One Semester Down

Well, I'm looking in the rear view mirror back at my first semester of post-secondary education and it was a wild ride. I finished a cd, threw some release parties, celebrated two and a half years with Amanda, nailed my midterms, discovered the parts of me that need to change, failed as often as I succeeded, struggled with pride and jealousy and learned that I have a long way to go and a lot to take in. So far so good. I just finished my last exam this morning and they didn't go as well as I'd hoped, but my circumstances weren't ideal.
For those of you who don't already know about this crazy snowfall let me just tell you... There was snow, and it fell, and it just didn't stop. We closed Blue Mountain on account of too much snow, which has never happened before as far as I know. The roads were all closed, the plowmen were working quadruple overtime and we were trapped in a winter-wonderland. Matt and I had gone home this past weekend to play at an AIDS awareness concert and we were scheduled to head back on Sunday. Sunday came along and the snow was blowing pretty good, so I took the advice of many and decided to wait it out.
Needless to say, three days later, and two exams later the wind finally dies down and we decide to make a break for the sun. We load up the car and hit the back roads because 26 is shut down. As we're traveling along airport road a big truck comes up the hill towards us. It was one of those situations where the grooves in the road where the snow had been worn down and you were expected to drive in, yeah those grooves, well they were pretty well in the middle of the road. I pull out of the grooves to give this truck space to get by and my little cavalier loses traction and starts to slide.. I look over at Matt and say, "So when we get back do you maybe want to hit up McDonalds or something?" He responds, "Nahh man. I've been looking after myself lately and I've got to keep this thing in pristine condition.."

..

It actually sounded a bit more like, "We're going to crash dude.." followed by more swerving, and eventually ending in my car face first in a big snow bank. We laugh a bit (nervously..) and I flick on the windshield wipers to fling off the mountain of snow. We reverse back onto the road and begin driving again. At this point I still have the equivalent of Blue Mountain piled up on the hood of my car (and like it's counterpart it was also closed to skiers this day) and everything just hit me. I lost control of that car.. Could have easily spun the other way and lost my bro. He wouldn't let me stop tho so we kept going.

Only to arrive at school and here one professor say, "If I had my way I'd fail you!" Fair enough.
People bug me.

If I don't see you beforehand, have a merry Christmas :)
Also, give Matt a hug (He'll love it)
Levi

Top 10 Best Songs/Albums of 2010... according to me

So everyone knows that the drummer of the band usually has impeccable tastes in music and constantly shapes the band through their immense understanding of the dynamics of sound. Well the case is no different with the Levi Denbok Band.... more like the Trevor Walker band. Hahaha, ok all jokes aside. I decided that I would enlighten the world and all daily active users of my divine tastes in music and what I think are the best albums and songs of 2010.

*Disclaimer*

These songs are from a diverse background of various genres and may not reflect the musical tastes of the entire band, even though they should. Listeners of these songs are subject to their own opinions however; those opinions are most likely wrong.

Albums:

1. "Ellipse" by Imogen Heap

Imogen's latest album fuses so many styles and genres together and actuallymakes it work. She is by far one of the most talented singersout there and her latest albums proves just that. Like poetry for the ears. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAYkvQ0V_7I

2. "Fleet Foxes" by

Fleet Foxes

Brilliant album by this folk style/acoustic band. They blended interesting instruments and put it all together to create some pretty awesome mellow and heart-felt

songs. The cool thing about these guys is that they just do what they want rather than follow a crowd, and they write all of their own stuff. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4nkAUT-7mQ

3. "Senior" by Röyksopp

These Scandinavian

guys know how to make really deep music through the use of interesting electronic sounds and samples.

Understandably not for everyone

but one can appreciate their album's awesome 1980's synth sounds and mellow somatic sounds that putt the listeners in a trance. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eV9lBciavQ&feature=related

4. "Viva La Vida/Prospekts March" by Coldplay

Even though it came out last year, I still enjoyed this album this year... its awesome. I consider both the album and the EP "Prospekts March" a

single cd and for me they worked to show

the complexity of Coldplay and their ability to continue to push the envelope... which

is a refreshing change. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXSovfzyx28

5. "Me and Armini" by Emiliana Torrini

This little Icelandic singer has caught my attention with her recent albums, but "Me and Armini" really tops everything. As a singer and musician she challenges most female

pop/acoustic singers all doing the same stuff and adds interesting twists and rhythms yet still keeping her music accesibily to those who are afraid of change. Brilliant album, beautiful voice. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IrJKF1gTuw&feature=related

now best songs are as follows:

1 "Two Weeks" by Grizzly Bear
2 "The Alcoholic" by Röyksopp
3 "White Winter Hymnal" by Fleet Foxes
4 "Canvas" by Imogen Heap
5 "I was playing drums" by Efterklang
6 "Death and all of his friends" by Coldplay
7 "The Edge of the Ocean" by Ivy
8 "Moth's Wings" by Passion Pit
9 "Freedom and it's owner" by Kings of Convenience
10 "Sponsored by Destiny" by Slagsmålsklubben

"Help me get back to the reason I sing for you" -Jimmy Needham

Hey guys,

This is Levi checking in. I've spent seven and a half hours in class, five hours doing homework, and every other second worrying about Friday and doing all the background "business" stuff required to have anyone half interested in listening to your music. There will never be enough time in a day.. I'm sitting here feeling absolutely drained, utterly discouraged, and endlessly frustrated. Here's why.
After everything I've labored over today, and all the hours spent working my butt off, I realize that I didn't take a second to pray. I couldn't find even five minutes to talk to God, maybe thank Him that I'm, I don't know, BREATHING! Didn't thank Him for allowing me to play music with the guys, blessing me with the opportunity to go to school, bringing the most incredible girlfriend into my life. I lost sight of it all. This is what will kill us. I mean it too.. Everything that I take on, I take on with God's grace and His strength. Is it exhausting? Absolutely! Does it suck to pour your heart out doing exactly what you were made to do only to have your ministry put down by "important" people, or even put down by pastors? Yesh.. But we, as Christians are able to push on because God gives us that strength and that passion to keep praising Him. I've had the honor of being called to a life of service to Him. Whether it's through my conversations, my music or even just my smiles in the store, I'm trying to live a life that draws people to Him.

