Monday 26 August 2013

Up CLOSE & PERSONAL with MARTY ROBSON / TEN SOULJERS






Front man and manager of TEN SOULJERS,

Vancouver's - and Canada's - 

Best Party, Corporate event and Dance band!
 

12 Questions on putting the band together, drawing the line at Katy Perry and why personality is more important than talent!



All great bands start with a vision!
 Who or what is your inspiration?   

It's The Commitments, the Irish Soul band.  I am a huge fan of Andrew Strong, what a  fantastic voice he has! When I came to Canada in 2003 I had a dream to create the best events band in all of the country.

How difficult was it to find the right band members?

It was quite challenging. My first band in Canada wasn't very successful, our personalities clashed and we didn't share the same vision. When I auditioned for new members I  made sure our personalities were compatible. Sometimes I even said no to a more talented musician because I knew we couldn't work together.



Why TEN SOULJERS  ?
   .
We started off as a  Soul and R&B band.  We have three vocals, a bass -  and  rhythm guitar player, a keyboard, a drummer and a horn section (saxophone, trombone and trumpet) - that makes 10 altogether. Put this number and our passion together and you have Ten Souljers!


 Very soon we discovered we were limiting ourselves to certain events only.  We extended our repertoire and added rock and some pop. We play top 40 songs for sure, we draw the line at Katy Perry though - she is a bit too much pop for us and you have to draw the line somewhere, don't you?





Why do you play covers?

Pretend you are part of the audience. Do you want to listen to songs you have never heard of  all evening long? Or do you prefer  listening to titles you know, you can sing, clap and dance to?  Event organisers are looking for bands who can entertain in their own, unique way!

 





What makes Ten Souljers  extraordinary?

Our versatility, our talent, our drive and motivation to be the best in the field!
Our two female vocals Karina and D árcy are world class!
Thanks to our wide range of instruments we are able to put a distinctive spin on every song.

 




How do you keep the morale high among the band?

We are like a family. As I said earlier, our personalities are very compatible, we trust and believe in each other.  Our common goal, vision and direction is to stay at the top of our industry. And not to forget, I pay extremely well.





How is the competition doing?

To be honest, every band who is around longer than we are is our competition. There are lot of bands who already have a successful, long track record, who built up trust and created a following. And most of them are doing great work around here in Vancouver.



What is your take on talent vs. personality in the music business?

You should have some talent for sure. More important though is your drive and motivation to succeed. If you are motivated to become the best you will practise more and consequently become better. If you have the "right" personality, you have what I call, the bounce back mentality. You  handle rejections well and won't take them personally. Instead of getting frustrated you will stay on your chosen course, always! Eventually, your time will come!


How often do you play at charity events?

We did a lot of charity gigs in our early days, just to get our name out! These days we are supporting BC Cancer Research and B.C. Children's Hospital during their annual fundraiser in Vancouver!


What is the goal for The Souljers over the next few years?

To remain the best in our industry here in Vancouver, BC and across Canada. Currently we are working towards securing our first gig overseas.





How impressed is your family with your vocal cords?

They are very hard to impress. My daughter  (3) starts listening to me for full 10 seconds before she gets distracted by more important objects like colourful balloons. My son (8) doesn't really care and my wife banned me from playing any instruments during our barbecue's. She thinks my singing distracts our guests from talking to each other.


At a Karaoke sing-off, who would blow the audience away, Mick Jagger, David Bowie or Marty Robson?

Marty Robson!




 



Ten Souljers
Marty Robson
info@tensouljers.com
http://www.tensouljers.com/

Logo design: Web Design by Merge2
Photos: Marty Robson














Friday 23 August 2013

LOTS OF WHEELING AROUND VANCOUVER

Every city has their own Green Lung. What New Yorkers call Central Park, Vancouverites call Stanley Park:

Since we first took our boys here I promised myself to come back with my skates. You see, Stanley Park is surrounded by an 8,8km long promenade called the seawall.  It is just perfect for a quick spin around on your bike or skates.


