centre presents events year-round and since opening its doors on May 4th, 2010, the venue has hosted several sold-out shows in its 2500-seat concert venue. Casino New Brunswick is wheelchair accessible and features extensive car and RV parking.

For more information on Casino New Brunswick’s upcoming shows, visit their website at casinonb.ca like on Facebook and follow on Twitter @Casino_NB.