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Hague rock band on a roll
By Jim Craik
Hurricane Cletis is turning heads and becoming a force on the Saskatoon music scene this year. The just
recently rejuvenated rock band, which has four members from Hague, has recently been recognized on two
fronts.
After winning the Rock 102 and Roxy on Broadway's Ultimate Band Warz on April 20th in Saskatoon, they
were selected for Rawlco Radio's project 10K20 Saskatchewan. That made them one of 29 performers and
groups to receive $10,000 to assist with recording a new album. It's been a rush.
Rob Dyck, who plays drums for the group, likes what the money will do for the group. "It gives us the
chance to record professionally without going through the stress of raising the money."
"it was finally a chance, after 10 years in the garage , to get into a studio and work with a producer," added
brother Greg who plays guitar and sings back up.
Their brother Darren, is the lead singer in the group. JK, who plays bass guitar, is also from Hague. Chris
Smith, who plays guitar and sings back up in the most recent formation of the band, is from Saskatoon.
The Dyck brothers have always been the heart of the band. At first it was Friday night jam sessions in the
garage. In 2002 they recorded a 10 song CD of their own compositions. Shortly after that, the band broke
up and the boys took a three year hiatus.
It was just this last year that they formed the band, welcoming JK and Chris Smith.
Named mainly after the energy they project in their performances, Hurricane Cletis has developed its own
style of rock, which reflects the musical interests of the group.
"It's a punchy, driving, rock and roll," says Rob when asked to describe their sound.
"Our music has to be appealing to our ears," adds Greg. "We are not just about noise." Bands that have
influenced their music include Motley Crue and Nickelback.
Melody and a strong beat are presented together in their songs, which are all their own compositions.
"One person will have an idea and the band will build on that to complete the song," said Greg of the
collaborative process used by the group.
In late January, the Rock 102and The Roxy on Broadway's Ultimate Band Warz provided the group with
some very valuable exposure. The organizers were looking for one more band to complete their list for the
competition. When they called, the boys figured why not go for the experience.
"It was just an opportunity for us to get on stage and try some material we were working on," explained Rob.
"It had been over two and a half years since we'd been on stage, so we went just for our own enjoyment."
"We had no thoughts of winning," added Greg, pointing out they were competing against over 40 bands. "It
was just for fun."
January 26th was the first night they played. Each evening in the competition celebrity judges would listen
to the bands and decide which were to continue in the contest. Hurricane Cletis kept moving on in the
competition, until April 20th they found themselves in the finals. "We played on five of the nights and just
kept going there," says Greg. The judges obviously liked what they heard.
The judges for the finals were national figures, which included Ralph James, booking agent for Nickelback
and other groups and Steve Blair, head of Artists and Repertoire for Warner Music, Canada.
With that calibre of judging, winning was a real honour for the group. The prizes weren't too bad either.
The prize package, with a retail value of $6,000, included a RIM Blackberry device for each member, a
professional four to six song CD, an Alesis Powered Mixer, and three Audio-technica Mic packages.
Hurricane will also get to open for a major headliner at Credit Union centre and will be featured on Rock 102
FM's the Zone and have one of their songs played on air as well.
The boys saw another opportunity too. Rawlco was sponsors of the Band Warz and they announced in May
that they would be providing the $10,000 Rawlco 10K20 awards to bands to encourage more groups in
Saskatchewan to record their music. Now that they were known in the Saskatoon and indeed, the provincial
scene, they felt their chances were much improved to receive an award. "Because of the exposure this
(The Band Warz) gave us on the radio, we felt that we would have a better chance at the awards."
With the $10,000 award from Rawlco, came some responsibilities. The group must be able to demonstrate
by September that they are well on their way to completing their CD. And that's just what they are doing.
They are very pleased to be working with Ryan Andersen at his studio in Delisle. Anderson was a studio
hand for bands such as Nickelback and AC DC, while working in Vancouver, has also worked as a studio
assistant for Sarah McLachlan, Bryan Adams and Sheryl Crow and many others.
The Saskatoon native has now returned to Saskatchewan and set up a studio, RedDoor Recording, to
begin his producing career here. The boys are working five or six evenings a week, including weekends, as
they prepare their latest work. They'll introduce their new album of original tunes, on October 20th at the
Odeon Events Centre in Saskatoon.
Article taken from the Saskatchewan Valley News.
