The Healing Power of Music: Colin and John Angus of The Trews Share Personal Stories of Resilience and Connection-Encore Episode

Guaranteed human. The people with self was up and it's quest love.

So recently I had the incredible opportunity to have a real conversation with actress and producer, Jamie,

Curtis from routines to recovery, true lies, and a certain Jermaine Jackson music video. Jamie's real and raw, and something I really admire about her. I am so happy that I'm the head-witch in charge at 67 that I have the perspective that I have at my age. To really be able to put all of this into context. Listen to the quest love so on the I-heart radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get to your podcasts.

I'm Clayton Neckard in 2022. I was the lead of ABC's The Bachelor.

“But here's the thing, Bachelor fans hated him.”

If I could press a button and rewind it all I would. That's when his life took a disturbing turn. A one-night stand would end in a courtroom. The media is here. This case has gone viral. The dating contract.

A great a date mean, but I'm also so seeing you. This is unlike anything I've ever seen before. I'm Stephanie Young. Listen to love trapped on the I-heart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This woman's history month, the podcast, "Keep it Posit Sweety,"

celebrates the power of women choosing healing, purpose, and faith, even when life gets messy. Love is not a destination. You have to work on it every day. Keep it Posit Sweety creates space for honest conversations on self-worth, love, growth, and navigating life with grace in grid led by women who have lived inspire

and tell the truth out loud. I have several conversations with God, and I know why it took 20 years. So here these in more, listen to "Keep it Posit Sweety"

“on the I-heart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.”

It's the new me, and it's the old them. This woman's history month, the podcast, "If you knew better with Amber Grimes," spotlights women who turned missteps into momentum and lessons into power. My tunnel vision of like, "I got to achieve this,"

was off the strengths of like, "I want to make a better life for us." If you knew better, brings real talk from women who've lived it. Unpacking career pivots, relationship lessons, and the mind set shifts that changed everything. Listen to "If you knew better with Amber Grimes,"

on the I-heart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hola, I'm Cristian Chavez, host of the new podcast in Swedala. In each episode, I try to do something radically simple. To be all, a hard-to-hard connection with my guest. I talk with people who have shaped me and inspired me,

like it in Dribarra, Mariam Pramers, or my Debarra. You'll hear conversations about fashion, relationships, HIV, as well as inspiring stories from the LGBTQ+ community. And so much more.

“Listen to Swedala on I-heart radio app, Apple podcast,”

or wherever you get your podcast. Music saved me. We just sing about what we're going through and how we're feeling. And it resonates with people. I mean, it's incredible.

It's, it's, I feel like a humble by it, I guess. Welcome to Music Saved Me. I'm Lynn Hoffman, and today I'm so excited we are joined by two members of one of Canada's biggest, most electrifying rock bands, The Truths.

For over two decades, they've been delivering powerful songs

and unforgettable performances. They've shared the stage globally with the likes of Springsteen and Erosmith and the Stones and Kiss and Guns roses to name a few. They've won multiple awards and reached Platinum status.

Congratulations. And their music has been streamed. This just blew me away over 100 million streams around the world. When have you ever heard of that? That's incredible.

On this episode, we will dive deep into the moments when music became more than just a soundtrack for The Truths when it became a lifeline. We'll hear about the songs that helped them through tough times and how creating and sharing music has shaped their journey

and the ways their art has touched the lives of fans around the world. So whether you're a long time fan of The Truths or just discovering their awesome and uplifting inspiring sound, get ready for an honest and inspiring conversation about the power of music to lift us up, bring us together,

and sometimes even dare I say save us. Colin McDonald and John Angus, welcome to the music save me podcast. So great to have you guys here. That's great to be here. Thanks for having us.

First of all, I want to take congratulations

because I just found out you've released a couple of singles off of soon to be released album called The Bloody Light. But currently, the breakdown is number one on Rock Radio all across Canada. I know that's still going to be a huge feeling for you

even after being rocking for 20 plus years. It still must be an exciting feeling to reach those heights and getting with your fans.

people still care after all these years.

And that's always really great.

We still put a lot into it.

“Like the first few times we had some major success at radio”

it was all such a, it was also new and it was exciting in the area. But now it almost feels a little bit better because it's like, oh, it's still resonating. That's really great. You still have it.

And it's a testament certainly not only to the skills and talents of the perseverance of you as a band, but also your legions of fans. They're still there and they're still strong and they love you so much.

