High school band handpicked by judges

By JONATHAN KRENZ, SPECIAL TO THE STANDARD

The St. Catharines Standard
Friday April 16 2010

Usually, the bends are something you want to avoid when you're scuba diving. Nobody likes the nasty effects of decompression sickness.

But St. Catharines' very own The Bends, winners of the 2009 Mayor's Youth Advisory Committee (MYAC) Battle of the Bands, are something else entirely.

Comprised of bassist Duncan Chambers, 16; lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Kurt Dunn, 15; keyboardist Luke Honsberger, 15; drummer and percussionist Dave Klassen, 15; and lead guitarist Joe Salter, 16; The Bends will perform an all-ages show tonight at L3 Nighclub as part of Niagara's In The Soil festival.

The band members, all Grade 10 students at Laura Secord Secondary School, are excited the festival's jury chose them to get on the stage for such a big event.
"I like that we got picked," says Dunn.

"Especially since we haven't played a gig in a long time," continues Klassen.

"It's nice to get back out there."

Getting picked seems to be something the band members are good at. In addition to playing at In The Soil and winning the MYAC competition, they also won the 2009 Laura Secord Battle of the Bands.

A professional photo shoot and a trophy to be displayed at city hall was part of their prize for winning the MYAC contest, along with recording studio time at Marshall Arts Studio and Sound in St. Catharines. The Bends will enter the studio in May to begin production of their first eight-song release Decompression.

"We've got a lot of ideas and there's so many different things we can add, like [vocal] harmonies," says Chambers.

Dunn adds they will also experiment with sound effects. They plan to get everything exactly how they want it.

Each member of The Bends has his own reasons for playing music.

Honsberger recalls he started playing piano at the age of seven and kept at it, adding the guitar in Grade 7.

"I came to Laura Secord because I like music and it's expanded from there," he says.

Dunn's reasons for attending Laura Secord are the same, having been inspired by listening to music and watching bands playing.

"They seemed like they had a pretty fun time, so I wanted to do some of that," he says.

Originally a fan of classic rock, Klassen says his bandmates have introduced him to a "bunch of different styles", especially more recent genres.

While English bands The Clash and The Jam are acknowledged as group influences, "Elvis Costello's the artist we all agree on as a band favourite," says Dunn.

"I kind of like some techno stuff but I'm the only one, really. It might be because I play keyboard," surmises Honsberger, as his bandmates share a laugh.

When asked to describe their sound, the band members' responses are as varied as their influences.

Dunn says the band sounds "kind of like The Killers, Elvis Costello and a bit of the Talking Heads," while Honsberger adds the group is aiming for a new wave/rock sound.

"Right now we're more [into] experimenting," says Salter.

"We haven't found an actual style. We've got lots of different music."

Dunn says the band members are looking forward to getting their songs on CD and being able to hand it out to fans of the group and music in general.

"We all enjoy performing and the biggest thing is having fun," says Chambers. "As long as we can play somewhere and get people out who like our music, we'll be happy."

The Bends plan to keep plugging away at their craft, seeing where their efforts take them.

The Bends Performance will be tonight at 8:30 p.m. at L3, 6 James St., St. Catharines. There is a $5 cover charge. Visit www.myspace.com/musicofthebends.

Article ID# 2537571