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Winnipeg band brings its bright alt-rock sound to GP

Ian Kucerak/Encore!
Thursday March 27, 2008
Tele

Brendan Berg of Tele is ready to deliver a second dose of the Winnipeg band's rock show to Grande Prairians March 28 at Better than Fred's. He said they've been readying a set list of their best live material to rock the Friday crowd at the local bar.

For those who may have missed their February appearance in town, Tele is a four-piece rock band, headed by singer/guitarist Matt Worobec, bassist Brendan Berg, keyboardist Zack Antel and drummer Derek Allard. Apart from a short stint in Toronto in 2006, Tele has been based in Winnipeg for the four-and-a-half years they've been playing together.

Berg said while the Winnipeg scene doesn't give them easy breaks, it's been good for musical growth. "There's a lot of really talented artists here, very supportive people, but at the same time, fairly critical, so you don't get praised for whatever you do," he said. Berg added the city was a good place for the band to cut its chops and build a following.

The Tele sound is a keyboard-heavy-rock sound, created by the two main songwriters, Worobec and Antel. "It's alternative rock with a definite European influence," said Berg. The band draws on a diverse set of influences he said, anything from heavy metal to rock bands like the Muse, Radiohead, Coldplay and even jazz. "We all have a very broad range of music that we listen to."


Before they formed a band, Worobec and Antel were writing music together, and the keyboard was important back then, as it is now. With the addition of two members, Tele kept the keyboard high in the mix.

"Zack's sound is a way to differentiate ourselves from the rest of the guitar-rock crowd, but I mean the keyboard definitely appeals to our musical sensibility as well," he said. Berg added they were looking to sound unique while still being radio-friendly.

Their 2007 self-titled release is available on iTunes and CDBaby, but was made more as an exercise for the band. "The biggest thing for us with this CD is that we had been playing for three years before we put anything out. We really needed to have something for people to take home with them (from a show)," said Berg.

The future for Tele includes finishing a cross-Canada spring tour before heading back into writing mode during the summer. Berg said they hope to get back on the road in the fall, as well as start a new disc in the winter of '08.

They're not sure at this point whether they want a major label record deal, after the upheaval of the last few years in the music industry. "Major labels have lost a lot of their foothold in the last decade," he said. "In some ways, it could be very beneficial, but we've heard horror stories of bands that get signed onto a major label and then with all the restructuring that's going on, their representative will get fired or something and then their album will get shelved."

Berg said they'll be putting on a high-energy rock show for fans new and old at the Grande Prairie gig. "We try to use all the tools at our disposal to make it as exiting as possible," he said, adding they want to deliver a "good solid set of rock music," for the rock audience in GP.

Tele plays Better than Fred's in Grande Prairie March 28, with opening act The Imports. Further information on the band can be found at www.myspace.com/tele.