Hailing from Conestogo, Taylor Leith leads Relic City, a Waterloo-based rock band taking the stage at Maxwell’s Concerts & Events this weekend.
At K-W Rockfest, Relic City will be headlining the Saturday night event, along with other local rock bands, hoping to share their sound and energy with the crowd.
The show starts at 8 p.m. with doors opening at 7:30 p.m., and Leith says it is a great night for music fans to rock out and have a drink or two.
“It is going to be a blast. We love Maxwell’s. There is half price Steamwhistle,” he said with a laugh. “It is going to be put on by Steamwhistle and there are a lot of great local rock bands that will be sharing the stage with us, and just come support your local Woolwich boy.”
The Elmira District Secondary School graduate has been playing music for years, and has joined forces with three seasoned musicians, creating Relic City.
Dave Mansell, Nick Maldonado and Emmett O’Kane make up the rest of the band, and Leith says they work well together and bring plenty of experience to the stage and the recording studio.
“Dave, he is our bass player and our producer. Me and him, we have been working together since I was about 13. He was my first guitar teacher and we have really good songwriting chemistry and six years later here we are. He is incredible at what he does and has been doing it a long time,” said Leith. “Emmett, our drummer, and he has been in a few bands before. Before Relic City, he was doing technical metal core. He is an incredible drummer, very heavy hitting, yet precise. He was in a band called Die Atlantic, and then a new experimental band called the Weight Lifted. Nick, he has been in a few bands. He was in a band called Seeing Eye Dog, and he also played in a progressive hard rock band called Paradox, he was the front man and the lead guitar player, and he was also in the Eric Charles Band.”
With all of these experienced musicians in one room, the next logical step was to record their talents. Relic City recently released their first studio album, Pull Me In. He says the band’s sound has a distinct 90s feel to it.
“Our sound is melodic rock. It is a bit of a throwback to the ‘90s. You hear a lot of inspiration from early Big Wreck, Our Lady Peace, I, Mother Earth, bands like that,” he said. “So far, the response has been really good. It is going really well. We have some good reviews, so it is going really well.”
He says he can’t pick a favourite song, but there is something for everyone on the album.
“That is kind of like picking your children. I can’t really pick a favourite. I would recommend different songs to different people,” he said.
He is really looking forward to the show at Maxwell’s this weekend, and says he knows his family will be there, and will be proud of what he has accomplished.
“All of our families are at all the shows, they are behind us 100 per cent,” said Leith. “I hope that we are able to fill up the room. It is going to be a huge thing. If it goes well this year, it may turn into a returning gig. Obviously, I want it to go well. It is the first show that we are headlining. That is a big deal. It is going to be crazy. There are a lot of good bands, and we are really excited. It is going to be insane.”
For tickets to K-W Rockfest, visit www.ticketscene.ca/artists/relic_city/. The show is general admission and tickets are $10. The venue is online at www.maxwellswaterloo.com.
For more information on the band, Relic City, visit their website at www.reliccity.com.
