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Featured Artist: Winston
Hailing from Vancouver, Canada, Winston was quick to gain following on the Canadian indie scene. With their unique sound and gentle pop melodies, Winston’s music was easy to find playing on radio stations across Canada. In 2003, this cultivated into being honored as the winner of CFOX Radio’s Vancouver Seeds band contest. Previous winners of this contest went on to become mainstream successes such as Nickelback, Shocore, and Default. Winston’s single “Love It Up and Fell” soon went on to hit #1 at Vancouver rock radio station “The Q”. The song remained in the top 10 for 15 whole weeks at CKKQ, resulting in substantial airplay on other radio stations around the area. With this growing support and following, the band later won a major FACTOR loan to record their debut full-length album with Alaskan producer John Webster (Bif Naked, Tom Cochrane). Winston released their debut album, titled Passengers, in July of 2003. At the time of the album recording, Winston was made up of singer/songwriter Ryan Hauschild, guitarist Lanny Hussey (both from EMI's Ginger), drummer Robbie Watkins (Handsome Boy/BMG's Slowburn), and bass guitarist Tony Kerr. However, for personal reasons, the band’s members went their separate ways and Ryan Hauschild, the band’s original driving force, kept the Winston name in his solo efforts. Since then, Winston has not released any albums, though Hauschild’s first solo record, Limited, was released in June 5th, 2007. The 6 track EP has already received numerous raving reviews, as the Vancouver songwriter Winston continues to make a name for himself with his music.
Albums
Interview
What brought you into playing music?
Hauschild: "My Parents were both musicians. Folk musicians. Kind of like Canada's version of Sonny and Cher. We toured the country together and there was always a strong musical presence in our family. I've basically been making music my whole life."
Were there any musical artists that really influenced your musical taste when you first got started?Did you ever imagine playing music as an occupation when you were younger?
"There was a time (you could look at it as a rebellion phase) when I went to University (I got 2 years into my degree) and considered a career as a history teacher. In the end, I couldn't imagine a life without music and returned to writing songs as my sole focus."
The name ‘Winston’ comes from the protagonist character in George Owell’s 1984. Do you feel a special connection to this novel? What inspired the name choice?
"The name Winston was chosen as a band name for the group of guys I was working with a few years ago. For whatever reason, we liked it and it stuck. The more interesting story is how I ended up with it: As the singer in the group, I was often referred to as "Winston" around town. "Hey Winston! How's it going!". When I decided to make a solo record (and the other guys moved on with other projects) it was hard to shake my new moniker."
How did your first song come about?
"I've been writing songs for so long, I can't really remember the first one."
Do you have an emotional attachment to any of your songs in particular?
"I'm attached to all of them. As with most artists, I'm probably more interested in the new songs I'm writing."
As a recognized music artist, you should probably have some connections to other bands/artists. Are there any relatively unknown artists that you really respect or enjoy listening to right now?"Here's a few Vancouver acts I've really been enjoying lately:
Adrienne Pierce
Che Dorval
Elias"
What are your favorite artists right now?
"Right now, I'm really enjoying Wilco, Death Cab For Cutie, The Magic Numbers, Grandaddy, Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins, Neko Case, The Stills... and so many more."
You won the same CFOX Radio’s Vancouver Seeds Band Contest as Nickelback did when they were first emerging. Do you have any intentions or aspirations to hit the mainstream in the United States as they did, or do you view your musical work as something more than profits?
"The CFOX radio contest was a good way to get exposure and open some doors for my music. In the end, I don't know if my sound really fits in with mainstream US radio. We all know this is a business, but for me... making music is like making art. I'm just trying to focus on making really good art."
What does music mean to you?
"Music means everything to me."
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