Golden based southern rock band Willhorse is a workhorse.
They just placed fifth in the PEAK Performance Project designed with the B.C. Government and 102.7 the PEAK Radio station, to help develop British Columbia musicians.
“It was a really great experience being in a seven day boot camp with 20 bands who are like you. It’s how good bands become great bands. And the knowledge we learned is priceless,” said Willhorse bassist Todd Menzies.
The received $5,000 for placing fifth, which Menzies said they are putting towards merchandise and the expenses for this tour.
They are in the middle of a 16 show in 19 days tour with Vancouver Island singer-songwriter Rolla Olak, which brings them to Lethbridge, Dec. 19 to play the Owl Acoustic Lounge.
It began in Vancouver Island and goes through the B.C. interior, out to Lethbridge, then Fernie, then Calgary and Edmonton and home to Golden.
They are enjoying the tour with Rolla Olak.
“He’s a singer-songwriter. He has a band he uses in Vancouver, but this time we’re in one van, so he decided to jump in the van with us,” said Menzies, having just got said van pulled out of a ditch full of “sketchy snow” en route to a gig in Kamloops.
It has been about eight months since Willhorse rocked Lethbridge.
“We’re co headlining this tour. He’ll play five or six songs on his own, then we’ll join him. Then Willhorse will do a set and he rest is a big jam session as he’s learned a few of our songs so we’ll play them then we’ll play a few songs we wrote together,” Menzies described.
They have already written a dozen songs for the next CD, but the band wants to take their time with it.
“We want to write 30 songs for this CD, then whittle them down to 15, the put 10 on the album. We did the last album quickly. We’re going to take our time with this one,” he continued.
“ We’re getting away from the southern rock and getting more into more straight ahead rock and roll,” he added.
They already have a lot on the go for 2015.
“We’ll probably going to tour the United States in March. We’re just waiting for the nod from South By Southwest (in Austin) and we’ll build the tour around that.
And we already got the nod for Canadian Music Week. So we’ll be in Toronto in May,” he enthused.
They are excited to return to Lethbridge.
“The Owl is one of our favourite venues to play in Canada,” he said.
There is no cover for the show, which begins at 9 p.m, Dec. 19.
— By Richard Amery, L.A.Beat Editor