But today, and even this past week.. You know what, I'd go as far as to say this past month.. I lost it. Lost sight of the goal. Business overtook me, and "success" (what they've been telling me it is anyway) was looking close. I put my priorities in the wrong order with Him at the back and myself (and my critics) at the front. So today I'm humbled. I'm watching the old Hillsong United "Look to You" dvd listening to "All I Need Is You" and I'm right back in that spot where it all started, crazy in love with God and less than interested in myself and my agendas. I should be sleeping, because tomorrow's going to be busier than today was, but I wanted to verbalize all this before my pride kicked in. I'm just a broken dude trying to figure things out and set myself up to provide for a family someday. I don't have it figured out.. But I know that today was unacceptable, and that if you want to burn out, cutting God out of the picture is a great place to start.

We're having a cd release party this Friday at six thirty at Emmanuel church in Barrie. It's going to be an intimate night with some snacks, some coffee, and some time where we can pour our cd out to you. I hope you can make it out. I appreciate you guys. Thanks for listening. I'm not wearing an entertainer hat today. Sorry :)

first snow fall i've witnessed this year!!

It was great.

Walk out of class and see snow falling! Just like in the picture! (no not at all like the picture lol)

But it was enough to remind me of Christmas and not the winter driving!

I say this now...but i can acknowledge come January i will be hating the drives from Cambridge to Stayer haha.

Just an weather update from the bassist :)

Oh yeah 75% on one of my mid-terms!! Not bad for some casual midnight studying the night before!

Peace out :)

Matt

back to work :(...

What a weekend! (no sarcasm intended :) )
Started out with Levi and i getting lost on the way back to Stayner. Oh yeah, and prior to getting lost, while in the parking lot of Tim Horton's we find out that our sound check will be cut short due to a wedding rehearsal!! So actually, prior to even being lost, we were both a little stressed. The tension in the car was thick, if it wasn't for the assurance that we were going to get to play some sweet music in just a few hours, one of us may have had a black eye haha. Those moments of stress are when you learn how much you can handle, and thankfully we have Jesus then just like every other moment :) .

It was a huge relief arriving at the venue. Unloading was a Huge stress relief. It was all worth the drive haha. Our sound check was one that was not as smooth as hoped. Our nerves got the best of us and there were some ugly mistakes. And of course, me being the high-maintenance bassist that I am, I had to bug Roger Robinson about the monitor situation. Thankfully he extended tons of grace towards me. He tweeked my in-ears perfectly and the bass was pounding! Thankfully, we had a small second sound-check that went much better. There was a mild confidence in the rest of the guys (especially Trevor, he's always so chill) that calmed me down. We had a sweet prayer time prior to our set which helped put things into perspective (especially for me). I didn't get much of a listen to the opening acts of Andrew and Aimee Bowins (brother and sister duo), and Chuck Baker. All I heard was great stuff about their performances though :) .

Then our set! It was so much fun. Playing with these 3 guys never gets dull. Trevor is such a great drummer and it's fun to watch the guy play. There's never a show we play without hearing about 10 comments about how great our drummer is! This is awesome because all it takes to get me smiling and laughing on stage is to hear one of his crazy drum fills or see the huge smile that he always has on! Then Drew, always calm and collected. He's never content with his tone, which I love because I see this quality in every great guitar player. We always have our moments of laughing at some crazy note Levi hits or again some crazy drum fill Trevor does haha. Levi, he's the best. He just loves when we go into some funky instrumental. He starts groovin' and we just follow where he leads (sometimes it's Trevor who takes the reigns haha). The night consisted of all these things happening. We're all so thankful for all those behind the scenes who put so much work into getting the place ready. I was so thankful, all I had to do was plug my bass in and start jamming :) .

I had some family time on saturday which was super sweet. It's amazing how much you start to miss your parents (especially the cooking :) ) and brothers after a few months of living away from home. Then, as Levi loves to do to me haha, I was summoned to attempt to play back-up acoustic for a fundraiser Saturday night. It was another good night. Much more low-key than the night before which was great. Some originals and covers that were fun.

Sunday morning consisted of awaking to the alarm clock at 6:20, earliest i've been up in some time :) . A shower, some clean clothes, packing up the bass and amp, a great breakfast, a great trip to a coffee shop, and then to the church for worship practice. A great morning all in all. I thought Levi's voice would be gone after the second service but he managed to talk on the car ride home haha (anybody who knows us knows that i'm the one who never shuts up).

...back to work :( . A.k.a school. It's nice to be back. Enjoying a coffee from my fresh new French Press from Starbucks :) . Lots of reading and studying to get done, which is surprisingly a nice change from a busy weekend. It's amazing how much stress being in school can add to a musician. Usually a few shows in a weekend wouldn't phase me, but i've found myself praying for more strength than ever these past few days. Awesome weekend overall :)
Music is the best isn't it?

Peace out.

-Matt

TOMORROW NIGHT!!

Can you believe the release party is here?? I mean seriously.. This thing came so stinking fast.. wheww..
I'm just doing breathing exercises trying to stay relaxed right now. I'm excited/nervous/proud/humbled.. I'm a bit of a perfectionist, and I would love to present you with an incredible, unforgettable night. We've brought in Andrew and Aimee Bowins to open things off, and that's going to be a lot of fun. Then Chuck Baker is going to come on and show you some of the craziest local talent that you've ever seen. Roger Robinson is behind the board with Kyle Cleary making everything sound smooth and perfect. These guys know sound, and it's going to make the night that much better. And working her fingers to the bone will be the lovely Amanda Cramer, making sure everything is pleasing to the eyes and getting all the volunteer bakers organized.. Oh yeah, free desserts and coffees for everyone. Ya dig??

