Tele

Winnipeg band brings its bright alt-rock sound to GP

Thursday March 27, 2008
Tele

Brendan Berg of Tele is ready to deliver a second dose of the Winnipeg band's rock show to Grande Prairians March 28 at Better than Fred's. He said they've been readying a set list of their best live material to rock the Friday crowd at the local bar.

For those who may have missed their February appearance in town, Tele is a four-piece rock band, headed by singer/guitarist Matt Worobec, bassist Brendan Berg, keyboardist Zack Antel and drummer Derek Allard. Apart from a short stint in Toronto in 2006, Tele has been based in Winnipeg for the four-and-a-half years they've been playing together.

Berg said while the Winnipeg scene doesn't give them easy breaks, it's been good for musical growth. "There's a lot of really talented artists here, very supportive people, but at the same time, fairly critical, so you don't get praised for whatever you do," he said. Berg added the city was a good place for the band to cut its chops and build a following.

The Tele sound is a keyboard-heavy-rock sound, created by the two main songwriters, Worobec and Antel. "It's alternative rock with a definite European influence," said Berg. The band draws on a diverse set of influences he said, anything from heavy metal to rock bands like the Muse, Radiohead, Coldplay and even jazz. "We all have a very broad range of music that we listen to."


Before they formed a band, Worobec and Antel were writing music together, and the keyboard was important back then, as it is now. With the addition of two members, Tele kept the keyboard high in the mix.

"Zack's sound is a way to differentiate ourselves from the rest of the guitar-rock crowd, but I mean the keyboard definitely appeals to our musical sensibility as well," he said. Berg added they were looking to sound unique while still being radio-friendly.

Their 2007 self-titled release is available on iTunes and CDBaby, but was made more as an exercise for the band. "The biggest thing for us with this CD is that we had been playing for three years before we put anything out. We really needed to have something for people to take home with them (from a show)," said Berg.

The future for Tele includes finishing a cross-Canada spring tour before heading back into writing mode during the summer. Berg said they hope to get back on the road in the fall, as well as start a new disc in the winter of '08.

They're not sure at this point whether they want a major label record deal, after the upheaval of the last few years in the music industry. "Major labels have lost a lot of their foothold in the last decade," he said. "In some ways, it could be very beneficial, but we've heard horror stories of bands that get signed onto a major label and then with all the restructuring that's going on, their representative will get fired or something and then their album will get shelved."

Berg said they'll be putting on a high-energy rock show for fans new and old at the Grande Prairie gig. "We try to use all the tools at our disposal to make it as exiting as possible," he said, adding they want to deliver a "good solid set of rock music," for the rock audience in GP.

Tele plays Better than Fred's in Grande Prairie March 28, with opening act The Imports. Further information on the band can be found at www.myspace.com/tele.
- Ian Kucerak/Encore!

February Edition of Chart Magazine

Tele

Hometown: Winnipeg, MB

Official Site: www.myspace.com/tele


Sound: An epic fusion of ethereal keyboards and yearning vocals, Tele are a band best heard loud. Echoing British acts such as Radiohead, the electro-rock quartet makes despondency oh-so-listenable. Note to the kids in white belts: this is what emotional music is supposed to sound like.


Why? The eardrum-shattering quartet from the 'Peg have racked up quite the rep as being on the city's most killer live acts. But when you have such a powerhouse live show, you can expect that people will want to take a slice of it home with them – and will be on your ass about it.

That's precisely why Matt Worobec, Zack Antel, Brendan Berg and Derek Allard will be spending the next few months in the studio working on the quartet's debut record. After getting some attention from Muse producer David Bottrill with an early demo, the band have solicited the Grammy-winning music maven to work with them on the forthcoming record. "We're excited to release a piece, a cohesive unit that we can show to people and say, "Here. This is Tele," Worobec says.

So far, the Tele that scenesters know is the stage incarnation. But for a virtually live-only band, the four-piece have done quite well scoring a secure following. Demo versions of "Choose" and "Lullaby" have become playlist regulars on 92.9 KickFM, Freq 107 and Hot 103 in Winnipeg, the Edge 102.1 in Toronto and XM Satellite Radio. They've been showcase favourites and had their praises inked in music mags all over the nation. Hell, labels have even flown people out to Winnipeg to catch Tele shows.

Needless to say, this brand of hyper-exposure has created some high expectations for the record, which is slated to come out in the spring.

"We like pressure," Worobec insists. "It gives you something to strive towards. Even the pressure from the press is good because they care enough to talk about you. It just keeps us working harder."

If Tele's work ethic is any indication, this album will be hotter than hell.