That's truly the humbling part when you're a young man. You take so much for granted and like when you get to the top of the mountain for the first time you just think, hey, this is just the way it is. And then you realize through all the trials and tribulations of a long career just how incredibly rare success actually is

and to get back there. Speak to a couple things. The support of our fans and the support of the industry. And then the fact that we've kept up, you know, if I may say, so like a fairly high level of albums too.

So it all that takes so much work and it takes a team and it takes, you know, a good, a loyal fan base to maintain it. That's for sure. And speaking of your fan base, it's obvious that connecting with your fans is important to you.

And because I know time is of the essence with you guys, I want to get right into the, into the meat of the conversation right up front. Can each of you remember a moment, whether it was during a personal struggle or a tough tour or a pivotal moment in your personal life that music truly saved you? Go on, you want to go first?

Yeah, I mean, almost way too many times to count.

“I think that's what led me to want to do this for living and,”

and do excited. It has brought me back from the brain, whether it was a teenage heartbreak or if it was, you know, major shifts in life as I got older. You know, there's been many songs that have helped me along the way.

You know, one that comes to mind is listening to clay pigeons, you know, a bunch of years ago going through a bit of a rough time and just in that, those lyrics and both versions that blaze fully in and the John Prime version, we're both very, they were everything to me. It was like those songs that are written that like these, it's like songs that see you,

you know, in those moments of vulnerability and when you're kind of just floating, and they kind of bring you back down to earth and remember, and remind you that you're not alone in this sadness, you know,

and that's definitely always been one of my main focuses when working on a song.

I'd like to provide that kind of comfort for people, whether it's just when they want to rock out and have fun or when they need something a little bit more, you know, emotional that helped us through a rough patch, you know, and so that's just one of the moments of many where a song has saved me, and I'll just listen to it like 55 times a day,

you know, until I feel better, and I always do, you know,

“so I think music's quite powerful like that.”

I'll go back to like my teenage years, Colin and I are brothers, and then we were raised a little bit like military brats, even though our dad was, he was like an intellectual, he worked for the universities, but that kept him moving around from campus to campus and taking all five of his kids with him. And we ended up down in Jamaica in 1993,

and I was like 13 years old and wrenched out of my social life, and put it in like a sort of foreign country, certainly felt foreign to me coming from the East Coast. And all I had was like a Sony Walkman and four cassettes. There were three Beatles cassettes, such as the Beatles and Iriams, automatic for the people.

Yeah, I'd get on from school and play all four cassettes, and my headphones, front to back, and it just kept me connected to like my old life.

You know, just brought me in incredible comfort when I was pretty lonely and out of sorts.

And those records like to this day, they still, they're like my comfort food, you know, like if all else, you know, I love exploring and listening to other things and discovering things, but if I can come back to these certain records, and they feel like home base, you know. It really is medicinal. Yeah, for sure.

I'll tell you what, I was just going through a really rough patch of their day, just a little depressed over something personal in my life, a friend of mine who's not well. And I am so fortunate to get these, I got to hear your whole album before anyone else, because you're not releasing it until October. And I'll tell you what song did it for me was manifest.

So wait until that one comes out and hits. That was, I don't even know what it was truly about, but for me, when you look back in hindsight, and you see what you've manifested, and you didn't realize you were doing it at the time that it really happens. You can bring about what you want if you put your mind to it.

Well, I'm bad to hear that you liked that one. Yeah. Yeah, it's like nice to hear that. And I hope it helped you a little bit.

You know, just something just clicks in your mind.

Yeah. And depending on how many times you want to play it is how many, like I would say,

“if you were going in a medicine cabinet and how many ad vill do you need for your pain?”

Exactly. The dosage is how many times you've got to put it on repeat. Yes. We should have instead of drug commercials, we should have music drug commercials. All right.

You're going to be so much better. Probably safer in the long run, too. Right. Like many weird side effects. Now, only happiness.

Your state is going to call for seven. Everybody hurts. Yeah.

Because it's seven times.

And the side effects will be like you will develop more empathy. Like all they'll be good side effects. Yeah. They cause may cause crying. May cause spontaneous laughter and happiness.

Yeah. Yeah. Because healthy expression says emotional baggage. I love it. Hey, after this, we should do that.

We should do a commercial for it. That would be so fun. Band dynamics. I have to know. You guys have been together a long time.

