Thousand Foot Krutch

Cleveland Agora
July 20, 2016

Mind-blowing lyrics, goose bump-inducing music, and amazingly energetic concerts. Who could ask for anything more? With the band Thousand Foot Krutch, you are not for want; the band uniquely has it all.

Trevor McNevan of Thousand Foot Krutch at the Cleveland Agora

Bassist Joel Bruyere of TFK

Power
The Thousand Foot Krutch (TFK) concert at the Cleveland Agora in July 2016 was purely phenomenal. TFK put on such a dynamic and quality show, the audience was completely blown away. From the moment the band walked on stage to the very end of the powerful performance, the band never stopped fueling and electrifying the crowd. Lead Singer Trevor McNevan has an amazing ability to sing with such intense and seemingly tireless effort. Bassist Joel Bruyere, Drummer Steve Augustine, and Touring Guitarist Andrew Welch added force to the spark and fire of the band’s robust show.

Adrenaline
In catching up with Trevor after the show, I learned that rather than simply defining TFK as “hard rock,” the band’s music is more accurately described as “adrenaline rock.” And, that makes sense. Whenever listening to a TFK song, a person feels invigorated, pumped up, and ready to take on the world. Need strength? Courage? A better start to your day? Listen to Courtesy Call, Born This Way, Light Up the Sky, or Running with Giants, and your mood and outlook will be transformed. Baseball players know this solution! (Find out what this means in my chat with Trevor below.)

Thousand Foot Krutch at the Cleveland Agora

Energy
I had the very good fortune to catch up with Lead Singer Trevor McNevan following the Cleveland Agora concert. Check out the engaging chat!

How would you describe your music to someone who has never listened? I ask because a two-word genre title is difficult to describe the captivating sound of TFK’s music.
Trevor: First of all, thanks man! Very cool of you to say! It’s a melting pot really, of musical inspiration and creative taste testing. I grew up on classic rock and underground hip hop, so those things definitely bleed into TFK, but I’d call what we do “adrenaline rock” if I had to sum it up. With lots of different ingredients!

Trevor McNevan of TFK

Along the same lines, how can we get people to listen to your music who might believe that they don’t like “hard rock”?
Trevor: Although we’re often considered “hard rock,” we’ve never entirely quite fit in that folder, or solely considered ourselves that. We equally enjoy the quieter and soulful moments, and have never been afraid to explore far across those lines. That said, we’re proud to be considered a part of the “hard rock” community!

Did you know that Steve Cishek, closing pitcher for the Seattle Mariners, uses Courtesy Call as his walk-on / get pumped up song? (On Wednesday, 7/20/16, the day of your Cleveland concert, Cishek helped the Mariners to win the game in extra innings after walking onto the field with that song playing. You have new fans in Seattle, as a result!)
Trevor: I didn’t! That’s AWESOME!!!???? Thanks, Steve!!!

How do you feel that your music has changed or evolved over the years?
Trevor: I think it’s been an organic progression. As a band, musician, or songwriter, you’re always trying to push yourself and improve, and a lot of the time, you find your identity along the way. We’ve grown a lot as a band through the years, but are proud of each record and what they represent.

Who writes the music? How do you write?
Trevor: I’ve been a full time songwriter outside of the band my entire career… it’s something I stay busy doing on and off the road. So, I’ll work on 50+ songs each time around, then we narrow it down to what we feel like should be “the album.” Over the years, we’ve each invested in our own studios, so now we’re ready to record on a dime. I started producing our albums (along with good friend Aaron Sprinkle) four albums ago, and we each track ourselves. It’s as close to home as it gets!

Let’s talk about your new album EXHALE. What do you want people to know?
Trevor: EXHALE is the more aggressive counterpart to our previous album INHALE. It was always meant to be a two part journey. INHALE allowing us to dive deeper into the quieter side of the band, and EXHALE blowing the doors off with the more aggressive side.

Trevor McNevan of TFK

Your song Born This Way has been a recent theme song in my life (“Ain’t nobody gonna stop this train, so hop on board, or get out the way”), most likely for different reasons than you might have intended. What was the inspiration?
Trevor: Love it! That song started with a guitar riff that just screamed for a more soulful type feel to the song, so I just kept following that inspiration until it felt right! The slide guitar and intro were added after the fact by a very talented guitarist friend in Nashville. Definitely a bit of a departure for us, but still felt right at home! My personality is “all or nothing,” so this song swings for the wall.

You are from Peterborough (Ontario, Canada). I interviewed Adam Gontier a few of weeks ago, who is also from that town. Is musical talent embedded in the water there, or is it just coincidence that so many amazing artists are from that location (and nearby Norwood)?
Trevor: Haha, right on! We were blessed with a very vibrant music scene in that area during those years. A lot of great bands and musicians, always playing, always re-morphing into different bands, etc. We played many shows with our good friends in Three Days Grace and many others in our hometown venues coming up. It seemed like you either played hockey or music.

Where do you guys live now?
Trevor: We’re all spread out. A couple of us are in Nashville, and a couple still in Canada.

How did you get started as musicians?
Trevor: We’ve all been playing music from a very young age, separately. I recorded my first album when I was 13 years old, it was a tape, and it was all hip-hop. Then recorded an album when I was 16 that was half rock, half hip-hop, and then started TFK the next year when I was 17.

How was the band formed?
Trevor: I started the band during the last year of high school, and am the only original member. Joel was a childhood friend who moved back home the year our original bassist was moving away and joined a few years in. We met Steve while doing drum auditions after our second drummer. And here we are 20 years later! Crazy. Time flies!

Trevor of TFK

How do you like touring? Is it a dream-come-true adventure?
Trevor: Touring’s a big part of what we do. It’s where we get to connect with people face to face and that’s what it’s all about! It’s a blessing, man. The travel can get old, but getting to play your music live will never grow old!

What do you like to do for adventure or fun outside of music?
Trevor: Cycling and training have become a fun hobby. The older we get, the more we need to stay fit! Love winding down to a good movie.

Do you ever get to see concerts?
Trevor: Yeah, we’re all still big music fans in general, so we’re always checking out other bands when we play festivals, etc. and trying to catch good shows when they come through.

Anything else that you would like to share with my readers?
Trevor: Most of all, I just want to say THANKS!! For walking this journey with us, for your love and support, and we look forward to see you on the road soon!!! Check out www.thousandfootkrutch.com for any info/music/tour dates near you, and hit us up!!! We just released our second single off of EXHALE to Rock radio called “PUSH,” so call and request it if you like it!!! Thanks again! And, thanks for having me, Nici!! Much love!

Thank you, Trevor!

Trevor McNevan of Thousand Foot Krutch at the Cleveland Agora