Printed Wednesday August 30, 2006
By Jim Craik
By Jim Craik
Hurricane Cletis is turning heads and becoming a force on the Saskatoon music scene this year. The just
recently rejuvenated rock band, which has four members from Hague, has recently been recognized on two
fronts.
After winning the Rock 102 and Roxy on Broadway's Ultimate Band Warz on April 20th in Saskatoon, they
were selected for Rawlco Radio's project 10K20 Saskatchewan. That made them one of 29 performers and
groups to receive $10,000 to assist with recording a new album. It's been a rush.
Rob Dyck, who plays drums for the group, likes what the money will do for the group. "It gives us the
chance to record professionally without going through the stress of raising the money."
"it was finally a chance, after 10 years in the garage , to get into a studio and work with a producer," added
brother Greg who plays guitar and sings back up.
Their brother Darren, is the lead singer in the group. JK, who plays bass guitar, is also from Hague. Chris
Smith, who plays guitar and sings back up in the most recent formation of the band, is from Saskatoon.
The Dyck brothers have always been the heart of the band. At first it was Friday night jam sessions in the
garage. In 2002 they recorded a 10 song CD of their own compositions. Shortly after that, the band broke
up and the boys took a three year hiatus.
It was just this last year that they formed the band, welcoming JK and Chris Smith.
Named mainly after the energy they project in their performances, Hurricane Cletis has developed its own
style of rock, which reflects the musical interests of the group.
"It's a punchy, driving, rock and roll," says Rob when asked to describe their sound.
"Our music has to be appealing to our ears," adds Greg. "We are not just about noise." Bands that have
influenced their music include Motley Crue and Nickelback.
Melody and a strong beat are presented together in their songs, which are all their own compositions.
"One person will have an idea and the band will build on that to complete the song," said Greg of the
collaborative process used by the group.
In late January, the Rock 102and The Roxy on Broadway's Ultimate Band Warz provided the group with
some very valuable exposure. The organizers were looking for one more band to complete their list for the
competition. When they called, the boys figured why not go for the experience.
"It was just an opportunity for us to get on stage and try some material we were working on," explained Rob.
"It had been over two and a half years since we'd been on stage, so we went just for our own enjoyment."
"We had no thoughts of winning," added Greg, pointing out they were competing against over 40 bands. "It
was just for fun."
January 26th was the first night they played. Each evening in the competition celebrity judges would listen
to the bands and decide which were to continue in the contest. Hurricane Cletis kept moving on in the
competition, until April 20th they found themselves in the finals. "We played on five of the nights and just
kept going there," says Greg. The judges obviously liked what they heard.
The judges for the finals were national figures, which included Ralph James, booking agent for Nickelback
and other groups and Steve Blair, head of Artists and Repertoire for Warner Music, Canada.
With that calibre of judging, winning was a real honour for the group. The prizes weren't too bad either.
The prize package, with a retail value of $6,000, included a RIM Blackberry device for each member, a
professional four to six song CD, an Alesis Powered Mixer, and three Audio-technica Mic packages.
Hurricane will also get to open for a major headliner at Credit Union centre and will be featured on Rock 102
FM's the Zone and have one of their songs played on air as well.
The boys saw another opportunity too. Rawlco was sponsors of the Band Warz and they announced in May
that they would be providing the $10,000 Rawlco 10K20 awards to bands to encourage more groups in
Saskatchewan to record their music. Now that they were known in the Saskatoon and indeed, the provincial
scene, they felt their chances were much improved to receive an award. "Because of the exposure this
(The Band Warz) gave us on the radio, we felt that we would have a better chance at the awards."
With the $10,000 award from Rawlco, came some responsibilities. The group must be able to demonstrate
by September that they are well on their way to completing their CD. And that's just what they are doing.
They are very pleased to be working with Ryan Andersen at his studio in Delisle. Anderson was a studio
hand for bands such as Nickelback and AC DC, while working in Vancouver, has also worked as a studio
assistant for Sarah McLachlan, Bryan Adams and Sheryl Crow and many others.
The Saskatoon native has now returned to Saskatchewan and set up a studio, RedDoor Recording, to
begin his producing career here. The boys are working five or six evenings a week, including weekends, as
they prepare their latest work. They'll introduce their new album of original tunes, on October 20th at the
Odeon Events Centre in Saskatoon.
Article taken from the Saskatchewan Valley News.
Printed Wednesday August 30, 2006
By Jim Craik
Photo by Katrina K