Finally I get to take to the stage with Drew Peterson, Trevor Walker and Matt Szkarlat: Three talented gentlemen who've been working so hard this past year and a half to make sweet music with me. Last night Trevor drove 2 hours here and 2 hours back just to practise. That's commitment.

We often struggle with the entertainment side of things.. How do we own the stage and keep everyone engaged and entertained without trying to bring the glory to ourselves or distract from God and what He's doing.. The balance is hard to find, and we'll never be able to please everyone. But we're determined to please one guy in particular and if we can do that than we've succeeded. Tomorrow night at 6:30 PM @ NewLife Church in Collingwood we're going to have an awesome night and we would LOVE to see you there. It's absolutely free, so what's stopping you? Bring some friends, here some great music, eat some free pie, buy some cds and make it a Friday night to remember. You know you want to ;)

Whether we see you there or not, I want you to know that we really appreciate you. All of you. Thanks :)

Levi

Would You Go

I know you don't need to be reminded (because you've been waiting anxiously all year... right?) but our DEBUT ALBUM CD RELEASE PARTAY is 6 DAYS AWAY! I'm not excited at all.. why would you think that?
This album is a four year collection of songs. It's been two and-a-half years in the making. It's got some upbeat pizazz, and some slow it down lets think about thisness.. It's got character. And if you relate to it or not,(what can I do about that?) it's genuine. We didn't build it for radio hits, mosh pits or the famous groupie ditz.. We wrote it to tell a story. We recorded it because we liked it and wanted it to last, and through two and-a-half years, two different producers and a changing of the band, the original feel we were going for was still able to come through.
A friend of mine from work mentioned that he would check it out even though there would probably be some "strong Christian undertones". You know what, I wont pretend that he's wrong.. I'm a Christian, and that passion is going to flow into what I write, how I perform, who plays with me and what I desire. If you're a friend of mine or you like the music but you don't happen to be a Christian I hope you'll check out the album anyways. I try not to be a "shove it down your throat every chance I get" kind of guy. This music is my way of expressing what I believe and how I see the world. It's no different than someone who loves to party singing about how much they love getting drunk and going to the club. So give it a shot.

A while back I said I'd go into the stories behind the songs. Well, I'm going to start that today with the story behind the title track "Would You Go"

It was close to 11 pm in a Haitian refugee camp in the Dominican Republic. There was a medical clinic in the village which had a separate living quarters for visiting missionaries. Amanda lived here and I lived in a hut down the hill. My little hut had no electricity that night (This happened a lot)and I felt like reading so I was chilling in the kitchen reading a book called "The Shack". I can't remember the author's name right now.. Anywho, this book stirred up some controversy in religious circles so I had to read it.. It was about a guy who had lost his daughter to a rapist and was lured to a shack (thus the title) by God. (I think this is where the controversy is found?) Well the thing that sparked me was the idea of actually spending a day with Jesus. I mean, what would He say? If we were just chilling, walking around, shooting the basketball, what would that conversation look like.

So I sat there and I started writing intently. It started pretty laid back

"We skipped a stone across the lake,
And watched the shivers it would make
Lay down your head and rest a while
And know you always make me smile

I would go, I would go, I would go to the unknown for you

Just as the tide, it needs the shore
My need for you is so much more
Your breath alone invades My heart
Oh how I loved you from the start"

Pretty cheesy when you look at it from a guy's perspective.. But I'm thinking about what He said in His word and the way that He lived.. He loved me deeper than I love my brothers. How does a friendship or a relationship that deep look? He's just overflowing with love for me.. love that made Him do some crazy things.. And then I remembered that crazy thing and I grasped how real it was. I thought about Jesus for the first time, as being real, flesh, my best friend.. I'm not lying, I literally cried the first time I sang the next two verses

"Then with the darkness overhead..
They pierced my side, pronounced me dead.
It was your sin that hung me here,
The very heart I hold so dear

But I would go, I would go, I would go to the unknown for you

My precious child is who you are
It was for you I bore these scars
And as you know this was My choice
But how I'd love to hear your voice

Would you go? Would you go? Would you go to the unknown for me?"

I screwed up, and someone had to pay for it. So my best friend stepped up, was killed, felt God literally turn away from Him, and went to Hell. The comfort is that it was always His plan, and He conquered death and Hell and came back with the promise that the price was paid for everything I've done if I just believe in Him. I'm a long ways away from death (I hope) and it's easy for me to lose sight of the day when I'm faced with all the choices I made, and I face the reality that justice demands a punishment. He took that punishment for me. It's crazy..
Now, if you just decided that you'll never read a blog again because I'm too preachy, just look back on my past posts.. I'm typically not like this. I keep quiet, because I respect the fact that you're going to ask if you want to know, and I don't need you to believe what I believe to keep our friendship going. But today I'm telling the story behind this song, and there's just no way of avoiding the most integral part of the story.

Would you go is the question it drives into in the improvised ending.. We were just jamming away in practise and I started singing out some random melodies and lines all centered around that question. Sometimes (not as often as in the past) I'll pray over the guys or sing some improvised words of encouragement when we're jamming. Just let it flow it out y'all.. Any ways, I was doing that here, and as I was singing it out I just felt something crazy happening in the room and I blurted out "Here I am". It just felt like God was letting me, and my boys, know that this was exactly where He wanted us. It was taking up all our time, all of my money (I mean ALL of it) and it was difficult to explain to our friends and family (School? No, I'm in a band..). But in that moment I knew that this is what He made me to do. I just keep going now, because if He could die for me, than I can take every last song and chord in my arsenal and use it for Him.

So the question.. Would you go? If it costs you everything? How far would you follow? We built the album on it, because I can't think of a more crucial or important question to ask. If you wont go, than what's the point? He did it for us.

