THWOMP Interview: Hey! Listen! CD Release

Calgary-based Nintendo® cover band THWOMP is gearing up for two exciting projects. They will rock Edmonton on August 6, 2010 at Animethon 17. In the fall, they will release their debut CD.

THWOMP is comprised of Calgarians Brad Stanton (lead guitar), Colin Mitchel (lead guitar), Scott Munro (bass), Scott Moffat (drums), David Marshall (keyboards/percussion) and Kirk McVean (keyboards). Band members Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall took time out from THWOMP’s rehearsal schedule for an exclusive chat with Suite 101. Last time, they discussed their songwriting process. In this segment, they discuss the band’s upcoming CD release.

THWOMP Debut CD Release Fall 2010

"It’s sort of is in and odd state of being officially and not officially released yet," explained Dave. "I don’t think CD’s are officially released until you have a CD release party, which we haven’t done."

The recording for THWOMP's debut CD was made during the band's early years (pre-Dave and pre-Kirk). Their friend Brian (who performs with Dave and Brad in another group) took several recording courses did the recording. "Just live off the floor, everybody playing at the same time and hoping that nobody would screw up in a 15-minute song," said Dave. "That didn’t go that well, so it actually took a few retakes."

Then, the material sat in stasis for a few years. By the time the group had a chance to review the recording, they weren't happy with the quality.

The band realized that there is a huge opportunity to sell merchandise at anime conventions and comic conventions. "We decided to just get off our asses and finish it," said Dave. This time, they called upon their buddy Ryan Sadler of Spectratone Studio to re-engineer it. "We recorded my tracks on top because when it was originally recorded, I wasn’t in the band yet."

The CD artwork was done by a talented family friend, "Kaitlin Reckord. She’s only 16. She’s a student in an art school in town...She did a great job," chimed in Brad.

With THWOMP's Animethon 17 performance on August 6, 2010, they guys have their hands full. They will nail down details for their fall CD release party (to "officially" release their CD) and begin designing a new t-shirt after Animethon.

They also have set their sights beyond Alberta. "We’re going to set our minds into getting into some conventions we haven’t been in yet, like the ones out in Vancouver and hopefully the ones in Washington, if possible," added Dave.

THWOMP is a Nintendo® cover band that brings to life the music from classic Nintendo® and Super Nintendo® video games. The band is comprised of Calgarians Brad Stanton (lead guitar), Colin Mitchel (lead guitar), Scott Munro (bass), Scott Moffat (drums), David Marshall (keyboards/percussion) and Kirk McVean (keyboards). To learn more about THWOMP, the band or to listen to audio clips, visit their website and Myspace page.

To find out about THWOMP's CD, entitled "Hey! Listen", check out my album review. Ordering information is also there.

Full interview series: Part 1 – THWOMP’s Origins | Part 2 – Band Names & Niches | Part 3 – Songwriting | Part 4 - Hey! Listen! CD Release | Part 5 - On Gigs | Part 6 - Convention Gigs | Part 7 - Video Games | Part 8 - Fun & Food

THWOMP Interview: On Songwriting

Nintendo® cover band THWOMP has been rocking conventions, parties and bars since the early 2000’s. This is an exciting year for the Calgary-based group, with gigs at the Calgary Comic Convention, Otafest and Animethon 17. This fall, THWOMP will host a CD release party for their debut CD.

Band members Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall took time out from THWOMP’s rehearsal schedule to chat with Suite 101. In this segment, Brad and Dave explain the band’s songwriting process.

THWOMP and Music Transcription

THWOMP's band charts are faithful transcriptions made either by Brad Stanton (lead guitar) or Kirk McVean (keyboards). It's a painstaking process that challenges the musician's melodic and rhythmic dictation skills. The result is a product of their own creative talents.

"I always do it by hand," explained Brad. "One part for every player." Video game themes loop in two-minute segments, which helped in the transcription process. When transcribing the music to "F-Zero" (a racing game), Brad turned on his Nintendo® game console and paused the game just before the engines fired up. "I’ll get a bar, and then I’ll have to wait two minutes for it to come back around," Brad said. "It was an absolutely grueling process. Think of doing that for a drum track, a bass track, two guitar tracks and then eventually doing it for Dave too. It took forever, but it was it was an absolute labor of love."

There are software programs that pull the audio out of the game. "I did not know about that for the first two-and-a-half years," admitted Brad. "You can mute certain ones, you can slow it down. Oh my God, that saved my life a couple of times."

Two programs the group uses include a plug-in for WinAmp and Audio Overload. For some songs, the ability to slow down a track is essential. "Some of those arpeggiated keyboard lines are tough to figure out when they’re going 16th notes at 180 beats per minute," said Dave.

Having the Perfect Skill Set for Musical Transcription

All six members of the band work together at Sak's Music in Calgary, Alberta. Brad manages the McKenzie Towne location, while the other group members work as music teachers.

