By BD Marie Hughes

Goodbye Beatdown, a rock/hip hop/reggae band from Vancouver, BC, is climbing the ladder of success, one rung at a time. On top of many show bookings, the band is preparing to release a full-length studio album this summer.

BD: What can you tell us about your Top 3 finish in the Fox Seeds competition?

GB Mark: It’s a huge relief. It’s a major foot in the door. We should probably explain the competition a bit. Fox Seeds (of cFox Radio – 99.3 The Fox) has been going on for 30 years and has helped springboard the careers of bands like Matt Good, Nickelback, and Default. Apparently they get an average of 400 entries a year from throughout BC which are then pared down to a Top 20 by DJ’s and executives at the station. From there, fans get to check out the bands’ websites and vote, both online and by phone or text, for their favorites. Then the bands are seeded into a Top 10. These bands then have to play a showcase for a panel of industry judges, are graded, and typically filtered down to a Top 5. This year, being the 30th anniversary, they chose to make a Top 3 instead. We’re lucky enough to be one of these 3. It has been a long process and more than a little stressful. We started recording in early April and only got our submission in on May 15, the deadline, during the last possible hour.

BD: How important is it for you to place Top 3 with a chance to be the overall winner?

GB Mark: Top 3 is enough of a victory in that we get guaranteed radio play and a chance to perform at The Commodore. That’s been a huge dream of ours from the beginning. There’s a pride thing, too. If you enter a competition, you obviously want to win or come as close as possible. We take our music very seriously. To be eliminated in the Top 20 or even the Top 10, considering that we cancelled Ontario dates and flew home from Toronto just to play the showcase, would have hurt. We’re already looking past this at the next steps in the industry. It’s just nice to move on with some credibility and a leg up in our home market.

BD: Where and how do you write music?

GB Dustin: Well, we’ve got a “bandhaus” where Mark and Sean live that acts as our jam space. A lot of the time things come together there. Sean never leaves the house so all of his writing happens there! (laughs) Mark doesn’t have to practice because he actually taught God how to play bass. (everyone laughs) For serious though, he’s pretty new to the band. So far, he has mainly contributed bass lines and arrangement and production changes to what was there already. However, he’s notorious for being a master of the “noodle” and will tend to write something whenever there’s a guitar or piano around.

GB Mark: Dustin is a vocalist and so his instrument is always with him. (laughs) Coming from a rap and freestyle background, he’s very off-the-cuff and can come up with something pretty well anywhere, at any time. It’s kinda like guerrilla-style songwriting. Sometimes he writes at home where he’s got a keyboard in his room.

BD: What has been a pivotal moment for the band? The place where you rounded the corner and finally felt you were going somewhere?

GB Mark: Going to Toronto in mid-June. This re-defined the band and expanded our horizon like crazy. It was our first real tour, marked our first dates outside of BC, and brought the band together in ways nothing else ever could. We’re on the same wavelength for the first time and ready to move forward.

BD: What have been some of your highlights since coming together as a band?

GB Mark: Spending every weekend in April recording our new album sometimes sleeping at the studio. Playing Richard’s on Richards twice. Advancing through Seeds – every new success was a reason to celebrate. Being Top 3 at Seeds – we just found out on Monday so we’re still on a high. Toronto and all the new experiences from playing Barrie to NXNE. And The Artist Sanctuary showcases. Oh, and getting free stuff from Osiris shoes, Skull Candy and PKG! Represent!

BD: What’s one of your favourite places to play? And why?

GB Dustin: The Commodore! (laughs) Even though only Mark has played there so far. We’ve all seen great shows from the audience and pretty much all of our living idols have been on that stage. Richard’s on Richards was special. It’s so prestigious and also has a great legacy. The fact that it’s slated to close and be demolished in less than a month just makes this more special.

BD: What’s on the horizon for Goodbye Beatdown?

GB Mark: Total. World. Domination! The end! We’re going to start by taking over Western Canada – Vancouver, Victoria, Nanaimo, Kamloops, Kelowna, Penticton, Edmonton, Calgary, and Saskatoon. That’s right people, Saskatoon! After that, we’ll move to Toronto in the spring, set up shop, and start playing all of Southern Ontario and parts of Quebec… maybe even the Maritimes. After that, we really want to dip into the US, West Coast mostly but parts of the South East. Then, who knows? Europe, Australia, Japan… pick a place, any place! We just want to make music for a living, be it on a stage, in a studio or at someone’s backyard bbq. Everything about the job appeals to us. Well, other than long drives and load in and out! (laughs)

GB Dustin: We’re also hoping to make lots of fat cash for our managers – they need it! (everyone laughs)

http://www.myspace.com/goodbyebeatdown