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@ James Struthers and Kate Morg¢

You, me, and James and Kate

We interview musicians James Struthers and Kate Morgan

By Angela Espinoza, Arts Editor

ew musicians have the
Prevesssn and powerful

bond that James Struthers
and Kate Morgan share. Struthers
is perhaps best known for his song
and accompanying music video
to “You, Me and Optimus Prime,”
and Morgan holds the honour of
being the youngest performer to
play at Lilith Fair. Upon meeting,
the two solo artists found a
unique professional and personal
chemistry. Now, as they wrap
up yet another tour together this
Friday, February 24 (details below),
the pair take the time to tell us
about themselves, their friendship,
and their upcoming show.
When did you first get interested
in music?
James Struthers: | was classically
trained on piano, and [back then]
I muscled my way out of taking
lessons—my parents were adamant
that I continue—but I missed [the
process] so much when I quit that
I [picked] up guitar, and [that
lead to] a natural progression into
writing and [performing]. After that
I got [gigs] playing at open mics in
Kelowna while I was going to UBC
Okanagan.
Kate Morgan: I know everyone
says it and it’s totally cliché, but
music's been a part of my life for...
forever, since I was a little baby.
My mom sang in choirs and was in
drum circles, and I started out in
choirs and bands. When I was 13
or 14, I [began learning] guitar and
piano and started writing songs. It
got really serious when I was about
14, and it’s brought me to this place
now.

8

When did you decide that this was
what you wanted to do?

JS: I wanted to [play music] just as
a hobby, but slowly people began
encouraging me to continue. When
other people are on board, [and
they] believe in you, you start to
believe in yourself, and over time it
transitioned from hobby to career
path.

KM: I started playing open mic
nights when I was 14, but I wasn’t
quite committed to the idea of it
[yet]. It was still experimental, but
by the time I was 15 I was so in
love with playing music that I just
decided I wanted to [make a career
out of] it.

Do you have any favourite pieces
amongst your work?

JS: [My songs are] all like children,
they all have their pros and cons
and unique places in my life and
my creative history. I think the ones
that get the best response from
others are probably my favourite,
just because those are the ones that
make the biggest difference in other
peoples’ lives.

KM: With music, you always are
in love with the last thing you
wrote, because it’s often the most
present thing you’re going through
at the moment. My song “Gypsy”
is always something that will reign
true for me, and it’s a song that I
really love and am proud of. But,
like I said, it’s always that last song
that’s closest to your heart. There’s
anew one that I wrote two nights
ago called “Let Go,” and I’ve been
very excited about it, but “Gypsy”
is probably the one that’s [had] the
most long-term love affair.

Can you describe when you first
met each other?

JS: It was in August of 2011, we’d
been in touch by email setting up

a couple shows together. I met
[Kate] the day of our first show,
and we spent the next three [or]
four days together playing a
couple other gigs in BC. We went
to Live at Squamish—which was
an unbelievable experience—and
[Kate] asked if she could come

on the rest of the tour, and I
spontaneously [agreed]. It was a
fantastic trip.

KM: James had planned this cross-
Canada tour, and he was starting
on the West Coast. We planned to
play a couple shows together, do
like a mini tour from Kamloops to
Vancouver. We played the shows
and we got along really well, but
first and foremost we wrote songs
really well together. We had a great
connection from the get-go, and just
a couple days after we met each
other we decided that I was in for
the long haul and would go all the
way across Canada with him. It was
this pretty risky decision on both of
our parts, but it’s one that’s really
paid off.

Do you have any fond memories
from that tour?

JS: There are definitely a few!
Probably the most fun [though] was
narrowly escaping a house fire in
Knowlesville, New Brunswick. We
were staying in a straw house and
accidently left some newspaper

on the wood stove that heated the
unit, and it burst into flames. We’d
all just gone to bed, so we were all
still awake enough that we heard
the flames go up and smelt the
smoke, and we all jumped out of
bed and [left] the house. That was
horrifying.

 

KM: We used to get into arguments
about the proper way to make a
sandwich and whether or not it was
okay to mix [cereals]; those kinds
of silly things. We did a lot of fun
stuff; we had a lot of opportunities
to be spontaneous, where we
[would] jump out of the car and

go swimming or just pull over and
start writing a song. We had a lot of
really crazy things happen to us on
the tour, we were [even] in a house
fire once.

What can we expect for the show
on Friday?

JS: Kate and I like to have a good
time on stage and we’re both pretty
amicable and personable. We tell
stories of where the songs came
from and from our lives. [There’s
audience] interaction, some sing-
a-longs, and lots of humming,
clapping, and [finger] snapping.
It’s an expression of our past and
present through music.

KM: James and I really just have

a lot of fun, and it’s a cool way

to [organize] a show. We play
[separate sets] and then we finish
the show together; it’s a cool
transition between our individual
projects and our duet projects
because they’re all very different
and unique yet they [blend]
together really well. By the end of
the show we're just having a really
good time.

What: James Struthers and Kate
Morgan in concert

Where: Joe’s Apartment, 919
Granville Street, Vancouver

When: Friday February 24 @ 9 p.m.
(This Friday!)

Cost: $10 in advance ($12 at the
door)