“In what ways has being a part of the truth helped you navigate life's challenges?”

A lot of times, you know, you can being in a band. It's like a marriage. You're together more than you are with your families. It's very true. It's kind of our entire lives.

And a lot of the, are the way our lives shaped up because we've been doing this for a very long time. They kind of all came together through the band. You know, like my John Angus met his wife and now mother of a street children at eight Cruise Show in like 2005, you know. And I mean, all of our lives are kind of, kind of revolve around our career because it does take so much time.

And we have that very Asian partners and lives and stuff. And so yeah, the band's definitely shaped us a lot. And in pretty much every way. So, oh, there's a. Hey, there's one now.

And now they won't leave me alone while I'm doing interviews. I love it. Family is welcome. Yeah. Okay.

If you guys don't mind. I think it's great. I just pretty much tacked everything that Colin said is like. You learn a lot about yourself. The really challenging thing about being in a band is you start it when you're in,

well, at least in our case, to start it as a teenager. You know, you start it like with an undeveloped frontal lobe. You know, like you're not quite a man. And you have to become men together. And a lot of people don't survive that transition because it's really tricky.

Like it's not a. You're wholesale different people by the time you reach 30. You know, so and then again by the time you reach 40. So it's like just navigating those waters. I guess we're lucky that we don't take things too personally.

Yeah. I've been through a lot together. And we still managed to come together with the music and love what we do. And that's that's that's good fortune. We've lost the members along the way because it's really hard to keep everybody together.

You know, just really it's like life is demanding and life demands different things of different people at different times. So we're just I guess we have some good fortune going our way to that we are able to still to pull it together and do it. That's for sure.

I mean, has there ever been a time where the bands sort of served as a support system for each other? Oh, yeah, like so many times for me, just going through times in my life for, you know, things haven't felt very stable.

And I've always thought comfort in writing and working with the guys.

The music has carried me through a lot of times.

“So I always remember that when things are kind of going really well, how much I've,”

I have leaned on this to get through a lot of things. And unfortunately, because the music has always been something that's driven me and something that's inspired me. It's kept me sane. Actually, it's kind of funny to think that you a rock and roll band can keep you sane because it's kind of an insane profession. But I do, I am very grateful for those times where the band is kind of carried me through, you know, ups and downs. It's amazing to me. You were just talking about the band and how members have come and gone and you two are brothers.

I mean, you grew up together. You're together all the time. I mean, that can't be easy in general as a dynamic. Well, it's, we're not quite as, I mean, we know some other brother bands that are a little bit more tumultuous than we are. But the other thing about brothers and a band is like, you know, we've been fighting and making up since we were two and zero. Do you know what I mean? So, and I think sometimes if it's not too much ever rift and it hasn't been yet.

Like we can have our ups and downs with, you know, when your family, you kind of have to make up or like there's the ramifications, you know, can be pretty dire. Like when families become like alienated from one another. So, you know, we've been pretty good like dot and then Jack, who's been with us since we started as well. And when he was a kid, my mom used to babysit him. Like so we were like, Jack's brother as well. And we've just been, you know, I'll knock on wood because, you know, so far so good, but we've been able to get through some of the, the rougher stuff.

I mean, 1,000%. Like for me, the making of new music and writing and recording is, is my, my absolute favorite thing. And I love playing live. I mean, we have a great live show and we have great crowds and stuff and, but my favorite part is that excitement around writing and discovering new stuff like that.

That's always kind of been my, my, the guiding force for me ever since I started just just the idea that, you know, something's not there this morning.

And you make it there this afternoon. And if it's any good, that can resonate with people and become something so beautiful and connect with people and that to me is, is a close thing I've ever experienced to magic in life. It's very magical. Do you, can you give an example, maybe have a song that was specifically, you know, cathartic to write and also what, what's the hierarchy of the writing? I mean, who does most of the writing?

“You should talk about the end and once upon a time, which is coming up off of our next record because I think I wasn't involved in that one too much, but I think he said it was the first one you wrote when you started writing during the lockdowns.”

Yeah, well, I, in terms of the writing situation in the band, like we all, we collaborate. John Hanks, Jack and myself. And then sometimes we'll, we'll collaborate with whoever's producing and we're very, we're very open. We always switch up producers between every record because we're always looking for ways to shade things up. And I think for me, I write every day almost out of, it's like it is like a therapy to me just to create like I just believe everybody should create every day. I, I, even if it's not a great song when I go this and back, I still get something out of it.

