ARTIST OF THE DAY | FEATURETTE
ARTIST OF THE DAY
28.04.2020
FEATURETTE
LOCATION
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
GENRE
Electro Pop
CURRENT MEMBERS
Lexie Jay
Jon Fedorsen
With the current pandemic, the state of the music and touring industry has dramatically changed. Where were you when everything was brought to a halt?
We were actually just arriving back home from a tour out west! We'd been traveling to Vancouver just prior to finish up some sessions for some new songs with our producers and had a tour booked while we were out there. We played 6 dates, 2 on Victoria Island, 2 in Vancouver (1 headliner) and then 2 more dates with Blonde Diamond out in Calgary and Edmonton. The Pandemic would hit just days after we arrived home - but the panic had begun prior to that. The airport was completely empty when we were traveling, it was like a ghost town. We had 3 days to make sure we had everything in order when we got home before it was officially declared a pandemic! We've been at home self-isolating in Toronto ever since.
How has that affected your plans for the coming months? Did you have a tour planned, upcoming album release?
We did! We had a tour coming up in Ontario and Quebec to follow up our BC/Alberta tour in March, including our hometown Album Release party which was supposed to happen April 17th... RIP. Not sure if/when those dates will be rescheduled at this point, but either way it's for the better. Better safe than sorry, and more than happy to do our part in all this. Despite our album having just come out in January, we were already (emotionally) in writing mode, and quarantine is a good place for that to happen, if you're up to it. We're likely to play some Instagram Live shows coming up, but since we're an electronic project, we're just re-working our live setup to accommodate that vibe. Debut acoustic piano set anyone...?
What have you been doing to fill/make the most of your new-found free time at home?
Jon and I actually run a business together outside of the band, called Paint Nite, which has just recently converted to virtual events. It took about a month or so to get all that up and running smoothly; it's taken up quite a lot of our time! Now we're slowly getting back in the right headspace to write. Outside of that Covid has affected my family greatly so far, as a member has been diagnosed. I'm making sure I take the time I need to be in a mentally health place. It's a new reality to grow into, and something that we should all be gentle with ourselves in discovering, for sure. Jon and I also happen to LOVE to cook, and now that Jon's added baking to our roster, we're basically ready to open a restaurant when all this is over. So there's that to look forward to!
Favourite quarantine meal?
So far? We made a pretty mean BC rockfish and vegan kale caesar meal that was a nice break from all Jon's bread. The risotto and fresh pasta is nothing to sneeze at though - ugh now I'm hungry.
Favourite Starlite Room Moment?
Is it wrong to say this one?? We just played Edmonton for the first time mere weeks ago with Blonde Diamond at the Aviary, and we had such an absolute blast, we can't wait to come back and play again!! I'd never been to Edmonton before and it was such warm, welcoming vibes, can't wait to play again and learn more about Starlite Room and your wonderful city!! (It was way to cold to explore, so we'll have to roam about one day when all this is over!)
Do you have a message for everyone at home reading this?
If you're reading this and you're at your breaking point, just know it's ok to talk about it. It's ok to call your friends and vent. You're not going to use up your 'chances' to talk to them. My best friend had said just that to me on the phone a few days ago and it really struck me. If they're really your friend, they'll be for you as often as they possibly can, just as they know you would be for them. I feel closer to my friends and family in all this, just because of all the time we've had in this global 'time out' to sit and think. So now we get to choose how we move forward: do we go right back to our old ways and pretend like this never happened? Or do we mark this down as the most monumental thing that happened to this generation of people, and hold on to these memories so that we appreciate what we've got, ever after. It's not about stuff, it's about memories, and people. It's about music and pets and 'that one time when'. It's about sharing meals and taking walks and just breathing sometimes. If we haven't met yet, and you've taken the time to read all this, I hope we meet at a show someday, because every show we ever go to after this is going to be the BEST THING EVER, because we'll remember this time when it couldn't be that way, and just be humbled. Love you guys, chin up and we'll make it through this, and be all the better for it. xoxo
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