The Fourth Well ready for Fredericton return

The Fourth Well is ready to bring their unique mix of traditional styles and modern beats and rhythm back to Fredericton.

L-R (Dillan Tate, Ryan Levangie, Ian Beaton, Johnathan Bennett, Daniel Fougere and Josh Bennett (Submitted)

The band, originally based out of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, will bring their signature sound back to Dolan’s Pub Jan.31 and Feb. 1.

The band’s name derives from the fourth floor of a residence in St.Fx, which was alcohol free (wellness), where lead-singer Johnathan  Bennett and fiddler Ian Beaton resided in their first-year of university. This is also where the band first jammed, with alcohol present.

The band then created a YouTube cover and came together formally.

“We decided to form and play as a band after we recorded a video of us doing a cover of Mumford & Son’s hit “Little Lion Man” in our basement apartment in Antigonish. Once we put it online and saw the encouraging feedback and began work on original material, we thought we might have something worth taking a shot at,” says Josh Bennett (mandolin).

That video now has over 10,000 views

While Ian joined the band after meeting the other five members through Johnathan in university, the other group members have known each other for 13 years and grew up living just 10 minutes apart.

The band consists of Johnathan and Ian, with the band’s drummer Daniel Fougere, bassist Dillan Tate and guitarist Ryan Levangie.

The Fourth Well says their influences include bands such as The Tragically Hip, Mumford and Sons, and Hey Rosetta!

Like their influences, the band plays a eclectic number of unique instruments, such as the Irish drum, the Bodrhan, African hand drums and spoons.

Tate says that with a wide range of instruments and six band members, the music-making process can be both rewarding and frustrating.

“We have 6 guys who have their own tastes in music debating ideas to create something we can all enjoy and call original. We do have situations where songs are brought to the table and one person will take the reins on a project. But there are always ideas bouncing around the six of us all the time.”

Fougere agrees.

“It’s kind of like controlled chaos where an idea is presented and then it’s a mental cage match until all 6 of us can agree on a final product. It’s a rewarding process.”

The band’s songwriting draws from life lessons and interesting concepts that they deem suitable to make music out of.

“Some of our tunes range from songs about seasons, to songs about how buckets full of water relate to the thoughts in people’s heads,” Fougere says.

Fougere says that when the band started out they had more of a traditional sound, but since that time, their sound has evolved.

“Since then, each member has been able to bring more of what they enjoy to the table, whether it is old-school funk, heavy metal, or even modern electronic music, with the east-coast folky core strongly intact.”

He says that committing the time to the band can be challenging.

“The biggest challenge has been to balance all six personal lives and still perform and write music. I think the fact that we are all still playing music and enjoying it speaks for itself.”

Tate says over the last year the band has been a lot more difficult to manage with band members spread across Nova Scotia.

“The band is spread out across the province with Dan in the valley, Ian in Antigonish and the rest of the band in Halifax. The distance makes it harder to jam our original tunes especially while we’re gigging on the weekends. The rehearsals are definitely spontaneous so we try to be as organized as we can when giving the opportunity.”

But the band acknowledges that the opportunities are worth the wait. They recently appeared on CTV Morning Atlantic, an appearance that the band said was rewarding.

“It was a lot of fun seeing what really went into a show that we pretty much grew up watching. (back when it was called breakfast television)” said Josh Bennett

“The experience was very fulfilling, we got to play two original songs on live television and we didn’t manage to fuck it up,” said Tate.

Bennett says that the band couldn’t be at the place they are at now without support from their parents and their community.

“We’ve also had lots of financial help along the way – whether it be parents purchasing instruments, or even a community member helping us out greatly with some wheels, it all adds up.”

The band is currently recording their latest material; you can find their music at these sites.

www.youtube.com/thefourthwell

www.reverbnation.com/thefourthwel

l www.thefourthwell.com

www.facebook.com/thefourthwell

www.musicnovascotia.com/thefourthwell