This is as long as my posts get. Forgive me guys. And hey, I can apologize to you IN PERSON at the CD RELEASE PARTAY! Please come, and bring your friends! It's going to be an awesome night.

Levi

Song Writing

Well, it's been a pretty great week with a couple bumps along the way.
I met a guy.. there were fireworks. Well not really, but he was full of good advice, and I love meeting people that can insert some wisdom into my life. His name is Joshua Seller, a worship leader from Harvest Bible Chapel in Oakville and a singer, songwriter. Find him on facebook and pick up his cd.
Well he put this little idea in my head, and I thought it would be selfish not to share it. After talking about some strategies and theology on leading a church into worship (Which many of you will find less than interesting..) he gave me some advice for musicianship (which a quarter of you will find interesting) (I recognize that three quarters of you wont be interested and I'm not even remorseful..)
The advice was this. Jon Foreman is the lead singer and writer for the band Switchfoot. You may or may not have heard of them. They're a relatively recognized band that's stumbled onto quite a bit of success. Jon makes it a discipline to write one song a day! A day! And that is one, finished, entirely written, bridge included, pre-chorus-figured-out song. I have the hardest time finishing a song, because once you label it finished, you leave it alone and you can't bring new stuff in. The mind-set behind the one a day song plan is this.. Every new song is better than the last, so keep pushing them out so you can keep improving. And at the end of the year you've got 365 songs to cycle through to look for that pearl.
Joshua has incorporated this into his ministry and he requires every one of his interns to write and record one song a week which they will show to him. It seems small, but if we want to grow as writers and we want to stretch our music than it makes perfect sense to force ourselves into a discipline that will stretch us. I wish I could show you some of my early songs.. no I don't.. they were terrible.. But I had to get that junk out to figure out what works. A friend of mine Scott Jackson from Life 100.3 has told me that his pet peeve is artists who rhyme, "Love with Dove". It's been done. It's what we all resort to when we're struggling with lyrics.
I know this is long.. I'm sitting in a class right now that's not even mine and I can only focus on homework for so long. Moral of the story. Discipline leads to greatness. Stretch yourself, be it songwriting, musicianship or your spiritual life. Hard workers take the lead when talent stops working hard.. or something like that.
The Raptors start their season this Wednesday night and I'm going to be sitting at home watching the game with my dad and a doctor pepper. Does life get any better?
Check out our little song on the facebook page. And hey, go write a song

Levi

"Christian Music" & Jonny Lang

Hi, it’s Drew.

So, the other day I was killing time, and I happened to catch a performance on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno that would really spark my interest. I usually just turn on Leno, watch the monologue, and stop paying attention or fall asleep. Luckily this time I stayed awake and saw the musical guest.

On this particular night the musical guest was Cyndi Lauper, y’know that “girls just want to have fun“ lady. I generally wouldn’t have been interested, but as I was watching I noticed she had an amazing band behind her, in particular the guitar player she was singing a duet with caught my attention. His name was Jonny Lang, and though he has been around for a while, (He put out his first album when he was 14) I had never heard him before. I ended up enjoying their performance quite a bit, (click HERE to see it) and immediately googled Jonny Lang.

I started listening to some of his stuff on youtube, and a day later bought his “Live at the Ryman” album off itunes. As I listened to the album I couldn’t help but notice the inspirational lyrics, and Christian messages embedded into his music. After doing a bit more research I found out that Jonny is a born again Christian, and has played on some Steven Curtis Chapmen and Israel Houston records... but I really wasn’t surprised after listening to his music.

Jonny is an AMAZING guitar player, and has played with some blues legends like Buddy Guy, Charlie Musselwhite, Herbie Hancock, Eric Johnson, as well as playing with Carlos Santana. Even though he is so young... he’s really been around the block.

What I found really interesting about him was how he incorporates his faith into his music, even though he is not tagged as a Christian artist. We have all heard of these types of musicians before in the industry. Christians who are playing music, but not labeling their music as “Christian”. I’m not going to name any names, but what set Jonny apart from these artists was how his faith actually shines through his songwriting. You can really hear the influence all over his album. Not just in a generic, positive message kind of way, but in a blatant, unapologetic statement of his lifestyle. Just listen to the ‘live at the ryman’ CD and you’ll know what I mean...

It really got me thinking about what it means to be a Christian and a musician, and all those bands I’m not quite sure what to think of regarding their faith. Sure there are a million artists who label themselves as “Christian”, thank God during awards, and come from a religious background. But how can I tell who really lives it? I think Jonny is the best example of a Christ follower, playing music in the secular music scene.

His love for God, and inner passion can’t help but burst through his songwriting even though the genre he plays doesn't call for it.. And doesn’t that make sense for all of us... that the thing which is most important to us, and the most influential part of our lives, shines through our art form even if we aren't applying a certain label on ourselves.

I dunno, the whole thing just really made me think and it's hard for me to put on paper. But I guess that's why I write guitar parts and not lyrics.

Here’s some of his lyrics that really spoke to me, as we are getting ready to release the CD, and launch a new season in our musical journey with The Levi denBok Band.

“This one might not ever be a single
Just something on my heart I hadda’ sing ya.
I hope they play this on the radio,
Gimme a chance to let somebody know,
That we can change the world one boy, one girl, one person at a time”

“Sure be nice to go triple platinum,
but there’s no guarantee it’s ever gunna happen.
And if I can only reach one set of ears
I know that I’ve fulfilled my purpose here.”

One Person At A Time - Jonny Lang.

Can't believe I didn't hear about him, until after he was in Kitchener this August. Wish somebody would have told me about how amazing this guy is earlier.

Anyway, hope you're all well, and hope that I'll see you in November at the CD release. Come talk to me, I may seem tired at first, but I really love talking to people after we play.

- drew

Ramblings from the gutar section.

