Death metal band with drummer from Oak Bay, B.C., wins Juno award
It's been quite the journey for 39-year-old Spencer Prewett, who grew up in Oak Bay but now tours with successful Canadian death metal band, Archspire.
Archspire just took home the 2022 Juno Award for best metal/hard music album of the year with its album, Bleed the Future.
"It's super awesome the Junos are recognizing such an extreme genre because sometimes it's hard to get credit from regular people with this type of music," Prewett told CTV News.
The Junos aired on Sunday, and Prewett says the Canadian band learned of their win just before a sold-out show in Vancouver on Saturday.
"We set up all of our gear and sound checked and everyone went to go eat, and by the time we got back to the venue we found out we had won," he said.
"It was almost like the perfect day, it was super fun."
OAK BAY ROOTS
Prewett lives in Vancouver but is from Oak Bay on Vancouver Island.
"It was a little bit unusual to come out of Oak Bay and be a part of a successful death metal band," he said.
Prewett says he has "deep ties" to the region, with his aunt serving as a councillor, his family owning a business in the municipality, and his mom working as a doctor in hospice for decades.
"Death metal is just about as far away from Oak Bay as you can get," he admitted.
In general, Prewett says the death metal scene in Canada is "pretty good", particularly in Montreal.
He adds that it's rare for Canadian death metal bands to break out, however, so he counts himself lucky.
Archspire has international tours planned for the next two years, including in South America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan.
The band will also be working on its next album in between tour stops.
CANADIAN SUPPORT
While Prewett says it's rare to make a living in such a niche industry, he says the Canadian government does its part to support up-and-coming artists.
"To get us off the ground the 'Factor' grant system from the government was really helpful," he said.
"When we tour with these American bands and we explain how much the Canadian government helps with the arts they're always shocked and jealous," he added.
"I think that's something as a Canadian to be very proud of."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.