And sometimes even within those songs that you work on that might not be anything special, you bring that to, I bring it to Jananges or I bring it to Jack or I bring it to one of our producers or working with. And that can become this little, you know, a car and that becomes this beautiful oak tree, you know, in the, in the studio. And that's, that's kind of really neat to me to like, you know, it might just be, oh, the second verse really something really happened there. And then you just take that little bit and that grows into something. So that's usually the way all of our songs come about in terms of just, you know,

I write every day and except for when I'm on the road, but I write every day and then I bring it to the guys and we see if we can make something great.

You know, I can imagine that process like I got these lines. I just, you know, you think of things. Oh, my God, I could make a t-shirt out of that and you make an incredible song.

“Yeah, out of something which is amazing. Yeah, but but also like I think one of the things.”

I think one of the keys to our longevity has been like not to get, we try to keep our, I mean, the sounds kind of cliche, but we try to keep our egos in check and like the idea is look, it's not when your idea isn't well, the idea isn't well received. It's not a personal attack on you. It's just we, we kind of let the idea be more important than the three or four guys in the room. So whatever's going to make that better is always what we try to, like, okay, that's the goal and however we can get there.

That's so hard. Number one, but number two, when an incredible exercise in life over all, just how to deal with people.

So it's been a long, that was the thing we had to learn. That was the kind of the hardest thing to learn. Yeah, but everybody's a bit, I think it's natural to be a bit protective and precious of your idea. Yeah, off the, off the head, but I think we've all created long enough. We've all created long enough to, to see the results improve, to see the idea go from being this little thing to this flourishing thing that now. 2000 people are thinking back to you. And that, that we've all seen the magic work that we trust in that process. And if it can get better, then it should get better.

And it shouldn't stay the same just because you like it a lot, you know what I mean?

“Yeah, and that's, and that's the nature of being in a band. And if you didn't want that, then you have to be a solo artist, you know what I mean?”

Like otherwise, if you're in a band, you kind of got to go all from one to one for all, and let's do it together kind of thing. Yeah, and there's nothing better than working with a creative team of people that can do that. I mean, that truly would be the penultimate way to be in any group of creatives. I think when you have people that have that incentive as to, like you can feel it, you know, like when you're, when you're working on that idea, everybody, you're getting chills, like it's not, it's not even a thinking thing, eventually.

It's just a feeling and everybody's like, oh, we're all smiling. We're happy. Time is going by quickly, and like if you have that, you have to like, that's the most precious thing in the world. Now, if you're lucky enough to be Bob Dylan and you just wake up in the morning and that happens before coffee.

We'll be right back with more of the music safety podcast. Good people, what's up, what's up? It's Questlove.

So recently, I had the incredible opportunity to have a real conversation with actors and producer Jamie Lee Curtis ahead of the release of our new thriller series, "Scarpetta."

“I can honestly say I've never done an interview like that before, you know, at one point I set my laptop down.”

And we just started chatting as old friends, recent Oscar recipient, so we have some commonality there. I predict that by the way. And you said these words to me, "Dust off your mantle." Yes. And I looked at you and I said, "What?"

And you said, "Dust off your mantle." And then I left, and that was it. And then when all of that happened, I remember the next morning. I think I wanted to like write you and go, "How did you know?" Listen to the Questlove show on the I-Hart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton Eckard, and in 2022, I was the lead of ABC's The Bachelor.

Unfortunately, it didn't go according to plan. He became the first bachelor to ever have his final rose rejected. The internet turned on him.

If I could press a button and rewind it all I would.

But what happened to Clayton after the show made even bigger headlines? It began as a one-night stand, and ended in a courtroom, with Clayton at the center of a very strange paternity scandal.

“The media is here. This case has gone viral.”

The dating contract. Agreed to date me, but I'm also suing you. We're such one. This is unlike anything I've ever seen before. I'm Stephanie Young. This is Love Trapped.

This season, an epic battle of he said she said, "And the search for accountability in a sea of lies." "I am done nothing to get pregnant by the f*ck Brassler." Listen to Love Trapped on the I-Hart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

I went and sat on the little ottoman in front of him. And I was like, "Hi Dad!" And just when I said that, my mom comes out of the kitchen and she says, "I haven't cooked these in milk. This is bad ass convict."