"We’re so perfectly situated to do this kind of thing," said Brad. "My job for 11 years was sitting in a room with a little kid and transcribing tunes for them so they could learn some tune that they like off the radio. I spent so much time doing that, that I got so fast at it, eventually."

The addition of Kirk McVean to the group gave Brad a chance to take a two year break from transcribing. "I was getting burnt out doing it. He’s taken over doing it and it’s such a blessing." This arrangement isn't without challenges, however. "I can’t believe how slow I’ve become at it," Brad admitted. "Stupid Kirk, being a keyboard player, he writes everything in standard. Now, the two guitar players, us idiots have to read actual notes. It makes us feel pretty stupid."

Why THWOMP Doesn't Play a Lot of Modern Game Music

"We don’t really do more modern stuff," said Dave. "It’s a different kind of music and it doesn’t suit our format quite as well."

Music from newer Nintendo® games are orchestral in nature. "They use a 64-piece orchestra when they record it, explained Dave. "They use straight digital audio. It’s almost MIDI the way it works (the old stuff)."

THWOMP is a Nintendo® band comprised of Calgarians Brad Stanton (lead guitar), Colin Mitchel (lead guitar), Scott Munro (bass), Scott Moffat (drums), David Marshall (keyboards/percussion) and Kirk McVean (keyboards). For more information about THWOMP, the band or to listen to audio clips, visit their website and Myspace page.

Originally published on Suite101.com on July 27, 2010. Updated on April 16, 2013. All rights reserved by Rhona-Mae Arca.

Full interview series: Part 1 – THWOMP’s Origins | Part 2 – Band Names & Niches | Part 3 – Songwriting | Part 4 - Hey! Listen! CD Release | Part 5 - On Gigs | Part 6 - Convention Gigs | Part 7 - Video Games | Part 8 - Fun & Food

THWOMP Interview: On Video Game Bands and Niches

In Part Two of this exclusive interview, Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall of the Nintendo® cover band THWOMP discuss band names and niches.

Inspired by the music of video game composers Nobuo Uematsu (Final Fantasy), Koji Kondo (Super Mario Bros) and more, Nintendo® cover band THWOMP share their music with a growing fan base of gamers young and old.

Brad Stanton (lead guitar) and Dave Marshall (keyboards/percussion) from THWOMP take a break from their Animethon 17 preparations to chat with Suite 101. In the first part of their interview with Suite 101, Brad and Dave discussed THWOMP's origins. In this installment, they discuss Nintendo® bands, names and niches.

THWOMP on Naming the Band

It took the band a long time to settle on a name."I don’t even remember any of the iterations before we figured out THWOMP", said Brad. "We tried to have some “Legend of Zelda” reference for a while. We could never find one we liked."

By then, the band was starting to get gigs, making it necessary to name the band. "I don’t remember who came up with it," said Brad. "We should just attribute it to the drummer. It was probably him. I remember we were all standing there out in the parking lot of our jam space, drinking beer and smoking; and somebody said, “THWOMP”. We all just looked at him and we were all like, “Yeah!” It was definitely one of those "light shining from the clouds" moments. On the parking lot of our shitty jam space."

Nintendo® Bands and MAGFest

There are several Nintendo® cover bands out there, such as The Advantage, The Minibosses, Armcannon and NESkimos. Some have carved a niche for themselves in the realm of video game music. One of the top groups is Powerglove, a metal group. Another band, The OneUps, performs jazz interpretations of video game music.

Some of these bands perform at anime conventions and comic cons. The popular Nintendo® bands perform at MAGFest, a video game festival and conference in New Jersey. "Everybody but us, pretty much," said Brad. Their time will come.

On THWOMP’s Musical Niche

The members of the band are involved in other music groups and projects, ranging from jazz to rock and from bar gigs to workshops. THWOMP's focus, however, will forever be video game music. "It will never be anything other than that," said Brad. "It will never be watered down. It will never be compromised."

Their musical background and training, along with their love for the original music influences their philosophy. "We’re all purists about it, really," said Brad. "We really try to make everything absolutely note-for-note. Absolutely exact. We have really high standards for each other." They admit to holding some "good natured but fierce" cutting contests at rehearsals and putting each other in his place on occasion.

Giving others the same nostalgia factor they experience when playing classic Nintendo® music is not only important to them, it's their favorite part about playing this style of music. "We really want it to be fast, punchy, everything you remember," said Brad. "Every show we play, there’s some 30-year old guy in the audience who has no idea who we are and just stands there agape, staring at us, nearly crying. That happens at every show we play and it’s so gratifying.

The band enjoys watching the audience going through the actions from various Nintendo® video gameswhile they perform. "Tetris is always amusing because people try to become Tetris pieces," recalled Dave. "I don’t know if anyone’s come very close to being a Tetris piece yet but we’re interested to see people keep trying."

