Having won XFM 104.9’s Last Band Standing finals in May 2003 in their native Vancouver, rising band Motion Soundtrack sure took advantage of the prize: the chance to record at Greenhouse Studios with a production team lead by Todd Kerns (Age of Electric, Static in Stereo). The result was The Bridge, their first major release, all produced within a month.
“We just banged it off. That was really the catalyst, winning that contest. We had won four free songs. But then we were lucky enough to have an investment group on board that also had a production company on the team. They said, ‘Do you guys want to make a record?’ We said, ‘Of course we do!’ So instead of four songs, we recorded ten songs,” says bass player Kevin Cooper over the phone from their management office in Vancouver.
But don’t think that this West Coast foursome were mere puppets in the studio. Cooper explains, “Those guys are awesome. Working with those guys really helped us, but we didn’t let them shape all the songs because we wanted some of the songs to go in our [own] direction.”
Winning the contest was a great boost for the band, but how the group was formed in the beginning is an even better story. Considering that each member of the group comes from different musical backgrounds (drummer Niko had his foot in the jazz scene rather than rock, for example), not to mention cities, Cooper notes, “It’s really odd-we should have never really met in the first place because of those differences.”
It was through a chance encounter when singer Lily Frost (since moved to Toronto) was putting together a backing band that the four members met and Motion Soundtrack was born.
“We would be jamming and realized that we have really good chemistry,” says Cooper. “Eventually we did a show, then songs started to come, and we just kept going and now it’s four years later. Referencing, that’s how it works in this business. Just who you know.”
As for the influences in their melodic Brit-rock sound, Kevin admits The Beatles and Radiohead would be among the few bands that all four members (which also includes Chad Horton on vocals and guitar, Mark Wild on lead guitar, and Niko Friesen on drums) would agree on in terms of listening tastes.
But in terms of influences in the creative process, Motion Soundtrack doesn’t need to look much further than each other.
“Playing together is a magical thing for us. I know a lot of bands have one chief songwriter who brings in a song, and everyone else contributes their part,” Cooper offers. “We have a complete collaborated effort, which is pretty rare. I’ve never found anything like this before.”
The band is perfectly content being based in Vancouver, but are currently enjoying a rising profile across Canada, including two recent well-received showcases in Toronto.
“[Toronto is] always fun. A little hectic,” Cooper laughs. “We played two shows, one at the Horseshoe Tavern and the other at The Drake, and they were both great.”
Though they have just recently wrapped up their cross-Canada tour, these rockers aren’t slowing down just yet. They followed up a headlining slot at New Music West in late November by heading back into the studio for some writing and recording, the video for their first single “Knockin'” is all over MuchMusic, and they plan to head back out on the road in the spring.
Signed to the powerhouse Nettwerk management team, Motion Soundtrack is a band that understands the concept of building a lasting career in the often-flighty music biz.
“The album is helping us to achieve our dreams at the moment in a step-by-step format,” Cooper says. “We are not really making any money right now. We are just going out there to plant the seed. We all still have day jobs; Mark teaches guitar, Niko teaches drums, and I teach bass and do some Web design. Most of us are musically trained, so it’s just a way of life. We still have to find ways to pay the bills for now, but we hope in the next year to have the band take over as our main source of income.”
Find out more about Motion Soundtrack and their album The Bridge at www.motionsoundtrack.com.