"Right." Just finished five years.

“"I haven't cooked these in milk at all."”

On the scene I showed podcast, each episode invites you into a raw, unfiltered conversations about recovery, resilience, and redemption. On a recent episode, I sat down with actor, cultural icon Danny Trell talked about addiction,

transformation in the power of second chances, the entire season two is now available to bench,

featuring powerful conversations,

the guest like Tiffany Attich, Johnny Knoxville, and more. "I'm an alcoholic." "And love to screw on my die." Open your free I-Hart Radio app, search the Sino Show, and listen now.

Ever feel like you're being chased by the marriage police. Welcome to Boys & Girls, the podcast by dating isn't dating. A ranged marriage is basically a reality show, except the contestants are strangers, and your entire family is judging.

You're sitting coffee with one maybe, grabbing dinner with another, and praying your carmy can or Barbie appears before your shelf life runs out. Trust me,

I've been through this ancient and unshakable tradition. I jumped in, hoping to find love the right way, and instead I found chaos, cringe, and comedy. And now I'm looking for healing. Boys & Girls dives into every twist and turn

of the arranged marriage carousel, the meat awkward, the near misses, the heartbreak, and let's not forget all the jokes. Listen to Boys & Girls on the I-Hart Radio app, or wherever you get your podcasts.

When you feel uncomfortable, what do you put on? Biggie. You put on a biggie when you feel uncomfortable? So I want to get confident. This is DJ Hesterprint's music is therapy,

a new podcast from me, a DJ and licensed therapist that asks one simple question, "Who do you want to be, and what's the song that can take you there?" Music changes what you feel, and what you feel changes what you do, right?

That moment where a song shifts something inside you, that's where transformation starts. This year I'm talking to experts across every area of life. Like personal finance icon Jean Chatsky,

relationship legend Dan Savage, human connection teacher Mark Brooks,

“and the man who shaped my ear more than anyone,”

Questlove. They'll bring this strategies, I'll pair them with the right records, and we'll teach you how to use the music to make a change stick. This isn't just a podcast.

It's unconventional therapy for your entire ear. Listen to DJ Hesterprint's music is therapy, on the iHeart Radio App, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome back to the music saved from your podcast.

Pinesites always 20, 20 kind of like we discussed earlier,

but are there lyrics specifically in your back catalog that stand out to you as meaning, like new meaning to you today, then even when you wrote it originally? Oh yeah, all the time.

There's songs where even I'm on stage of the night, we have a new song called Don't Get Lost in the Dark. We played it, I'd show the other night, and I, well it was playing it. I'm like, I think this song might be about this thing,

and it was just something that happened on these coasts years ago. And I was like, and I just got chills. I was like, I didn't even, I didn't have any intention of this.

It's just caught fire in my imagination, and it made the song so meaningful to me. And I was just so impressed with that. Like not impressed by me or the song. But like I was like, oh, this is cool.

Like I feel like I'm getting something out of this

that I never thought I'd ever get.

And it was a nice moment, you know? It's like those moments that people say to you, cliche lines or, you know, time flies when you're having fun or, you know, just anything that comes to mind,

and then you're going through life and something happens you're like, wait a minute.

“That's why that person said that to me or that's what that song”

meant or those lyrics meant. I appreciate it for a reason. That's because they have a lot of time. Yes, yes. I'm just curious how you take care of your mental health,

both of you individually when you're on the road, when you're in the studio. I mean, what type of, are there any rituals or habits that sort of keep you grounded when you're out playing for thousands of screaming fans

and living that life that almost seems like you're in a dream or it's, you know? Yeah, do you want to go on this one for a surgery? No, you go. Okay, well, yeah, I had to like,

I've had to do a lot for that. Like, I've been sober for four and a half years. Congratulations. That's a big deal. Yes, yeah, for after many years,

not quite four and a half, four and a half, four and a half a month. And I've had to do a lot. I have quite a few things to do on the road to stay grounded and stay, you know,

meditate and I try to exercise it. You know, I do a lot of reading and writing just to stay grounded because I find, especially when you're, like, performing for people and,

and like, there's so much like pressure and then there's, there's ego and there's anxiety and you're just trying to stay grounded.

But I don't always win the fight,

but I have to do a lot to keep, to keep regulated. I guess you could say, when I'm out there, because I can get kind of swept away and it for better or for worse.