Time to hear from the guitar player...

And... surprise surprise, I’m going to talk about guitars. Over the past couple of days my mind has been crammed full of guitar stuff, it’s almost all i’ve been thinking about on my spare time. This is mainly do to a documentary I watched the other day called “It Might Get Loud" (<-- click for trailer). If you are a guitar player, you must watch this film. It’s life changeingly good. Three generations of guitar players, each with a unique approach to playing, get together and chat about the one thing they share in common, a burning passion for the guitar. Anyway, enough about the movie, check it out it’s great.

For all the guitar players out there, I want to talk about gear for a minute . I have never claimed to be the greatest guitar player out there, I know I have so much to learn, and lots of improving to do. But, one thing I’m always very interested in, and have spent a lot of time learning about, is the more technical side of guitar playing, and how different types of hardware effect our sound. For me, it’s a super important factor and something i’ve become rather obsessed with. The pursuit of the best guitar tone possible... of course in relation to my playing style and level of ability.

For me, good tone is the number one factor concerning good guitar playing. It’s all very simple... DOES IT SOUND GOOD? I’ve met so many guitar players who are so much better than I am in technical ability. Guys who can shred a crazy solo, or play with tons of energy and can do things with the guitar neck i’ll practice my entire life and never get right. But so many times, it just doesn't do it for me. Sure it’s crazy, and looks amazing... but it just doesn't sound that great. And what good is the toughest guitar solo in the world, if at the end of the day it sounds like garbage. When all is said and done (especially when playing worship music) it is most important that what I’m playing sounds good, and improving the overall sound quality of the band you’re playing with. (by the way, this isn’t just a guitar players concern...)

Anyway... I bring all this up because I want to talk about guitar strings. I’ve spend so much money in the past on pedals, amps and guitars but have overlooked the most simple part of hardware that effects my tone... the strings. Sounds silly right, spend thousands on gear that will help me sound good, but then just pick up the cheapest or simplest pack of strings to slap on. They’re very important, and if your a guitar player it’s something that you should be thinking about too... what type of strings compliment me most?

Basically this is how it boils down. On my tele (my main guitar) I have played GHS Boomers 11’s since my last setup. I went up a string gauge 2 years ago when talking to a guitar tech about how a thicker string gauge helps your guitar stay in tune better and improves tone for a variety of reasons. Before that I played some kind of Ernie Balls, and Elixirs. But, after talking to some older guitar guys, who I consider the best kind of expert, I’ve made what I consider to be a significant switch in strings.

So here’s a little history to explain what I’ve been thinking...
Back in the day, when electric guitars were really starting to pave the way, guitar strings shifted from being made of primarily out of brass and bronze to nickel. In the late 50’s early 60’s Nickel was the industry standard for electric guitar strings. However, because of the increasing need during the Korean and Vietnam war, quantity of nickel decreased, and subsequently prices increased. So... in the late 60’s string manufacturers started marketing steel strings, with nickel plating to cut costs. Since then nickel-plated steel strings are almost exclusively used by electric guitarists. All the brands I mentioned above are steel core strings.

So here’s where my shift began. I began reading about pure nickel strings and found out that they are characterized my a warmer, mellower sound. Steel core strings tend to be louder, and brighter. Brightness is a good thing and sought after for many guitar players. But if any of you have heard me play, you know the last thing I need with my tele and vox is a brighter sound. So I’ve decided to switch to pure nickel strings. I just feel that a more original and natural approach is better in this situation, and that it is possible that string manufactures use steel core as a cost efficient way to distribute their product. But I would l like to find out if it is the BEST way. Pure Nickel strings are a little more expensive... but again, why spend so much on you guitar and then skimp on something as important a strings.

Recently I loaded up my guitar with DR ‘pure blues’ strings (11-50), and so far so good. They feel nice, and are easy to play. Nickel strings are softer I guess... so there is less string tension. They are easy to play, I may even go up to 12’s. The thing I like about DR strings is that they are handmade, and have a round core opposed to a hexagonal core which is part of the reason they bend easier and feel nice. The pure nickel strings help take the edge of my tone and definitely have a nice bluesy sound. If you’re a metal player, you might need that additional output you get from the nickel plated steel strings. but so far I don’t feel I’m lacking in loudness. So I’m going to stick with these for a bit, and see how they fare in the long run. I think it is important to test out new strings to help tune in the best sound to fit my style. I mean, I could try out 20 different kinds of strings, 20 slightly different sounds, for the price of one pedal that effect my sound.

Anyway... that is my rant. Longer than I though it would end up, and probably pretty boring for a lot of you, but important none the less to us guitar players and gear junkies.

Hope to see you guys out at the CD release party.

- Drew

www.facebook.com/thelevidenbokband

Bass player's aren't supposed to talk this much...

Hi again...taking a break from reading about MIDI and other cool sound and recording stuff (not really i'm kind of lost). Some of the stuff is really amazing though, the technology we have now...being able to produce a song without ever plugging in a guitar! Enough about studying haha...so today Levi and I were late getting back to class after our 15 minute break...it was pretty funny seeing Levi attempt to apologize while drinking his green tea with honey haha. And of course you have me...'dude, relax, it's our second class, he doesn't actually care,' yet he's the one on top of all the homework. But i better go...life of a student, studying stuff i don't understand...Peace out

Thoughts from the Drummer...

Hello! Hallo! Alô! Saluto! Det! Powitanie! привет! Hallå!

Language is an interesting thing. We all speak different languages but yet mean to say the same thing. Sometimes I view music in the same way. We have different styles, genres, tempo's, instruments, progressions, etc. But we all work towards telling a story with our music. There is some sort of meaning or statement to our crescendo's and allegro's much like the statements and questions used in our own language.

