The Glorious Sons: (L-R): Adam Paquette, Jay Emmons, Brett Emmons, Chris Huot and Andrew Young.There have been quite a few Canadian rockers who have crossed the U.S. border and had success in the states. Neil Young, Monster Truck, Bachman Turner Overdrive and Nickelback (let the trolls rush to their keyboards to start commenting) have all had successful runs here in the U.S. throughout the years.
Canada has a new export in the rock world that goes by the name of The Glorious Sons.The Glorious Sons recently crossed over the border to go on a very successful, major U.S. tour with 10 Years, Otherwise and Luminoth. Their newest album The Union earned the guys a Juno nomination for “Rock Album of the Year” and has been winning critics and fans over alike, regardless of which side of the border they are on.
I caught up with lead singer Brett Emmons near the end of their first U.S. tour, where we discussed the band’s first trip to the states, Canadian cigs versus U.S. cigs and their crusade to keep rock alive.
Interview with Brett Emmons of The Glorious Sons
By: Johnny Price, Lead Senior Journalist
I hear the name The Glorious Sons and it sounds to me like something out of a novel about the Civil War or that time period. Is there a story behind the band’s name?
Brett Emmons: You’re going to be disappointed because I can’t tell you. It’s a very personal name that our drummer came up with. We liked the name as soon as we heard it and it had a ring to it, but it’s a very personal name. I’m sorry and I wish I could have given you more information about it.
No, there’s no need to be sorry. Now, there’s even more mystery to it and I’m sure it will make everyone even more curious. So, how would you describe the band to our readers?
I think we’d probably tell people that we’re just five dudes going crazy on stage and making music that unlike most music being made today because it sounds like it was made 30 years ago. Wait, this is a better one:” It’s sweaty, dirty, bloody rock and roll!”
Canada has really embraced you guys and you’ve had quite a lot of success there. We’ve talked to other bands that have traveled a similar path, such as Monster Truck, where the U.S. was slower to embrace the band. Do you think it’s because there’s a difference in the markets? I mean, you guys have had four Top 10 singles in Canada and you’ve been nominated for a Juno Award there for “Rock Album of the Year.”
Canada has its own complete music scene and it’s full of rock and roll. It’s very connected and everybody kind of knows everybody, but when we started here our aspirations weren’t really to make it in the states. I honestly don’t know of a lot of Canadian bands who have really prospered in the states and I think it’s the same world, but it’s just worlds away. There are probably 40 places to tour in all of Canada and you go through mountains and snow most of the year to do so. If you’re a Canadian band growing up, you want to conquer your own country because that’s where you’re from. We just jumped into the Canadian scene and toured and prospered and did really well, but never set our sights on the states. This American tour that we’re on kind of got thrown on it and we were like ‘shit, let’s do it!’ It’s actually worked out really well for us because we’re playing in front of good crowds and they really like our tunes. It never really occurred to us that America was a real possibility and I think that it is. I think we’ve always known that, but we never really thought outside of our own country because it’s hard enough to make a living as a musician in your own country. For as many bands as there are in Canada, there’s probably that many just in New York City.
You’ve been out on the road with 10 Years, Otherwise and Luminoth and I was wondering if you had played here in the states before?
Never in our lives; we’ve been strictly touring around Canada for about three years.
Is there much of a difference between American concert crowds versus Canadian crowds or is the vibe pretty much the same?
Actually, it is the same; people in Canada know us pretty well, but unless we’re on a headlining tour, we’re supporting other bands and 
gaining new fans. The crowds here in the states seem the same because they love music and even though they don’t know you, they’ve definitely been very supportive. They do seem to line up earlier here (laughs). People go to shows earlier here because we’ve been playing at about 8 p.m. each night to full crowds. Two years ago when we were opening for other bands, if we were going on at 8 p.m. then we might as well have just gone to the bar and got wasted.
Radio here in the U.S., outside of satellite radio, is really screwed up with its formats. They might call themselves “rock radio” but then they play an act like Lorde and that makes a lot of people scratch their head.
First off, I do agree with you and the American radio scene does seem a little different from Canada’s and I don’t know why or how it happened or if it’s a bad or good thing. I do think that Canada’s is more organized in terms of genres. If you’re Pearl Jam or a band like that, then you get played on rock radio, if you’re alternative and you don’t have an electric guitar in your band or you don’t sound like rock, then you’re on an alternative or indie station, country’s on country and pop’s on pop. I feel like America has a lot of different rock categories and I don’t know how the stations choose what goes where, but it’s definitely a lot different in Canada. Radio is definitely a little more straight forward in Canada for sure.
I know you don’t get a true day off or even much free time while you’re on the road, but being that this is your first trip to the U.S., is there anything that you were hoping to see or do while you’re here if you have time?
You know, we’ve criss-crossed our own country eight times I think, so it’s good to get out of Canada and get a change of scenery. We’ve seen the path of our country for two years in a row, so it’s cool to get out and see different things whether it’s while we’re driving or from the view of your hotel room. It’s cool to see different environments and landscapes and meet different kinds of people; as much as our countries are the same, they’re still very different. It’s pretty cool because when you get to talk to 200 people each night in a bar; you get to see a lot of what the country is made of.
When you get ready to head out on tour, what are three personal items that you make sure to pack for the road?
I’d say cigarettes, my hat and a good pair of black jeans. We can always buy liquor on the way, but I like Canadian smokes better than American smokes and I only have one of my hats. I get attached to them and they keep getting stolen, then I don’t know what to do with myself for a couple of weeks.
THE GLORIOUS SONS – Heavy (Official Video)
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I wanted to ask you about the song “Amigo” on the new album because it really caught me off guard. I had the album cranked loud and I was all into the crunchy guitars and then that song threw me for a loop. What can you tell me about that song?
I moved to Halifax about five years ago and I lived there for a couple of years. I started out at school there, but I quit school and started playing music. The song’s about one of the guys who was with me through the whole music thing and it’s kind of about him giving up on things and it’s basically me, after the fact, telling him that he shouldn’t have been kind of a wuss and toughed it out I guess.
Brett, I know you’re a busy man and you need to take off, but I wanted to thank you for your time today. I think your new album The Union is a great album and I thank you for helping keep rock alive. Now, if we can get you out to the East coast sometime soon for some dates.
I appreciate that man and we’ll be back for more dates probably in the late spring/early summer. I want people to know that we’re rock and roll and I want people to listen to it again – for it to be important again. That’s all that we’re really setting out to do and what we want to do. That’s what I want people to know after they listen to our record.
The Glorious Sons are: Jay Emmons, Andrew Young, Adam Paquette, Chris Huot and Brett Emmons
The Glorious Sons just wrapped up their tour with 10 Years, Otherwise and Luminoth. But, they are all set to be rockin’ Canada hard in May, including their just-announced appearance at the Ottawa Bluesfest on July 12th with Arkells, Blue Rodeo and more. Grab your tickets and get more info at the Ottawa Blues Fest website here!
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