THWOMP is a Nintendo® band comprised of Calgarians Brad Stanton (lead guitar), Colin Mitchel (lead guitar), Scott Munro (bass), Scott Moffat (drums), David Marshall (keyboards/percussion) and Kirk McVean (keyboards). For more information about THWOMP, the band or to listen to audio clips, visit their website, BandCamp and Myspace page.

The full interview series:

Full interview series: Part 1 – THWOMP’s Origins | Part 2 – Band Names & Niches | Part 3 – Songwriting | Part 4 - Hey! Listen! CD Release | Part 5 - On Gigs | Part 6 - Convention Gigs | Part 7 - Video Games | Part 8 - Fun & Food

Hey! Listen! Album Review

Originally published on Suite101.com on July 27, 2010. Updated on March 22, 2013. All rights reserved by Rhona-Mae Arca.

Interview with Dave Marshall and Brad Stanton of THWOMP

In Part One of this exclusive interview that I originally did for Suite101, Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall of the Nintendo® cover band THWOMP discuss the band's roots.

Drawn together by their passion for music and classic Nintendo® games, THWOMP has performed throughout Alberta, playing at everything from bar mitzvahs to comic-cons.

The year 2010 is an exciting one for the band, with gigs at the Calgary Comic Convention, Otafest and Animethon 17, as well as their upcoming CD release party in the fall. Suite 101 sat down with Brad Stanton and Dave Marshall before a rehearsal to chat. In this segment, they share how the band came together.

The Origin of THWOMP, a Nintendo® Cover Band

THWOMP is a six-piece progressive "prog" rock band based in Calgary, Alberta. It is comprised of Brad Stanton (lead guitar), Colin Mitchel (lead guitar), Scott Munro (bass), Scott Moffat (drums), David Marshall (keyboards/percussion) and Kirk McVean (keyboards).

Band mates Brad Stanton and Scott Munro met in 2001 while they were attending Mount Royal University (then a College). Brad recounted the first time he and Scott jammed on video game music, "I walked by his room one day and heard him playing the battle music from “Final Fantasy VI” and it was like, “That’s frickin’ awesome! Teach me how to play that.”

Writing down what he learned was the natural next step for Brad. "I went home and started transcribing for real, writing it out in three parts, for bass and two guitars. Then, I just did more and more and more tunes from that game." Eventually, Brad amassed enough transcriptions to begin jamming on the music. He called on Colin Mitchel and Scott Moffat, two buddies who play with Scott Munro in Günther, a three-piece progressive rock trio.

Classical Nintendo® games were ideal for the new band. "You can separate out the audio and it comes down to four tracks," Brad explained. "The original Nintendo® pieces work so perfectly for a four-piece band because you just transcribe every note and it sounds perfect."

However, the advent of Super Nintendo® posed some challenges for the group. "Well we wanted to do more Super Nintendo® games and they have 16 channels," said Brad. "That’s eight tracks of audio. I had to make decisions between what tracks I could do and what tracks I couldn’t do. I had to cut out stuff and give Colin a lead and me a harmony and miss this other string patch or something like that."

Dave Marshall Joins THWOMP

The group played at house parties, shows and bars around town for approximately two years. They met David Marshall at Broken City. At the time, the club hosted the Ramp Show on the first Thursday of each month to showcase new music or bands.

"We played the very first one as Günther’s side project and absolutely tore it up," recalled Brad. "The place was packed and everybody loved it. I remember you [Dave] being there and…the shit-eating grin on your face when we played Final Fantasy."

Hearing the band for the first time was a special moment for Dave. "I played that game in particular so much that as soon I heard it, I knew every note. I think that’s part of the appeal of the band too; there are lots of people who have that same experience when they hear us play. It took me a year to convince them that I was supposed to be in the band too."

Thanks to a cold snap during the winter, Dave was given a chance to play with the group. "It was about 35 below outside. It was ridiculous," said Brad. The rehearsal space didn't have heating, so Dave invited the band to rehearse in his home nearby. After jamming with the group, the decision was unanimous: "We decided that Dave needed to be in the band." The addition of Dave's keyboard and percussion skills meant that the group could explore music from Super Nintendo® games without compromising voicings.

THWOMP is a Nintendo® band that took root during an impromptu jam session between founding members Brad Stanton and Scott Munro on Final Fantasy tunes. The four-piece band became a quintet with the addition of keyboardist and percussionist Dave Marshall.

For more information about THWOMP, the band or to listen to audio clips, visit their website, BandCamp and Myspace page.