Some of you might hear music and just hear... well... music. But beneath every word, every note, there is an underlying message. Classical music is one of the greatest examples of these. We hear the music but sometimes don't catch the message portrayed by the notes and the tempo. Composers of the classical era relied on this principal that music was more than noise for the ears but a form of story telling. Next time you hear a song, really try to soak into the words... you might find that the great song you love on the radio really isn't so good, or that song you hate with no words is actually telling a vibrant story.

I guess what I am trying to say is we need to give music a deeper thought. Forgive me for my boldness but, music is a global phenomenon, there is no known culture in the world that hasn't created their own type of music... So with that being said, don't we owe it to ourselves to treat our ears and minds to something worth listening to? Something that makes us think? Laugh? Imagine? Something that provokes thought and emotion? I am not necessarily talking about the music they play at the Spa either...

All music that is good will provoke feelings and thoughts onto the listener, so remember this next time you switch on the radio or pop in one of your cd's. Because What I have found is that some genres we never thought could be emotional and deep can produce artists who are talented at writing music. Underoath is a great example. Not everyone appreciates their style, but dig into their lyrics and they are much better than anything by Lady Gaga. Listen to the words and melodies, good music.... your music should speak to you. Just some food for thought...


If you want to experience music like I just explained, try some of these songs. Break beyond the comforts of your own style and experience music they way it should be...

Artist: Gustavo Santaollala
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYTRBl5rdaI&feature=related

Artist: John Hopkins
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5umlj3eyYk

Artist: Trentemøller
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DUCKGyojpE

Artist: Kate Havnevik
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRrPdDUqI78

Thanks,
Trevor

New band member...not

I probably feel like a new band member to whoever reads these crazy blogs...but yeah i am the same old bass player levi's been using for the last year and a half. I'm Matt Szkarlat...or 'Kobe' as some of my friends call me (only Levi). So the last months have been different. Transitioning from working full-time to having three weeks off (to 'prepare for school' , to moving to Cambridge (Mexico as Levi put it) for school full-time! So yeah, it's been different, but God's been solid as usual.

The last few weeks more specifically have been VERY different. Kind of got my heart broken, attempting to learn music theory, moving away for the first time (which has lead me to attempt to cook), meeting new musicians, going into major debt, travelling back and forth for different 'gigs'...lots of good stuff. But it's all been a great experience. Having to stretch yourself is never a bad thing i have learned...although it never feels good at the time.


So that's it for today...i have to be up early for a class tomorrow (haven't said that in about two years), then i get to lace up the skates and play some hockey...looking forward to it :)

Peace out dudes.

P.S. The songs sound great :)

A Break From CD Jibberish

Well guys.. It's funny because you've probably only seen one, maybe two, references to the upcoming album release.. But to me it feels like it's all I've been talking about/thinking about for years. So today, I take a break, and I give you a look into the plain old routine that is my life. You must think I'm terribly conceited.. lol But the reality is I don't suspect more than one person reads this thing, and that one person is my mom, (Hi mom :) and it's important to communicate with your mom.. so what's conceited about that? Yeah, I thought so.

So this past week I said goodbye to Stayner Ontario and I moved to Mexico. Actually I moved to Cambridge, but some days it feels like Mexico. Nobody's wearing a sombrero, and it's not very hot, and there aren't many tacos.. but it's not home. My family is somewhere else.. Amanda is somewhere else.. My church is somewhere else.. It's been an adjustment. And you may not know it with my hobby of choice, but I'm a shy dude. I'm hiding in my room like a turtle (I've heard they also hide in their rooms?) and I'm basically just playing guitar and basketball with Matt. For those of you who don't know, Matt is my bassist. He's the little soulful man in the band (He's not that little.. He could probably beat me up..) We have yet to kill each other, but in this cramped space it wont take long. I'm taking resumes for new bassists now ;)

It's nice to be in a place where I need to put a new hat on.. At home I'm a musician. I'm a musician with a pretty girlfriend, and it's easy to let those things define me. Now I'm in a place where everyone's a musician, and no-one knows Amanda. I've got to figure out who I am behind the guitar..
I was talking to a dude yesterday, and yes I said dude (go ninja turtles), and he was talking to me like I had it all together. It almost made me laugh out loud.. There's always something about ourselves we want to change.. I'm the sweatiest man you'll ever meet. It's really embarrassing. And I have a lisp.. And my hands are weird lookin'
If we focus on that stuff we're just never going to be satisfied. I have the perfect Levi image in my head, and I can't ever be that guy. But I believe in God. And I believe He made me just like this. That's enough for me now. It's easy to look confident when you walk around thinking like that. "I'm not ashamed of it, and I don't need to change it. This is me, and in God's own words, "It's good!""

I'm not a biblical scholar y'all. But it breaks my heart hearing someone tell me how ugly they are. Shake off all that junk. Life's too short. I may not have it together, and I certainly don't have all the fans and fame I'm "supposed" to have.. but I've got joy. What else do you need?

Raptors season starts soon. I'm one of the bigger Raptor fans you're ever going to meet and even I'm having a hard time getting excited for this season.. What a year this is going to be..

Back to the cd

CD Release Time :)

Well everyone.. I concede that I am terrible with this website. I don't stay on top of it, I don't keep it fresh, but you know what? Who's perfect? I'm trying with this whole technology thing, but I'm a pen and paper guy. It's going to take a while for me to enjoy sitting in front of my computer, but the conformist in me is determined to try.

That being said.. Hello! It's so wonderful to see you here again. You look about three months older than when we last talked. The band and I have been in cd mode (also known as broke mode). It's more work than we expected, especially putting on the finishing touches, but the cd is set to release this September. Basically, we saw the pained look on the faces of the children knowing that they were about to enter into another year of school and we thought, "Band, how can we bring joy back into the lives of the children?"

