REGINA — What started as a group playing local gigs has turned into a band now releasing its third album.
Regina-based Blu Beach Band recently released its newest album, Mulligan, which is described as hyper-Canadian indie frat rock.
“It has high-energy songs, and the goal with this one is to write a collection of songs that work really well in a live setting,” said the band’s lead singer, Carter Vosper.
Each song includes references to Saskatchewan landscapes, said Vosper.
“The first song on the album is called “Rock Band,” and we talk a lot about, like, the experience of playing at local pubs, like getting paid in drink tickets and getting your jacket stolen. There are a few pretty direct references to this pub that we consistently play in Regina called O'Hanlon’s.”
Mulligan is the band’s first album produced entirely on its own.
“There's a lot of trial and error that comes with that, like some of the songs. We went back and re-recorded like three or four times, even. Some of them we got on the first go, and some of them …” said Vosper.
As part of releasing its new album, the band has been on tour across Western Canada over the past few weeks.
Vosper said this tour has been its most successful.
“This one has been the most rewarding tour for sure.”
Debut and hopes
The Blu Beach Band started writing songs for release four years ago, inspired by Saskatchewan rock band The Sheepdogs.
“Seeing them make a name for themselves and sort of break through, sort of gave us some inspiration that maybe we should take a crack at it ourselves, and we had already sort of just been writing our own music for fun and then figured why not try,” said Vosper.
The band never had high expectations when starting, but any progress is seen as positive, noted Vosper.
“Pretty much any like milestone that has come our way is kind of a complete surprise, but we're welcoming it with open arms.”
Vosper said the band hopes to one day establish itself in Canada.
“We admire bands like The Tragically Hip, who were just like Canadian legends, but never really broke through. Like, I think if we were to set a goal for ourselves, it would be to get to a level where we can tour across Canada and make a name for ourselves here.”
Although they recently released a new album, the Blu Beach Band plans to record another one next year.
"We have a bunch of songs that we're constantly writing and maybe considering still finishing some of the ones that didn't make the cut for this album. So the goal is to start releasing music more consistently,” said Vosper.
