Sten

Sten was born at an early age long ago. He always sang, rarely bothering to speak as a child. His first gig was as an alto with the Royal High Preparatory School choir in Edinburgh Scotland. He tried piano, but became obsessed with the wrinkles on the piano teacher’s hands and failed to progress. He then tried his lips at trumpet. It was as a trumpet player that Sten earned early fame as a recording artist, featured as the third solo horn on “Bright Eyes” in the legendary Frontenac Secondary School sessions – alas, out of print. His career in high gear, Sten joined a fledgling band. With two burly brothers on rhythm, a schoolmate on sax and keys, and Sten on trumpet, this un-named ensemble quickly mastered 11 songs and a spot on the Kingston Ontario church basement circuit. Critics were unanimous in their call for a vocalist – but Sten was hired as a trumpet player and did not want to dilute his art. The solution was to hire a singer and a guitar player. Sigma was born. This band progressed to playing ground floor venues, and at times even performed on stages. One cold spring evening Sigma was playing outside at Kingston’s Lake Ontario Park. They were alone, except for a small band of musicians out searching for a new singer. By now Sten had realized that trumpet only really worked in the odd song, and he had once again found his voice – now tenor. He was approached on leaving the stage and asked to join a touring rock and roll dance band. At seventeen he had found his first full time job. Showdown toured extensively for almost two years in satin shirts and velvet suits, until ragged and disheartened, the band disbanded.

 

Moving to Ottawa, Sten tried a little solo work, playing his own songs, and weird versions of songs by others that few had heard. Playing alone was boring, so Sten co-founded Krypton in Ottawa, and then the Bijou Boys. Sten was finding himself as a promoter, and stardom seemed certain. His most famous slogan referred to the Bijou Boys exchange of instruments – necessary since they shared “bass player” duties. Sten coined the phrase “the musicians rotate on their instruments”. Audiences, however, were disappointed when their lurid expectations were not met. Some years passed and Sten answered an innocent posting on a music store wall. He soon found himself in a soundproof room in a suburban Oakville basement with an eclectic assortment of aspiring musicians. The air was filled with the sound of music, and totally devoid of oxygen. The lack of oxygen had a euphoric effect and this group became convinced of their prowess, venturing forth on at least two occasions to actually demand money for performance. Soon a new ensemble formed, focused almost entirely on original songs, contributing the rhythm section for the album. And Sten and multi-instrumentalist brother Gim were playing as an acoustic duo. Billed as Huldufólk- "the hidden people" - Sten and Gim were oft-time favourites at the Danforth's bohemian Renaissance Cafe. But the cafe retired, and Huldufólk withdrew to their homely crags and crevices.

 

Snow shovelling is the quintessential Canadian social experience. Pretending to be friendly and meeting the neighbours is a convenient excuse to pause and calm a straining heart. Just such an encounter resulted in knowledge being shared of a bass playing neighbour. When said neighbour surfaced that spring, I tossed him a copy of "See Your Future", and invited him to listen. Some weeks later he cobbled together an evening jam. It was an amazing evening. Bill had managed to assemble the city's worst jammers. Selecting songs was painful, and what ensued was worse. I despaired, but we persevered. Turned out that Bill writes great songs, and as soon as we changed our strategy to working on our own songs the magic began. After almost a year as Kontraption we shuffled the deck and Truth Panel was born.