CMW 2010 Hot Acts: Bend Sinister

Vancouver's Bend Sinister know a thing or two about upgrading.

The band have gone from playing fruit stands and local bars in British Columbia to performing in front of a crowd of 3,500 as part of the 2010 Olympics concert series. Soon, the prog-rockers will kick off a three-month tour stint in eastern Canada, including a set as part of one of the CHARTattack/Horseshoe Tavern Canadian Music Week showcases.

Singer/guitarist Dan Moxon recently spoke to CHARTattack about his somewhat nerdy promotion techniques, playing the Olympics and the perks of touring with bigger bands.

Hometown:
Vancouver, British Columbia

Members:
Dan Moxon (vocals, keyboards, guitars)
Jason Dana (drums, percussion)
Joseph Blood (guitars)
Joel Meyers (bass)
Henry Alcock White (guitar, vocals)

Official Website: www.bendsinisterband.com

CHARTattack: So, you're about to play the big industry event that is Canadian Music Week. What's the most shameless thing you've ever done to promote your band?
Dan Moxon: When I have free time, I like to play this online Risk game which I know is pretty nerdy, and you get to play with people across the world. To win the money as part of the PEAK Performance contest, I tried to convince people I'd play with to vote for the band. I guess it's pretty shameless to get people to do that [laughs].

CHARTattack: What's the hardest part about being an up-and-coming band?
We still struggle sometimes. In an ideal world, we'd play shows and a lot of people would come out. Really, we might play an area once every six months, which might not be enough time to build up a strong fanbase. It's a rather depressing sight to play a show to a pretty bad crowd.

CHARTattack: How important is it for your band members to circulate and flirt with the audience before or after the show?
It's never really been discussed in the band as something we do. We usually go around after a show and be friendly, it's not like we hide backstage. It's not something set in stone, but I'm usually out there selling our merch since we don't have a merch guy.

CHARTattack: Have you ever stolen from someone else's rider? If so, who was it and what did you take?
[Laughs] All the time. When we're touring with a bigger band, they usually have better stuff and give you beers, just a token thing.

CHARTattack: Have you ever been graded before according to ChartAttack.com's Rock 'n' Roll Report Cards?
No, I don't believe we have, but I'm assuming it'll happen once we play the Horseshoe show.

CHARTattack: Have you done anything new or interesting this week?
We just did the Olympics show here in Vancouver for a crowd of 35,000 people. It wasn't the typical indie-rock crowd — more of a mix of families and sport fans so we had to work to super-motivate them to dance around. We played a cover of "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey and the crowd went crazy. I saw phone cameras coming up throughout the crowd, so there are some clips on YouTube and you can hear the crowd going nuts.

Bend Sinister play the Horseshoe Tavern on March 12 at 8:30 p.m. as part of the annual CHARTattack/Horseshoe/Canadian Music Week showcase.