The answer.. Would You Go by the Levi denBok Band. Now I'm not saying that this album is going to make all your troubles go away, but look how much Matt Damon enjoyed it.. We've done studies and proven that buying/listening to this album will increase your quality of life by 15%. Now I don't want to brag, but when you compare that to the 3% increase caused by a job promotion, or the 7% caused by the bearing of your first child, you begin to see what a significant joy this album is really bringing. We've infused the mellowness of a moment of worship with the swagger of Kobe Bryant, and we've come up with something that's going to change your life.

Don't do it for yourself. Do it for your cd player. Look at the junk you've been putting in there recently.. Miley Cyrus? I mean really? Listen, like our music or not, at least it's local. :)

The album will be going for $15 a pop. I know what you're thinking.. "$15? Did he say $15?" This isn't just an album. This is a life investment. Also, it's a long album and I promise you'll get your money's worth.

Thank you for listening to my sarcasm. I spent too much time in the sun today.

Levi

ps. I'm going to be running through the songs in the album over the next couple of weeks. Posting lyrics and letting you know the story behind them. Why not right?

Raking in the Wind

First off, I need to say that I've been the biggest Raptor fan for three years now, and I've never been as upset with them as I am now after that game in Chicago. I will also follow that up with the acknowledgement that very few of you care about the Raptors or are aware of how important that game was.. I just needed to let you know. I am a broken man today :(


So I just got off my radio interview with life and I didn't say anything that could be misinterpreted or possibly offensive, so that in itself is a victory. I have a disease called "footinyomouth-anitus" and it leads me to say some pretty amazing things, but today it was on vacation, and I'm thanking God for that.


This brings me to my epiphany. The other day my mom asks me to rake the lawn, and being the wonderful son that I am, I got right on out there and started raking. But as I'm raking I notice that it's actually ridiculously windy outside. So I'm moving the leaves from where they were, but the wind is just scooping them up and putting them somewhere else.
"This looks a lot like my life" I thought to myself. And seriously, it does. Life is like raking in the wind. You see this chaos you've got going on in your life, and you think, "I'm going to make this into a neat little pile here, and make this into a neat little pile here.." But the wind will have none of that. If you want to move some stuff around than that's fine, but don't think for a second that you're going to decide how this will look in the end. And so God starts blowing on my plans, and starts making them look a little more like the plans that He had for me in the beginning.


So for this reason I will never rake a lawn again. Too much thinking.. I'm downright exhausted.. Also, does anyone know when the next season of the Office will be out on dvd? I'm starving here.
Obey your parents. This is my lesson for the day ;) Also, One Tribe is this Thursday (the 15th) at 7 pm @ Clearview Community Church in Stayner. Check it out.

Levi

Todays Adventure

Wow, I feel like I just put a blog up yesterday..
I think sometimes you just need to take a look at what your intentions were to decide whether something was a good idea or not. These are the latest words of wisdom that my wonderful girlfriend has taught me. As it turns out, sometimes I'm quick to speak and slow to contemplate. I'm gonna work on that.


So I've been drinking a tonne of coffee lately, (and if you know me than you know this is weird because I hate the stuff) just because the world is making me drink it. McDonalds was offering it for free, and it's not as if I'm going to walk into a restaurant and say no to something that doesn't cost me a penny.. and now Tim's is dishing out free cars so what am I going to do? Sip my iced cap while Matt, Drew and Trevor are zipping around in their free cars with their free donuts? I doubt it.
The thing is, I can't for the life of me seem to win anything.. Which brings me to my story.

Once upon a time I was picking a girl up from work. We'll call her Amanda. So I thought it would be sweet to pick her up a coffee on my way in. (also if I buy her a coffee I can justify buying two coffees thus multiplying my chances of winning by two) So I'm in the store and I think to myself, "Self, I never win with the larges." and I envisioned the Tim Hortons winning cup guy picking the winning cups and laughing, "I'll put it on a medium cup! They'll never buy the medium cup!"
"He thinks he's so smart.." I murmered to myself before proceeding to buy two medium coffees. That'll show him...

As we're leaving she has to shuffle the seat before entering because I just spent TWO and a HALF HOURS getting my tires changed and they were now taking up all the space in the car. We take off down the street and I hear something fall on my car.
"Ohh man!" I hear her exclaim. "I left my coffee on the car!" I give her mine, because she likes coffee, I hate coffee, and all I want is a free car. It's a loser, and now I'm going crazy, because I was so sure I had bought a winner and we had left that cup just sitting on the street..

We go through our night as usual, help with the youth group, watch the marriage ref (Jimmy Falon was hilarious!), and then I proceed to take her home. But as if through some kind of mind reading power she could sense my uneasiness with leaving that cup behind. My motto, "No cup left behind." So she turns to me and sais ever so sweetly, "Would you like to go back and find that cup?"

We pulled back into the parking lot and retraced our steps. I backed out, pulled onto the street, but we just couldn't see it. Amanda happened to notice a car parked on the side of the road that wasn't there earlier. Low and behold, behind the right rear tire there was a medium Tim Horton's coffee cup. The rim was still unrrrrolled. Surely any passerby would have seen the cup and thought, "It's already been rolled up." 99 times out of 100 they would have been right. But not this fateful night. They had walked right past this potential goldmine all day long.. If only they knew that that cup they had walked by was in tact and ready for rrrolling.

Needless to say after all of that it was a loser..

I'll see you in line tommorow at Tim's. This time I'm buying a large

-Levi

We should have thought this one through...

So a few of us got together to watch Team Canada vs the United States, and just before the 3rd period starts, Levi announces that he bought some hot peppers for Matt and I to eat. I thought he was just kidding, but then he pulled out a bag with 2 little orange peppers.

You may be wondering why in the world we would even think about eating them... but you have to understand that Matt and I are stupid...

That and we both feel the need to express publicly how we are better than each other at eating spicy food.

I had never seen these peppers before.. so I had no idea what I was getting into. I had tried a small piece of the skin, and had determined that it really wasn't bad at all.

I was very very wrong.



