Pop-rock band The Elwins know what it takes to survive long gruelling road trips.
Since forming in 2007, the Keswick, Ont. quartet have embarked on numerous tours across North America and they've also performed to crowds in Europe and Asia.
But staying focused mentally focused and being prepared can be a difficult thing on the road, as The Elwins know.
“There are definitely ups and downs sometimes but I think the strongest thing is that we are all good friends and we all support each other. If someone is really down the other guys will help them out," said keyboardist Feurd. “Just knowing that you got a great group of guys around you is really good.”
On Sunday (Nov. 15) the Elwins will be performing at the Queen's. Their stop in the Harbour City is part of a North American tour that has taken them to places like South Carolina, Pennsylvania and Kentucky, Saskatchewan and Alberta.
“We’re are super excited to have the opportunity to do it,” he said. “Every time we get to go on tour it is really great, we just love travelling, love meeting people, love playing music so it is the best of everything.”
The Elwins are on tour promoting their recent record, Play for Keeps, which was released earlier this year.
“We wanted to make something that was fun and had a lot of energy,” he said. “We definitely wanted to do something a little differently than the records we had made before and push ourselves to go into new territory.”
Freud explained that even the creation process was different from what they had done before.
“We went into the studio and just built them from the ground up in the studio with our producer and that was something we had never done before and I think contributed a lot to the way the songs came out," he said.
The band's single, So Down Low, was featured in a Fido commercial. Freud said the commercial has helped gain new fans.
“It is really great,” he said.
The Elwins, who are already working on new material, are a very goal oriented as a band. Freud said part of their success has come from setting goals and sticking to a plan.
“We want to do this for the rest of our lives and I think you need to set goals like that and have that sort of foresight if you want to keep it exciting when the times are a little bit tougher," he said.
The Elwins perform at the Queen's at 8 p.m. For more information, please visit www.theelwins.com.
reporter2@nanaimobulletin.com