Entertainment Features

Monstor Truck: True Rockers Rolling Into Thorold at Full Throttle

Monstor Truck: True Rockers Rolling Into Thorold at Full Throttle

 

BY DAVID DeROCCO dave@gobeweekly.com  https://twitter.com/?lang=en 

 In a country where nearly 700 iconic species are endangered and potentially at risk of extinction, it’s important for ordinary Canadians to do their part to ensure these creatures continue to survive. One of those beloved species – the Canadian hard rock band – has suffered particularly great losses in the past decade due to declines in suitable habitat (no rock clubs) and decimation of their natural supply chains (collapse of the record label industry). Thankfully, there are signs that Canadian hard rock bands can survive and thrive in this country. For an example, look no further than Hamilton-based rockers, MONSTER TRUCK. .

Since signaling their arrival on the rock music scene with their 2011 release, The Brown EP, Monster Truck has been operating at full throttle, racking up numerous Top 10 rock radio hits, a 2013 Juno Aware for “Breakthrough Artist of the Year,” a 2014 Juno nomination for “Rock Album of The Year,” and zig zagging across the country on what seems like an endless tour. With their 2018 release TRUE ROCKERS, the band delivered another collection of guitar driven hard rock tracks lead by the powerhouse vocals of lead singer Jon Harvey. From the anthemic lead single “Evolution” to the Deep Purple-esque power of “Thundertruck” to the cocky title track featuring Twisted Sister’s Dee Snider, TRUE ROCKERS is the perfect complement to the band’s unofficial motto, “don’t fuck with the Truck.”

Heading into Moose and Goose for the last Canadian show before hopping the Atlantic for the UK leg of the True Rockers tour, Harvey took time to talk with GoBeWeekly.com about the new album, the chance of a Monster Truck Christian rock album, and the possibilities of a Monster Truck 50th anniversary tour.

 GoBe: You’re rolling into Thorold during a much warmer part of a tour that took you to Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatchewan and Winnipeg in the middle of February. What did you do to deserve that. Doesn’t your label like you?

 JON: We always do that. I don’t know what our problem is. You’d think we’d know better. We’ve been Canadian all our lives. We know a lot better to do that.

 GoBe: Given the realities of the road during the winter, and tragedies like the Humboldt incident, do you pay any extra attention to who you’re hiring to drive?

 JON: To be honest with you, I don’t really think about it much. We’re all guys who have driven across Canada a million times. There’s no reason for concern.

 GoBe: I was working at Y108 when Monster Truck won our 2nd annual Extreme Band Slam contest. I got the sense then you were a band that was going to make some waves. Looking back on the career so far, are you farther along than you initially imagined, or about on pace.

 JON: I’m pretty good. I could die tomorrow and be happy. It’s one of those things where I’ve exceeded my dreams and I feel like I’ve won the lottery every single day. It’s a different kind of work, a different kind of stress. All the money I make comes out of my own head, and that’s a hard thing to get your head around. It’s been a great life me, I’m not going to lie.

GoBe: What’s been the hardest reality you’ve had to face about pursuing a career in music in Canada in the 21st century; what’s been the big eye opener as you’ve progressed through the cycles of writing, recording, touring and promoting.

JON: I think we have the same eye openers that everyone else who started a band in 2009 has had, and that’s that the money has kind of dried up (laughing). I’m a simple person, but the money is a little different. We have friends who have gotten in a lot earlier than us who are doing far better, but that’s just the way it is. That adversity helps you grow in this day and age. You have to be better than you possibly could be because nobody’s coming to help.

GoBe: It’s been over six months since the release of the new album, True Rockers. That’s a great name for an album, and a great epitaph on a tombstone. What the intent of that song and title meant to reinforce the band’s mission to rock hard.

JON: I don’t know. I think it was kind of more like a joke, but it is a statement. Be yourself, whatever you think a true rocker is. We were kind of joking, what do you think a true rocker is. Well I don’t know. You’re asking the wrong guy. I got a tattoo with my buddy and that’s how this whole thing started. It’s just one of those things that is a nice thing to associate with a brand called Monster Truck. That good, brash arrogance people like.

GoBe: What brought you to Asheville, North Carolina’s Echo Mountain Studio to record. Asheville doesn’t seem to be a mecca for rock.

JON: It’s just suck a sick studio. They’ve got all the gear. The room is really good. Ashton is a beautiful city. And Echo Mountain has a house attached to it we rented as well. It was like a holiday. You can go out at night and it’s not dead. You can really just relax and focus on the record you’re trying to make. It was good for us to take ourselves out of our normal surroundings. .

GoBe: So it’s the kind of place a Canadian rock band can’t get into much trouble? 

JON: (Laughing) You’d be surprised. There’s stuff going on there. They have like 14 breweries in a town of 140,000 people. It’s a hippy town.

GoBe: So what’s your fondest memory of Asheville.

JON: Well, you’re recording in a church, so it’s pretty ominous to begin with. Just the whole vibe is what I remember the most, a million takes in this grandiose setting.

GoBe: A church? Was there ever any risk of Monster Truck coming out of that studio having recorded a Christian rock album?

JON: No, no chance of that happening.

GoBe: Your music has been used in some interesting ways. The Leafs used “The Enforcer” whenever a goal was scored, “Sweet Mountain River” was included in Ubisoft's music game Rocksmith 2014, “Seven Seas Blues” was used in EA Sports NHL 13, and “Old Train” was used in an episode of Orphan Black. How did the band benefit for those opportunities.

JON: It’s helped us in different ways over the years. I don’t know how to equate it or put a quantity to it or a value on it. It’s been good for us. It’s hard to put a value on it. Life experience is more valuable than the actual end of it now. You’re doing all these wild things but you’re not driving a Lambo, you’re still driving a Honda. The Leafs using our songs, we’re not going to see any money from that. But it doesn’t matter. My favourite team ever is using my song when they score a goal. So that’s great.

GoBe: The Stones and The Who are touring again this year, well into their sixth decade as touring acts. Can you see a future where Monster Truck is touring together in 50 years.

JON: I don’t know man (laughs). We might not be playing the same songs. Maybe, who knows. It’s just how long you want to be in it. For those guys it can be very lucrative. I’ve quit a few times. The Stones have taken a break. They’re padding their children’s future. For me, if I get to that point someday that would be great. The joy’s got to go away at some point I imagine. You just can’t tour yourself into the ground.

GoBe: So how do you find a balance in your life when you’re a touring musician in Canada.

 JON: I think it’s just finding out what you want to do. If you want to do this, you have to find a way to do it. It’s not an easy life by any means. You have to find your own way.

GoBe: So what can fans expect at the show at the Moose and Goose.

JON: It will be a great show, lots of sun, sweaty, hot and fun. And I’m going to yell at you.

 

(Photo credit: DAvid Guido) 

 

GoBe: As for the future, what’s next after the touring for True Rockers comes to an end.

BALANCE? Voice? Life?

 

JON: I think we’re going to keep touring, try to put another record out early in 2020. It’s going to be a lot of work. From here on, it’s going to be endless travelling.