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WATCH: Hedley headlines Enmax Centrium on Feb. 10th

Cageless tour showcases Canadian band’s newest album

Internationally-acclaimed Canadian band Hedley is bringing their ‘Cageless’ tour to the Enmax Centrium on Feb. 10th.

Their album Cageless, released on Sept. 29th, 2017, has already had 12 million digital streams and their single Better Days has already been certified gold.

“Every time we do this, it seems like a fresh excitement,” lead guitarist Jacob Hoggard said. “I think everyone who has been to a Hedley show knows that we never do the same show twice. It is always something new and unpredictable that you would not expect.”

Cageless represents a new approach for Hedley, with Better Days particularly featuring a more R&B feel to their sound

“That (growth) is what is really important about our music-making process,” Hoggard said. “That is why we continue to push ourselves and evolve and develop. At the end of the day, we are creating music and for us to be able to share that with the people that support us is the only real way to have a party.”

Hoggard said touring over the years has become a really “gnarly” party.

“There are moments on the stage where the guitar player just disappears and I’ll be like, ‘Where did Dave go?’ He will come back and he will look a little saucier than when he left. It really feels like at the end of the night when you leave a really good house party,” he said.

Being able to tour and bring a party to cities across the country remains important to Hedley.

“We are so excited to be able to make music for a living and that experience for us is something we want to be able to share with people when we come to town. It is a night you don’t have to think of anything else and you can really go for it,” Hoggard said.

The band has also ventured into new music technologies, with the music video for their single Love Again being filmed in 3D VR for Samsung VR phone setups.

“You have to step out of your comfort zone to pull off projects like that,” Hoggard said.

“When you get approached by a company like Samsung who wants to do a 3D VR video - that sounds exciting but we never have done it before. I don’t want to just do something for the sake of doing it: I want it to be great, I want it to be special and I want it to be memorable.

“Therein lies the challenge for us because we want to do it right so when you venture into new territory on unsure footing, you are doing a little bit of guessing.”

Hoggard said Better Days is an example of the type of song he grew up loving.

“In our lives, we can feel very alone in our feelings,” he said.

“What is really important to realize is that our problems may not be unique to us. It is a matter of being more open. When you realize that we all identify on so many things that we all go through together, it is a really cool feeling that happens.

“It is really special for me to create and make those connections.”

Growing up on the west coast of Canada is something that remains part of Hedley’s identity.

“I grew up hunting, fishing, hiking, camping and climbing — really living in Canada the way I think we are meant to,” Hoggard said. “There is so much here that provides value and quality of life. Being Canadian with the quality of life we have is something not very many people in the world get to experience. We are super-privileged.

“The band has always worn it proudly on our shoulders, on our chests and on our backs.”

He added fans should pick up tickets soon, as Feb. 10th is fast approaching.

“The band has really come to a new place and has a new lease on life creatively,” he said. “The tours have turned into sort of like showing up at a party and every night is wildly unpredictable.

“You can be sure it will be bangin’ time.”

todd.vaughan@reddeerexpress.com

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