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Fiasco fire up Canada Day

Sharp but steady rise for Victoria's The June Fiasco
June Fiasco
Victoria's The June Fiasco: on lead guitar Jeff Richardson

Rain kept freeride mountain bikers from competing in JumpShip on Saturday, but couldn’t keep The June Fiasco from playing their afternoon show.

To lead singer Andrew Spark’s estimate, about 200 people hung around despite the wind and rain to watch his band play on stage at Ship Point, next to the JumpShip barge.

“We’ll take it, there could have been more but no complaints here,” Spark said.

It was the first of back-to-back weekend shows the Victoria-based rock band is playing on the Inner Harbour. The June Fiasco open for Gold & Youth (formerly Racoons) as part of Victoria's Canada Day celebrations on Saturday.

It’s been a smooth takeoff for all five members of The June Fiasco, who played their first show in January and released a three song EP in February. The record is titled This is Your Life, after the single launched into the national radio chart, sitting 130th out of 200. The video has been in rotation on Much Music’s show Much Loud since March.

“It’s a comfortable pace,” said Spark, who was raised in Victoria, a product of Vic High’s music program in the 1990s. “You don’t want too much to happen too fast. There’s some younger guys in the band experiencing it for the first time, with a couple of us veteran guys in the band guiding them along, so to speak.”

At 32, Spark has been involved with a few band projects, some of which took the stage at festivals in England.

“Nothing I’ve done, or anyone else in the band matches The June Fiasco’s amount of success in a short period of time,” Spark said.

Their video was made in town with Shoepp Film, and the group was recently branded as the Zone 91.3’s band of the month, earning signifcant air time. The band was also approached by Juno-nominated songwriter and producer Jeff Johnson (Faber Drive).

It’s been serious enough that the band’s Cowichan Valley contingent has relocated to Victoria.

Spark is the lead singer and one of three guitarists in the band, with Jeff Richardson the lead and Damien Anthony.

The band’s sound is a middle ground of modern rock influences, with various styles gently pulling the tune behind Spark’s vocals.

“It’s in-your-face with three guitars, sort of a Foo Fighter approach,” Spark said.

“(Richardson) is a studied musician, and he defines the guitar pieces, brings the continuity between them so they don’t sound cluttered. Otherwise it’s kind of a blend of styles. Jeff’s into Boston, and AC/DC, Damien brings metal, bass player Steve Williams comes from pop punk and I’m a Seattle grunge guy from the '90s.”

Drummer R.J. Fraser brought some bigger studio experience but is away right now, with Chris Peterson from local success Current Swell filling in.

Later this summer The June Fiasco will take the stage at Logan’s on July 28 and the following week as part of Rifflandia’s Courtyard Sessions on Aug. 4, a buildup to the September festival.

DID YOU KNOW

The June Fiasco open will play at Ship’s Point at 6 p.m. on Saturday (June 30), part of Victoria's Canada Day celebrations. The Ship Point entertainment stage opens at 12 p.m., with acts on the hour. Gold & Youth headline at 7 p.m.