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Transmission amped

A powerful Transmission makes the move Who: Transmission Where: Dusty’s When: Friday, Aug.

A powerful Transmission makes the move

Who: Transmission

Where: Dusty’s

When: Friday, Aug. 8

Let me tell you, if it was 35 degrees outside in Whistler all this week, it was at least double that in Transmission’s tiny, unventilated, metal-roofed rehearsal room. But these guys didn’t care. Or perhaps they didn’t seem to notice.

With beads of sweat pouring out all over guitars, amps and a drum kit, four local guys who make up one of the best kept secrets in town, kept playing, singing, strumming and bashing. Laughing together in between songs and each offering advice on how to make the song better, tighter and closer to something Whistler’s never heard before.

And they think they’ve finally got there. Transmission is a heady mix of hard and fast rock, melodic rhythms blending in some punkish metal and even acoustic moments. And they are about to descend on Whistler with a full force of sonic rarity that will, as guitarist Darren McLaren puts it, "blow the ears and minds off anyone who listens."

From the bowels of dusty Function Junction, Whistler’s hidden industrial heartland, there’s been a quiet musical revolution brewing the past six months. If you’ve taken a wrong turn off Highway 99 or hiked into the area by mistake, you probably would have heard them. McLaren, along with brothers Tom and Terry Leson (on drums and bass respectively) and vocalist Christian have been busy most afternoons putting the finishing touches on the dream band the experienced musicians have always wanted. Which is why Transmission has been kept under wraps until now.

"We’ve all been in other bands and knew what we wanted this one to be so we didn’t want to hit the stage until we knew we had a product we would be proud of," said Christian, the slightly Jim Morrison-sounding singer.

"We’re all really committed to this and want it to be something people have never heard before so the timing had to be just right. There was no need to rush it," said Darren, and the other guys all nod in agreement.

"We’re better now than we were a few months ago when we thought we were ready and that just makes us even more raring to get out there and show everyone what we’ve got. It’s all unique and original compositions and the more we’ve been practicing the more new songs we’ve come up with," said Terry.

Brother Tom concludes: "The wait has been the best thing we ever did, but it’s summer and it’s time to get out of the basement."

So up and out they are with Transmission’s inaugural gig booked at Dusty’s for next Friday, Aug. 8. Any live music lover with an appreciation for high quality rock ’n’ roll from some serious musicians who also know how to have a laugh, should make every effort to be there. If Transmission’s enthusiasm, dedication, powerful sounds and unique compositions are anything to go by, these guys are going to go all the way.

And that’s the plan: To make Whistler their base, but take the music on the road.

"We’re not trying to be geniuses and not trying to be super huge but we want to offer people something different because that’s what we wanted personally as rock music fans," said Christian, a skier in winter and labourer in summer who used to front a local band called Edgewise.

He later moved into the same building as brothers Tom and Terry and it wasn’t long before the three got jamming.

"I had heard they were good musicians and was keen to get together with them," Christian said.

The Leson brothers had cut their musical teeth in a heavy metal band called Negative Aggression, an outfit Tom said was a great learning experience but not taking them in the direction they wanted to go.

"It was fast rock, really intricate stuff and the people we formed the band with were guru musicians who taught us so much but they weren’t personable guys," said Terry. Eventually the band went belly up.

After doing the neighbourly jams with Christian for a while, it was time to see where their creative forces could go. Enter guitarist Darren McLaren. The Ontario native moved to Whistler three years ago after being in bands since high school. After six years with rock groups such as Marmalade, it was time for a change. He headed west.

Darren joined Whistler Blackcomb’s rental and retail division and took a break from playing for a while, to "enjoy the snow and the wilderness". But those fingers got twitching and after a three year hiatus it was time to play again.

"It was great to have that break but I really missed playing and so once I got my life in order here it was the next natural step for me – to find a new loud band to hang with," said McLaren.

Six months later the firm friends have got at least 10 original compositions and a comfortable stage presence that’s a treat to watch. Christian’s bare, tattooed and tanned chest, short shaved head and dramatic arms and eyes suck you into his world of intellectual lyrics. Tom’s heavy hitting falls effortlessly across the entire drum kit – not just in one lazy corner like some. Darren and Terry display a trusting string partnership as they both lead in and out of some fast and furious guitar sets. Together the foursome are a tight and powerful unit that is at once in your face but easy to swallow at the same time.

‘That’s exactly what we want to be," said Tom. "You go to a lot of rock and punk shows these days and they are all playing the same shit. It gets very boring, and that’s the gimmick for us. Our songs are all incredibly different from start to finish."

That definitely seems to be the case. What starts out as a catchy acoustic solo from Darren or Terry soon turns into some haunting tale from Christian on the mic, before exploding into some heart pounding beats and strings that you just can’t help thrash around to. And then the guys go elsewhere, just when you start to feel comfortable.

"All our music is influenced by the people we look up to but if anyone ever said that a song sounds like such and such, we’d chop and change it immediately," said Terry.

"It all comes down to dynamics," explained Christian.

Dynamic indeed.

Don’t miss this special show at Dusty’s next Friday night, Aug. 8, for I have a strong feeling this will be one of those moments where one day you’ll be saying "I was at their first ever show…." Doors open at 9 p.m. and specials will be on offer all night in celebration.