The full interview series:

Full interview series: Part 1 – THWOMP’s Origins | Part 2 – Band Names & Niches | Part 3 – Songwriting | Part 4 - Hey! Listen! CD Release | Part 5 - On Gigs | Part 6 - Convention Gigs | Part 7 - Video Games | Part 8 - Fun & Food

Hey! Listen! Album Review

Originally published on Suite101.com on July 27, 2010. Updated on March 22, 2013. All rights reserved by Rhona-Mae Arca.

Film Director Philip Spink on The Godchild

In this exclusive interview, writer/director/producer Philip Spink discusses the filming and production model his latest work, sci fi fantasy The Godchild.

In Part 1of this exclusive interview, screenwriter, independent film director and producer Philip Spink discussed sci fi TV and films, coming home and filming his indie film, The Godchild. In this final segment, Philip reflects upon his cast, the film music and the filmmaking model used to make The Godchild.

Philip Spink on The Godchild Cast

Casting was critical for the project to go ahead. The audition process was long but gave Philip an opportunity to pick the best actor for each role. “I was so lucky with some of our main actors. Once I had them, I knew that I could do this film.”

The role of Peter was portrayed by Grant Spink (Knights of Bloodsteel). “I needed someone who could spend incredible amounts of time doing special effects with, would always be there, explained Philip. “It worked out perfectly for that. He fit the part perfectly.”

Kari Townsend (The Call, Who Dressed You This Morning?) was cast as Sister Beth Myers. “She brought ferocity to the character,” remarked Philip. “She really empathized with the character who is a strong-willed woman who has had a tragic past.”

“I knew I wanted someone exotic,” said Philip regarding the role of Peter’s doctor, portrayed by Steve Dhillon (Money, ODC, 419: The Nigerian Scam). “I needed someone who could play a brilliant, dedicated doctor who has some guilt about leaving his homeland…When Steve showed up, he was perfect.”

Michael Heltay (Knights of Bloodsteel), who plays Sister Meyer’s friend Bernie, has worked with Philip Spink on several productions. “I wrote the part for him,” he said. Bernie does provide some comic relief in The Godchild. “I knew Mike could pull that off really well.”

Riah Fielding-Walters (The Wizard's Christmas) played Peter’s teacher. “It’s a character who is constantly battling her insecurities and her fears and trying to overcome them,” said Philip. “She brought such sensitivity to the role.”

Hazel Valdez is fairly new to the acting scene. As Sister Valdez, she is a balancing effect on the rest of the teaching staff. “You could really see her commitment on screen,” he said. “She has a very good technique and wonderful comic timing.”

When writing the screenplay, Philip, with help from co-producer and wife Zuzana Novak, kept each actor’s talents in mind. “I was able to hone the script and craft it to their strengths. They did a great job.”

Music Production for The Godchild

The film music for The Godchild was composed by Canadians Peter Jancewicz and James Guttridge. “With the combination of Peter and Jim, I was able to get the music I needed for the film without monopolizing their time.”

The Godchild marks Jancewicz’s debut into film composing. “It’s like having Chopin or Beethoven in the same city,” said Philip. “He brings such a sense of gravitas and sensitivity to his music.” Jancewicz is a Calgary-based composer, music teacher, clinician, writer and adjudicator, whose compositions are published by Alberta Keys and Alfred Music Publishing.

Guttridge has collaborated with Philip on several projects, including Voyage of the Unicornand Knights of Bloodsteel. In the realm of film music, “he’s a real heavy hitter,” he quipped.

Heavy hitter indeed. Guttrridge won a Leo Award for Best Musical Score (Once in a Blue Moon) and an International Television Award (Dinosaur). He also received Gemini, Leo, and Grammy nominations for his work on Voyage of the Unicorn and Kung Fu Killer. Most recently, Guttridge scored the music for Sy Fy Channel's TV drama Riverworld (2010), which stars Tahmoh Penikett (Cold Squad, Battlestar Galactica).

Modeling The Godchild on Quebec Film Productions

“Wouldn’t be nice if we could make our money back in Alberta like they do in Quebec?” posited Philip. “Quebec filmmakers are supported by Quebeckers.” He set out to achieve that with The Godchild. “We can prove that you can make a film in Alberta, make your money back and then start marketing it beyond the province.”

Another goal for keeping a low-budget independent film was to keep costs affordable to viewers. At $5 a ticket, “it’s a pretty good deal,” said Philip “Hopefully it will move you and in the end, you say, ‘I’ve got my money’s worth.’ ”

The Godchild premiered in Calgary, Alberta on Saturday, October 9, 2010, which I reviewed on my Stumbling Still blog. This sci fi fantasy film was written, directed and produced by Philip Spink and stars Kari Townsend, Steve Dhillon, Riah Fielding-Walters, Michael Heltay, Grant Spink and Hazel Valdez.

Originally published October 16, 2010 on Suite 101. Updated March 22, 2013. All rights reserved by Rhona-Mae Arca.