Turns out there were Habanero peppers, which are possible the hottest pepper in the world... If you're bored and want to laugh pretty hard, do a quick youtube search of people eating them.

After watching a few videos, I think Matt and I handled ourselves pretty well.
Round 1 was a draw.

Air Raid!

So we just finished a nice little week of music and I've found myself with some stories to tell.

First off, thanks to everyone who came out and heard us at AirRaid. We had a great time! I love seeing familiar faces when we're out playing at different places. ..Nice rhyme..

This photo was taken outside the AirRaid venue. They brought the bat signal! ..He still didn't come..

So if you weren't there let me fill you in. AirRaid is a concert put on by Life 100.3 every year and they always showcase fun and exciting bands while giving local bands a shot on stage. This year it was Group1Crew. I was really looking forward to spending time with them backstage and getting to know some of the ins and outs of the business.

I didn't get to say a word to them because they got themselves a seperate backstage room and ate dinner on their own.

Lesson 1. If I ever make it big, I will never be too big to eat dinner with the locals and laugh with them. Never.

But we got to spend time with two other local bands- The Light Division and To Tell

The Light Division- Heavy band! They play a much rockier style than we do and they play it well. We've done a couple shows with them and everytime I see them walk in I get a warm fuzzy feeling. They're really nice guys and they're fun to work with. Their merch table had a lot more fans hanging around than ours...

Who needs fans ;)

To Tell- These guys are out of London, and they're amassing a lot of playing experience. They opened for Sanctus Real the night before AirRaid. I ate sweet chili heat doritos and watched the opening ceremony of the olympics the night before AirRaid.. Wouldn't trade it for the world. I love doritos. The frontman plays piano like you wouldn't believe, and their fun sound fit the AirRaid bill perfectly. Their band is also really easy to get along with. All in all it was a fun backstage.

Now if you know anything about our style, you'd know that AirRaid is not our average venue. We really needed to pull some magic out of our sleeves to try and keep the energy in the room when we took to the stage. We always pray before we play, and boy did we put our time in before AirRaid. It was a stretching experience but it was so much fun.

We all looked like we'd never played a show before when AJ came up and told us we were on in five minutes. He escorted us down through the crowd and they were screaming and clapping.. it was a different night than we're used to. It did wonders for our ego though.

Anyways, great night, great friends, great fans and thanks again for following us.

On a seperate note, last night was OneTribe and it was amazing! God is so good and He's always doing something exciting at OneTribe it seems. You want to find the heart of our band? Come out to OneTribe.

Dear Reader..

Hey guys,

This is Levi checking in. I say that because sometimes I'm not the one writing on here.. You may be thinking to yourself, "I thought Levi was the only one who ever posted on this blog.."

Well you're wrong! Andrew's been known to make a post or two.. So when a blog comes up be sure to check the author. There's some blather that I just don't want to be held accountable for.. ;)

So I was driving home the other day and as I was approaching my house a song came on and I had to circle my block twice to allow the song to finish. I just couldn't let the song be wasted..

What's sad is that it was on cd and I really could have just brought the cd inside or waited for the next car trip.. But it was just the way I felt when I listened to the song that was so addicting that I couldn't turn it off. And than I thought to myself, "Self, I want to write a song like that."

It kills me that I haven't yet. I'm going through one of those depressing cycles where I'm feeling really sub-par as a musician, and I'm wondering why I'm not learning a real skill like all my old friends from school. I could be learning how to file someones taxes for them..

Who's going to file my tax returns? ...

But seriously, I'm really working hard to try and make the standards.. You'd be amazed how tough they are! Well maybe you wouldn't.. but I was for sure. I had that arrogant teenage attitude of, "I'm going to make a cd and the radio will love it and success will follow me like I follow a bag of doritos" But it's a tough market, and it's been a really humbling experience. My voice is really all I've got and hearing that it's not up to par is almost as hard to swallow as watching the Raptors blow a 19 point lead over Indiana..

So the moral of the story is.. Gosh.. I didn't plan out a moral for this story.. I guess what I'm saying is that I really appreciate you guys sticking with me. I'm sure there aren't a tonne of people who read this, but those of you who do are really the people who keep my chin up when I'm in a slump.

Also, that song that kept me driving around the block was Something Beautiful by NeedtoBreathe. I've been advertising for them a lot lately.. They're really great and you should check 'em out.

Enjoy the rest of your week. I'm off to see the Raptors play the Heat tomorrow night with my wonderful girlfriend :)

..suckers.. ;)

We're Home :)

Hey guys,

It's been a while, but we're back to work. I was actually away to the Dominican Republic working in the Haitian refugee camp that I lived in last year. I was there this past week, and the day we left while we were in Sosua, at around 5:30 local time we felt that earthquake the ruined Haiti. We didn't realize how catastrophic it was until we got home.

I've never been to Haiti, but I've spent a lot of time with the refugees in the Republic and their descriptions paint Haiti as a struggling, struggling country. They don't have tourism to rely on like the DR does. A lot of that is thanks to all the trees they've been cutting down to make charcoal. The homes are often not made with rebar to hold them together on the inside, the trees aren't there to prevent from mudslides and the government is so corrupt it's disgusting.

These people are on their own, but we can help. If anyone wants to run a benefit concert or dinner for Haiti than you can count us in.

On a side note, benefit concerts seem to be where we play the most these days. Drew Wright is supposed to be putting together a team of Canadian Idol finalists to play a fundraising concert for the Door in Collingwood and we'll be opening for that. Also, we might be playing a similar concert for the Door in Stayner. So if you have The Door in your community give us a call so we can open for your fundraising dinner.. it's what we do ;)

We're also back to work on the cd. We're anticipating an April release, but we want to make sure we don't rush it. So keep your eyes and ears open through April and May and support us by buying a cd.

Alright, that was my little check in. You'll be hearing from us (or not hearing from us, depending on whether or not you read these) a lot more frequently now. You've been warned :)