HedleyNew Album The Show Must Go On
By Karen Bliss
Hedley’s third album, The Show Must Go, is on target to debut in the top 10 on Nielsen SoundScan’s Canada’s top 100 chart, up against fellow Nov. 17 releases from John Mayer, Justin Bieber and Norah Jones, not to mention the current chart-toppers Michael Buble, Carrie Underwood, the Glee Cast and Michael Jackson. Tough company, but Hedley has some loyal fans.
By Karen Bliss
Hedley’s third album, The Show Must Go, is on target to debut in the top 10 on Nielsen SoundScan’s Canada’s top 100 chart, up against fellow Nov. 17 releases from John Mayer, Justin Bieber and Norah Jones, not to mention the current chart-toppers Michael Buble, Carrie Underwood, the Glee Cast and Michael Jackson. Tough company, but Hedley has some loyal fans.
The multi-platinum selling guitar-pop band had its best opening ever at radio with the first single, “Cha-Ching,” in August and has just followed it up with “Don’t Talk To Strangers.” The video has just been serviced to video outlets.
“It is the number one most added. It’s just flying, so that’s really encouraging,” says Shawn Marino, director of A&R, at Universal Music Canada. “And we just got the video. Think Desperate Housewives meets Dexter. It’s a tongue-in-cheek look at an older woman’s appreciation for younger men.
“When we went out with ‘She’s So Sorry,’ [from Hedley’s last album, 2007’s Famous Last Words], there were obviously some early ads, but it just took a little bit more time. ‘Cha-Ching’ was instant as far as locking up radio and locking up video, so it was the most successful start we’ve had.”
Hedley — Jacob Hoggard (lead vocals, guitar, keys), Chris Crippin (drums), Dave Rosin (guitar) and Tommy MacDonald (bass) — is certainly one of Canada’s biggest new pop/rock acts, and the success of Famous Last Words and its 2005 self-titled debut, both double-platinum (200,000 units), has certainly helped lay the ground-base for such an opening this time.
“We spent a lot of time marketing into Quebec on the last record as well, and Quebec was an early adopter of ‘Cha-Ching,’ as they are with ‘Strangers’ now,” says Marino. “We just went out with ‘Strangers,’ so it’s the result of some hard work emerging that market.”
Sales have been consistent and the band has sold out tours nationwide. For the first time, Hedley will be headlining an arena tour — booked by S.L. Feldman & Associates — that starts March 22 in Penticton, BC, at South Okanagan Events Centre and ends two days after the Juno Awards in St. John’s Newfoundland at Mile One Centre on April 20.
“How do we grow it? We’ve made a really strong record here,” says Marino, simply.
On The Show Must Go, Hedley has shifted its sound since its debut album, following Hoggard’s third place appearance on 2004’s Canadian Idol, and is decidedly more pop than it was initially. Canada, typically, has more rock bands, singer-songwriters and roots acts than pop bands, and Hedley has now “found their lane,” as Marino puts it.
“When we did the first record we expected, yes, there will be a certain built-in base by way of [Jake’s] notoriety [from Idol] at that point, but we obviously didn’t rest on those laurels. It was, ‘Okay, how do we grow this band beyond that?’ and the decision at the time was, ‘Let’s go with ‘On My Own’ and ‘Villain’ at rock radio just to see if rock will adapt to this band,’” Marino recalls.
“There’s a feeling at radio that when you go to pop, you can never secure a rock base. And so I think that everybody was just trying to test the waters and see what is this band? Is this a rock-leaning band that can tour with rock acts? And it was immediate, right after that first single, that it was like, ‘No, this is a pop band that sounds rock, that’s got a little bit of punk to it, but it’s mainly a pop band.’
“We never really strayed from that,” says Marino, “but it was just finding how far left or how far right of pop the band would exist, and they dictated that by way of how they play live and what songs they write, so we just helped them find that.
“Some [songs] off the first record, ‘Villain,’ etcetera, would skew rock, but clearly from ballads and ‘321’ up to ‘She’s So Sorry’ and ‘Never Too Late,’ all of these types of songs, they’ve found their niche and they’ve followed it with this record.”
Hedley hasn’t yet had a proper shot internationally. With their first two albums, they fell victim to reshuffling at the labels, the first with Capitol, the second with Geffen. Marino says there is “a lot of interest” for The Show Must Go with Universal Music Canada’s label partners in the States.
“They’re watching the great response of ‘Cha-Ching’ and ‘Stranger’ and the album finally in stores,” says Marino. “We expect to get some traction on that. It feels like as timing we’re set up for Christmas, they need spring or summer of next year before they can get behind it. I don’t have a release date.
“’Cha-Ching’ is up on iTunes in the U.S. and they’re watching what we’re doing and it’s just a question of finding the right timing, but we made a great record. There’s a lot of interest in America and I hope that turns into something.”
For further information: www.hedleyonline.com
