Don Jasen Levandier
SURPRISE!!!???!
We felt bad about missing First Show Friday last week, and with it being Gobblefest weekend and all, we decided to do A SECOND FIRST SHOW FRIDAY!!! Two interviews! From two great artists! In one day. We got to talk to the amazing Don Jasen Levandier!!!
“My very first band was called THE MERE PROPHETS which was a quote from some crazy cult leader in the US. I would have been 14 and I played bass. There weren't many bass players so I got into a band with some older high-school kids. The band was a 100% rip off of BNL. I wanted to play heavier stuff but I was just thrilled to be in ANY band.”
“I got tricked into even learning how to play. This really cool kid told me I could be in his band if I learned how to play bass. I begged my parents for a bass and they bought me one - i learned NEVERMIND start to finish… and on the big day where i was set to jam with the really cool kid - it turned out that he didn't know a single note or chord or song or anything - he just made noise. I felt really bamboozled - but I met other kids who played through skateboarding.”
“My first shows were more like parties - you'd have 20 kids in a basement and a band would play. I don't think that counts as a show.. Or maybe it does. We played another Jr high once and I got to miss my biology exam for it. The biology teacher played guitar too and was sympathetic but he said he'd get in a ton of trouble if anyone ever found out he let me rewrite it to go play a show. Thanks Mr Daley!”
“Side note - the Ditchpigs first show was put on by the City of Moncton - a kind of BANDS AT LUNCH sorta thing and we played a terrible B-side by nirvana that i won't name. Needless to say it was extremely offensive and we sang it over the PA while bankers ate their 90s sandwiches.”
Don has played in many bands over the years including, The Mere Prophets, The Sour Grapes, The Ditchpigs, The Committee, Amy Stone & The Veneers, and of course, the fan favorite, amazing and iconic, the Motorleague!!
“We played in a garage one time and everyone was underage-drinking. (side note i didn't drink until i was 19- i was way too big of a nerd) anyway - they were drinking all night and using the outside of the garage as a bathroom. My closest friend Jon went outside and fell into a “huge puddle that came out of nowhere”. And he was soaked all night but no-one had the heart to tell him it wasn't a naturally occurring puddle. That seems like a mean memory now that I think about it but at the time it wasnt.”
“Playing shows wasn't really something we thought about - there were no consequences - you just played them because that's what everyone did. You played, your friends played, you all watched each other. It was more like everyone did a skateboard trick and everyone applauded everyone - i was enamored with other bands though - i idolized them”
“I remember Chris - the lead singer from Iron Giant - was a bit older than us and he worked at subway - so he'd always show up to shows/parties with subway platters - it was the best!! - now I want subway… im getting subway for lunch now. Thanks.”
It was great talking to Don this week! One thing we've noticed in every interview we do, everyone brings up how important the music scene was when they were starting out, everyone talks about how supportive people were and how the crowd made them feel. Live music is an extremely important part of any community, so we should all be doing what we can to build it up. On that note, you have 2 shows this weekend to see Don play with the motorleague, The all ages Sunday show at St Pats, and the late LATE show at the Capri. So we'll see you this weekend!!