I bet, I bet. I mean, beyond like, I try to go for run every now and then. But you know, I keep myself very busy. You could say that's like, just a big old distraction or,

or, you know, maybe I'm putting things off, but I do like to keep myself busy. I like to have a lot of projects on the go. You know, I'm producing this or I'm hosting this radio show. I'm raising three kids and dealing with a lot of the bands of fairs.

And so yeah, I'll probably have a breakdown at some point in the future. No, no, don't say that. We don't want that. No. But it's really good.

That was a joke. That was a joke. Of course. Didn't laugh me. I mean, it wasn't a good joke.

No, but, I mean, you have to laugh. Because, you know, life is just, it's so, it's so hard in general. And then you pile on it, success. And, you know, and then issues that you may have along the way.

And it's just, it's a lot to navigate. Even for those of us who aren't in a major rock band touring the world. In which case, I would love to know your advice that you might have for someone who might be struggling and needs to turn to music for solace. Do you have any advice for them?

“But the only thing I'll add is you said even if you're not in a rock band.”

But I think that the sort of inverse of that is like we get to have that outlet. And like people always say, like life is so hard anyway. And you add the stresses of performance. But at the same time, the flip of that is like we get to wear our emotions on our sleeves and sing them at the top of our lungs for five to 10,000 to like up to like 60.

Whatever the biggest crowd we've ever played for. And they're just our emotions. They're just our feelings in the moment. I can, might not have it a bad day. I can go get to our solace for another.

So, you know what I mean?

And I think that my advice to be, if you really are having a hard time chronically, then try to find that outlet.

“You know, it's, it might be writing and I'd be writing a block or painting.”

It might be artisanal work, maybe you, maybe you're a woodworker. It could be like, but try to find some method of creative expression. And I'm sure that will go a long way. That's going to be taking your mind to at least taking your mind off of it. That's precious.

That's good advice. And like there's a book called The Artists Way.

And I always thought it was really great.

And it's like, for anybody who wants to be an artist. And I think everybody is an artist. I just think that, you know, it's not all meant to be released to the public. And there's this great book about just these things you can do to feel a little bit more. I mean, artistic in your life, you know, journal in the morning.

Like there's things to do that are creative that are powerful outlets. And that book's a good one. So check out the artist's way. I just wrote it down. I'm curious. I would like to read that. That's, um, I want so much more time with you. I need to know just a quick guest or no.

“Did you have mentors when you were growing up that people sort of reaffirm to you that you were on the right track or that you did have these skills?”

Yeah. We did have, we had, we had many, like, but they're unexpected. Like, um, I think of our old friend Ian McDonald. Ian Charles McDonald, who we've lost a bit of touch with, but we grew up with him. And he really informed our playing style and our teens because he had such a deep knowledge of what we were going for. We had a kind of a surface like we do our records.

But you know, had like a library of records that he was sort of hippiness to and he really informed. There was a guy named Blair Seaboyer who believed in our band and let us jam at his house. He did our sound for, for next to nothing. And then eventually we went into like our business mentor was a guy named Larry Wannigas who saw what we were doing. He was managing Katie Lang for 15 years and he managed big sugar and other big Canadian act.

And he became our business mentor. He managed our band for 15 years. And he introduced us to our first producer, Gordi Johnson, who, again, was a tough love mentor. He saw what we were going for and thought, I can, I can improve this. I, you know, this is what he did. Yeah, and he was right and he was rough on us, you know, as a producer. He was right. He was right, though.

We got it. And sometimes you need that. Sometimes you need a, you know, yeah, kick and sometimes need a carrot, but he was the kicking kind. But it helped us as a band for sure. Well, a lot of times that's all somebody needs to make a big change in an impact on them is just to hear from somebody who's doing it or has done it. And, and then you're off to the races.

And he took us on tour and he didn't have to do that and gave us a lot of national exposure.

So, and then, then that list goes on. We, we really, really have always looked up to the tragically hip.

Do you know that tragically hip? Oh, yeah, Canadian. Yeah, like I, I don't know. And when I'm talking to an American, I never know, but I never know. There's, there's so big in Canada that they loom as large as like our most famous prime ministers do. And we always looked up to them as fans and then they took us under their wing and treated us kind of like little brothers. And we eventually made music at their studio and collaborated with their base fireguards and Claire who became a mentor on, like,

How to be an adult in this music business. You know, how to really navigate yourself and compose yourself and that band. We just idolized them looked up to and they became mentors in a way too. So it, it never really ends really in that way. So, do you ever really want to be an adult? Really? I mean, come on. We all have none of us want to join a rock band and then, you know, at least you keep one foot and be in a teenager still.