Yesterday was the day to fulfil my promise.  I squeezed my rollers into my backpack, pumped up my bike tires and boarded the train heading west.


If you rely on the train to bring you downtown and back home, our choices here in Maple Ridge are limited. We have to out of here by 7.44 am. As this is a commuters train, we need to kill time in Vancouver; we need to kill 8 hours to be exact. Now, this is a lot of wheeling around!

Let me take you on a spin around the city:

1. Stop:                                          Welcome to Stanley Park:


Off we go,  here I am getting ready for the first lap around:
 


 A few shots of what it looks like when you are on the seawall:


 


This lake is called Lost Lagoon, at the entrance / end  of the park, depending from which side you are coming from:














.
The trip was so nice, I did it twice! The second time I went for speed - or not?


2. Stop: Cycling to English Bay, west of the Stanley Park:
 
 What do you think?  Pretty? Be honest!
Vancouver boast 11 beaches most of them looking like this. It is definitely a fantastic record for any city; and to have a beach like this is better than having none- true! Let me just say this, it is fabulous to cycle along these stretches of driftwood covered brown sandy spots, don't expect me to spend the day there. 


3. Stop: Crossing Granville Bridge to Granville Island:

Here I stopped in the middle of the bridge, looking left:
Here I am looking  to my right:
 
 

Granville Island, the spot nearly every tourist goes to - and a visitor from Maple Ridge. Please check out this link to have a look of what is going on there! All you need is plenty of spare cash to enjoy the festivities, theatres, restaurants and goodies at the market.

3. Stop Cycling to Kitsilano Beach:
Kitsilano has a serious size saltwater  swimming pool!  I looked at it and nearly cried; I didn't bring my swimsuit! 

 Here in Kitsilano I checked my watch and discovered my eight are nearly over - I needed to go back to catch the train!
Vancouver is definitely fun in the sun, on your bike and on your skates!


Monday 19 August 2013

THERE IS MORE TO STEVESTON THAN FISH

At times, life on top of our rock is too much fun and we need to get away for a change of scenery. We live near the mountains and the luscious green of the Golden Ears Provincial Park.

 Sometimes, our heart desires the fresh breeze of the ocean,

This is actually a very sad representation of a beach!
  the smell of freshly caught fish,
listening to seagulls  and eating fish 'n chips wrapped in old newspaper!

All this can be found in Steveston / Richmond,
a one hour drive west from our residence!


Right from the moment we parked our car, our spontaneous trip was sprinkled with wonderful, extraordinary moments:

The bi-monthly Farmers Market was on and imagine my surprise when I met my buddy Karen.
She is my all time favourite market lady with an incredible talent and recipe for making and selling her own lemonade. Check out her Kics site here!

We explored the many different shops
and ended up chatting with three,
 sweet, young female students, sharing our philosophies on life (no, no, don't get married yet, go and travel first!)

We found our fish and chips,

we ate, we walked to the tip of the inland (Garry Point Park) and were geographically challenged.



 We couldn't figure out where downtown Vancouver is;  in short, we needed someone to point us in the right direction.  

When it comes to talking to strangers I am no stranger in making first contact. Whom better to ask than the first couple you see sitting on a bench?

We approached, politely interrupted and posed the question!
The couple answered with their perfect Dutch accent- which really got us going! Yes, we still speak the lingo- we lived there for 12 years!
After 10 minutes Tilde and echtgenot (husband) Philip  invited us to their home for Koffie en gebak (coffee and cookies).

Is it the sea breeze, is it Steveston, is it Canada?
In Holland it took SIX  (!!!!!!) years to get invited into a Dutch home ( and no, we don't smell), here we were laughing and drinking the evening away after 10 minutes only!
Thank you Tilde and Philip for making our trip extraordinary!

Monday 12 August 2013

1761 METERS INTO THIN AIR: CLIMBING THE GOLDEN EARS, BC PROVINCIAL PARK


I have no clue what is going on in my life lately:
For the second time in less than a fortnight I aspired to reach the top - of a mountain!
 A week ago it was the top of Grouse Mt. in Vancouver, on Saturday it was the Golden Ears, literally down the road from us!


