[Editor’s note — On Oct. 17 the organizers for the event put out word that this concert has been cancelled due to “scheduling conflicts”. Refunds are available at the point of purchase. No tentative date has been rescheduled.]
For Canadian pop band Neverest, the climb up the music ladder must seem as steep and airless as the lofty summit of the world’s highest mountain.
A little over a year ago lead vocalist Spyros “Spee” Chalkiotis and Mike Klose were the only two members of the band. But following the addition of Timmins’ Brendan Colameco on drums and Paul Loduca on guitar, the group collaborated with the management of the Backstreet Boys to join the NKOTBSB 2011 tour, filling all 11 Canadian dates.
Emerging from the shadow of two of America’s biggest boy bands, Neverest might just be the heirs apparent.
Spee says he grew up listening and dancing to their songs, which made opening for them a surreal experience.
“It was inspiring on so many levels,” he said, adding the biggest surprise was performing in front 20,000 fans.
Spee was impressed to see NKOTBSBS have still got it together after all the years of performing and playing, which bodes well for Neverest.
The band already reached Number 1 on the MuchMusic Top 30 countdown for their single About Us, while their second single Everything has been a regular hit on the pop music radio stations.
Now Neverest is touring with rising 18-year-old star Alyssa Reid, landing at the Clarke Theatre in Mission Oct. 22.
“It’s what we enjoy,” says Spee about the cross-country tour. “It’s our opportunity to connect with the fans and do what we love — to play music live.”
Although Americans dominate the music industry, Spee says Canada is a great market to get a break.
“We’re very supportive of each other here,” he said, adding Canadians go to great lengths to spread word of good Canuck bands.
When he started Neverest in 2009 his goal was to start a progressive rock band. But although the music has evolved more into pop, Spee has been influenced by a diversity of bands, such as the funk-rock of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers, the pop-indie rock from The Heavy, and the metal-rock in Nickelback.
“The reason that pop is so fantastic is that you can fuse all these genres into one.”
Spee says the music of Led Zeppelin, with its jazz infusions and unique drumming, is responsible for launching the sound of pop music.
When Spee isn’t jamming with the band or performing, he likes to chill out with good friends and just talk about philosophy or life. He calls these get-togethers his “symposiums.”
“If I’m with someone who has something to offer in any of those fields I can be there for hours.”
He said talking with friends is a “lost art” in which people rarely engage.
Neverest and Reid are in Mission Oct. 22 at the Clarke Theatre. Tickets are $25 in advance through Ticketmaster.