It's just, I wish that I could be, I know that, like, just in the minor sense, the feeling it is to be on that stage. And like, you were talking earlier about getting all of that out. Yeah. You're giving it to the audience too, and they're giving it back to you.

So it's like this huge, you know, cathartic session of inspiration and, and it's, it's pretty amazing.

Pretty powerful. Very powerful. Has a fan ever told you a story. Either one of you that how your music specifically has helped them through a hard time. I was just talking to a gentleman at our gig at a place called the Kita Ballard last Friday, maybe. It's up in, like, it's like a cottage country Ontario gig.

And, and he said he just got over, about with cancer. And he said he just listened to this, our song "The Breakdown" over and over again. It really, really helped him. And I was like, wow, that's, I didn't even know how to respond. I just kind of gave him a hug and a handshake.

And I said, I'm so happy to hear that the cancer's gone. And, um, I'm sure the medicine had a lot more to do with it than the song.

“But I think the song kind of helped in a weird way for him.”

And he was like, he really wanted me to know that. And I was just kind of, it was just like one of those. We were having to be a meet and greet with our fans. And, and he just kind of sprung this on me. Like, I was in the middle of, like, you know, people ask me,

And he said, like, you know, I just got over cancer. And I listened to the breakdown every day for months. And I was like, "Oh, my God, that's so incredibly heavy." And, um, amazing, in every way, you know. And, um, so yeah, I've had a few people tell me some very, very similar stories.

And it's always, um, it's almost too much to take in, like, at the time.

You're kind of like, that's incredible. And in, you know, my first thought is, I hope you're okay. I hope you continue to be okay. And I'm glad that our music is helping in some way, shape, or form. But yeah, I've had quite a few of those moments over the years.

It's pretty incredible. Hi. John, you. I mean, well, yeah, there is a lot of them. You know, we have a song called "The Highway of Heroes," which is tribute to a woman we knew that went to fight.

And I've got to say that it was tragically killed. But it's resonated much beyond her story. And we've had people shrug up to our shows with, like, their siblings, tags, who are deceased, you know, from, from conflict. And, like, hand them to us on stage and say, we want you guys to have these or something like that.

It's just like the power of those moments. It's like a little bit overwhelming because it's enormous. But, you know, you don't know these people the way they do. You know, the tragedies, not the same for you as it is for them. But they've connected your song to it.

And then they've connected us to it because of the song. And it's, it's, it's, it's just proof of how powerful music can be. It truly is, especially at moments like that.

“Did you expect that when you first got together as a band, those types of stories coming out of you?”

No, not at all. And, and it's like, you know, we, like, music is our own, is our profession. And we put everything into it. And we like to write songs that are meaningful to us, initially.

And you never think in a million years that, like, oh, I'm, I'm going to write a song that a guy got through cancer

because of, like, that that would be a weird thing to think, you know, for the creator of a song. But, but I've, you know, I don't know what it is. I, I just, we just sing about what we're going through and how we're feeling. And, and it resonates with people. And, I mean, it's, it's incredible.

It's, it's, it's, I feel like a humble by it, I guess. And then I don't want to think like too much beyond that because I just, I songs or songs and I love them. And they've gotten me through hard times too, but, um, yeah, I don't know what else to say. Now, I, I understand because it's not why you, why you do it, but then it becomes sort of self-fulfilling. Yeah.

And it's, it's amazing that there's more, this is something that I always say. We're, we're all more alike than we are different. So chances are, when you're making this incredible music and writing these words, that they're going to stick with a lot of people.

“That's, it's, like, I think with us, it's always like, how do we, what's the best song?”

Like, we're always thinking, what is the best song and the best song is something that's got.

There's many elements of, you know, memorable is probably the first one. And then, you know, a little bit of lyrical depth without being pretentious. And, you know, and then a good groove and a rhythm. I mean, we kind of almost approach it like that. And, and some of those creations end up really resonating with people.

And, and that's amazing. It sure is. And I got a couple of, uh, quick questions before I let you go. Um, looking forward. The bloody light is your album coming out in October.