Of course it would be pure exaggeration to headline this post with "Welcome to my Backyard." Nevertheless,  the park entrance is less than 10 minutes from our house, the climb is on my bucket list and the year is getting older - therefore, let's hear it for the boys and girls who did this epic climb!



The Mc Awesome Family right at the start!
 
These are our comrades in crime- when life was still good, pain - and cramp less! Aka, first thing in the morning!
 
Dominic and our hiking buddy extraordinaire Jana! To your right is our Mr. Best Attitude in the whole wide world', Darryl! By the way, Darryl forgot to read the section in the guide book which states: "Avoid carrying a bag full of cherries on your hike! The bag might be a pain in the butt to carry, the excess consumption of fresh cherries might lead to a bloated feeling in the stomach area...."
Of we go, through some beautiful terrain -

and some challenging crossings.
 

.
The whole hike, to the top is a 24 km round trip.
There is only one way up and only one way down - or you make your own path and get lost!




 
Please note the wording: 'kmISH...

 
 
It wouldn't be fun if you couldn't throw in a few glacier fields, would it? Here is one of the three we had to cross before we reached the top:
Remember, we are having app. 28 degrees down in the valley!
 

Here we are, the Mc Awesome's at the top!
It took us Oldies 6,5hours! Our boys, the mountain goats, did it in 4,5 hours!!!!
One for Girl Power!
One for the couples -
the comrades &
one for the men!
And one for the readers: This here is Pitt Lake, the biggest tidal lake in the world!

Unfortunately, what goes up needs to come down as well. With no gondola or helicopter to carry or fly us down we had to rely on our legs again to make the decent!

Let me explain to you in one word how it felt like: HEAVY!

Here is another one: TORTURE!

Once again, our teenagers run and jumped back ahead of us to the parking lot in a mere 4,5 hours!! We made our boys wait for 2 hours until we reached our cars again! Help, my thighs are screaming, my back is sore (from carrying the backpack), my head is spinning from putting "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" on replay (that is Monte Python for you), I am filthy, tired, exhausted, thirsty and HAPPYYYYYY!

 

As you can imagine, we have a visitor: the -  two - day -  after - bitch has arrived. Delayed muscle soreness is at its worse on the second day. Yep, take it from me, it is true! And then, I ain't using my legs writing this am I?




 

Thursday 8 August 2013

O' HAPPY DAYS

Summer time is holiday time!

Once again, structure and a logical rhythm for the day has gone out the window and been replaced by - chaos!
This is what the long summer break does to us: Late mornings, later nights,
Port Moody, Buntzen Lake
 spontaneous outings,


 
A bike ride along the dykes to Pitt Meadows

 


impromptu  BBq's!



Like always, it is the small stuff that makes life so fantastic and exciting regardless of being an expat in a new country or not!

For example, who and how many young boys / men  will I find in our men cave at any time of the day?

Whom will I find sitting on the kitchen table in the morning?  This in itself is quite challenging - I need to be dressed appropriately not to embarrass our son's friends (it's my house though)!


Oh, I love the teenage stage!
Given the choice, I vote  to give birth to children of at least 10 years of age!                                         I know, I know, this makes the whole process of carrying and delivering a child slightly more challenging and difficult! Okay, I need to think this through properly before I propose this next step in evolution!

Life with teenagers has so many more perks than feeding and nappy changes:
You might find yourself at the local shop for Body Piercings, holding hands with your second 13 year old while he is getting his ear pierced!
(Only one, that's right! Boys with two studs at that young age look somewhat - girly? Is that the word I am looking for? Our youngest would call it gay! But what does he know? He is only 10!)

Or, you discover real life thrills when your 16 year old takes you for a spin around the neighbourhood with your car!
 This is what I call a White Knuckle Ride! And let's not forget the sweaty palms and arm pits!