There's, um, themes of hope and resilience and healing in all of it throughout, again, lucky me, I got to hear it before anyone else. And, uh, is there, is there anything particular within the album that you hope listeners really connect with? There's a message that you're trying to put out there that you want them to know.

“I think that's kind of it, you know, I think it's like,”

it hasn't been the easiest five or six years between anywhere in North America. You know, between everything that everybody's kind of gone through. And I think the message we have is, yep, it's not easy. Um, we're not going to pretend like it is, but we're still going to try to make music and move forward and move through it together. I think it's awesome.

I mean, just the fact that you are still doing it. Again, hit number one after all these years is, is enough for me alone. Just to hear that story about you not even hearing your music. It's, it's really incredible feat. Um, yeah, much less your sobriety, which is another really big deal.

Um, I don't care what anyone says. I, I really congratulate you on it. And I hope they continue forward down that path. Um, and you're certainly helping a lot of people more than you know.

if you could go back and play one song for your younger self during a tough time in your life, what would it be and why? Of any song of any song of ours? It's really, it's a very good question.

“I think the songs that really helped me, I, our songs that I might have already known,”

then I, you know, I don't. I'm going to go with one of our songs because it's easier, because those Edward invented when we read them. But like between the end and once upon a time certainly has, and that's coming up on our next record.

Certainly has like a, there's like a totality to it.

And I feel like if you could have played that for our band when we were first starting,

I'd have been like, you're going to write this song in like, there are 25 years of long hours. I'd be like, oh, that's a reason to keep going because it's not exactly the style we are working in for a long time. Um, but it has like a depth of a motion and like a large scope to it. And I really like it a lot.

So I'm just going to go with that. And nobody can even hear you at it's coming on October, but you can come back. Okay, it's funny because such an emotional question, but my analytical brain kicked in. So I'm just going to go with that. And so I've been listening kind of, um,

religiously to the anthology of American folk music this whole year. And it's about, it's a playlist on Spotify. I don't know how long the original album is, but it's about 65 songs long on the playlist. And I've been studying it. I've been listening to it.

I've been learning it. I went online and wrote because it's hard to get the recordings or some of the first recordings in American music.

So it's really hard to decipher the lyrics.

So Spotify doesn't even have the lyrics because they can't pick them up. You know, so I had to go with the hour of the internet. I've written them all in my voice notes on my phone. So when I'm warming up for a gig, I'll go and listen to the anthology and just sing the songs. And I wish I could go back to me starting in a band and go like,

“you need to listen to this phrasing because by the time you're 21,”

you'll be the coolest fucking guy in the world. And instead I was listening to like, when everybody was listening to, you know, alternative and grunge and blah, blah and whatever. But no, you should be listening to this right now. And you will kick so much acid.

But I would. That's like, this is my ambition is if I could go back to 17, 16 year old me. Like throw out the grunge records. Those are great. We love them.

Go listen to only this record for four years and copy it. And then start your band. That's what I would do. I love it. I love talking with you too.

And I also wrote that down by the way. See, I love learning new things from people and discussions. There's there's nothing better than that. And you certainly both have taught me a lot. And hopefully our listeners a lot as well.

Colin McDonald, John Angus McDonald. The truth. Thank you for being on music.

“Save me and good luck with everything in the future.”

And please come back and see us. Maybe when you're traveling through America. What 100%. They're having us. The people was up with us up.

It's quest love.

So recently, I had the incredible opportunity to have a real conversation with

the actress and producer Jamie Lee Curtis from routines to recovery, true lies, and a certain German, Jackson music video. Jamie's real and raw. And there's something I really admire about her. I am so happy that I'm the head,

and charge at 67 that I have the perspective that I have at my age. To really be able to put all of this into context. Listen to the quest love show on the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Clayton Eckard in 2020.

I was the lead of ABC's The Bachelor. But here's the thing. Bachelors fans hated him. If I could press a button and rewind it all I would. That's when his life took a disturbing turn.

A one night stand would end in a courtroom. The media is here. This case has gone viral. The dating contract. Agreed to date me, but I'm also suing you.

This is unlike anything I've ever seen before. I'm Stephanie Young. Listen to love trapped on the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This woman's history month, the podcast, keyed it pauses sweetie,

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In each episode, I try to just something radically simple. To be all, a hard-to-hard connection with my guest. I talk with people who have shaped me and inspired me like it in the river, Marion Pramers, or my de Perro. You're here conversations about fashion.

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