-Chart Magazine, Jen Zoratti

- Chart Magazine

“Tele took the stage and proceeded to blow the
roof off the place. Their keyboard-driven,
electronica-fused set fired on all cylinders, and Matt
WorobecÕs fervent howl was probably heard in
space.”
- Uptown Magazine

“Tele's music was epic in scope. So much so that it's
hard to believe it came from a band with a four-
letter moniker. Thick, meaty guitar riffs met up with
weirdo keyboard parts, crashing in mid-air and
spilling the volume out into the crowd.”
Cameron Gordon
Chart Magazine
- North By North Festival Review

Known for tearing the roof off many a venue in Winnipeg, one of the city's must-see live acts are finally ready to channel their ass-kicking energy on a record.

Tele will be holed up in the studio this winter, working on what will be the quartet's first studio album. After working with Grammy Award winner David Botrill on a demo in the spring, the band have their sights set on the Muse producer to work with them on their full-length record.

"We want David to be involved somehow," frontman Matt Worobec says. "He's been booked up for the last six months, which is usually how long it takes to make a record. Hopefully he'll be with us in some aspect of the process."

Botrill isn't the only one to have his ear tuned to the keyboard-driven, angst-ridden wail of Tele. The four-piece have made some serious noise among scenesters and industry types alike, scoring showcases at North By Northeast, Juno Fest, the Western Canadian Music Awards and Canadian Music Week.

More recently, the quartet have attracted the attention of Coalition's Rob Lanni (who manages Simple Plan and Finger Eleven) and Warner's Steve Blair. The pair will be flying in from Toronto to catch Friday night's set at Dylan O'Connor's.

"We have faith in our live performance," Worobec says, simply. "And we've had positive feedback from these guys before."

Still, as sonically powerful as a Tele show is, there's only so far the band will get relying solely on their stage prowess. According to Worobec, the pressure from fans and press to get a record out has been good for the band.

"We're at the point where it's time to release a real album, with real tour support and a real label behind it. I think the people who have seen us are intrigued. We're at that place now where Tele can either explode or flop. We're hoping it's the first."

The quartet also hope a record will help expand their fan base by getting some exposure outside of their hometown. "We're excited to release a piece, a cohesive unit that we can show people and say, 'This is Tele,'" Worobec says.

"It'll be a tool to tour with. You can't tour on T-shirts. People want to take a piece of you home with them."

Business aside, the quartet hope to make a Tele record that does what its live component so effectively does: resonate with listeners.

"We want this record to have those moments on it that will make people say, 'This is what makes this band great,'" says Worobec.



- ChartAttack.com Staff

November 5th, 2007

The debut self titled album from Tele was released this past September 6th in their hometown of Winnipeg. Formed in 2003, the band consists of vocalist and guitarist Matt Worobec, keyboardist Zack Antel, bassist Brendan Berg and Derek Allard on drums, and although they are armed with the traditional 4 piece set up, these 'Peggers can write some of the most melodically catchy tunes in the country, and dare I say it, North America? The reason I make mention of this is because of the attention that their live show received from people such as David Bottrill, who is the recipient of 3 Grammy awards due to his efforts on albums by Peter Gabriel, Silverchair and Tool.

After having dutifully described the basic history of this quartet, it's about time that I started discussing the music!

The album's opening track, "Hello, Hello" sets the tone of the album as an extremely energetic epic 47 minutes of your life that you can relive over and over again. Crunchy guitars that put Miss Vickie's to shame, bass that sounds so fat I can't even begin to compare it to your mother, along with synth sounds so tasteful that you'll forego what others say and attempt to sing them anyway, accompanied by drums that will have every other driver glaring at you for not keeping your hands on the wheel while you barrel down Balmoral at 8:15 AM. Tele carries you through highs and lows, with radio-ready singles such as "Notice", "Choose" and "Lullaby" to less structured songs such as "Don't Break The Girl" and "Shame". One of the most memorable lyrics comes from the ballad "Choose": "I'm head over heels and I'm falling in love / Falling in love like cocaine in the blood with you / and there's nothing I could do". Lyrically, the album has an overtone of lament, with Worobec's natural vibrato leaning towards the dissolution of love, relationships and the sadder side of the emotional spectrum in general. But listen closely, because for every stanza of disappointment, there is an equal jubilant force found in the background "woh's", or unmistakeable sing-a-long qualities that every track possesses.

The most hated question that a musician can be asked is to compare themselves to other artists; luckily for them, I will take the task upon myself to summarize them in mainstream comparisons: if Coldplay took more chances with music while adding dashes of angst; added to The Killers incorporating more strings and replacing their singer with someone that has both talented and diverse vocals, while mixing in some Radiohead for good measure, then you can try to comprehend Tele without actually hearing them.

In summary, if you like rock that's catchy enough to garner radio play on commercial radio across the country, but with enough quirks to keep listeners with ADD off their medication, then you will enjoy this album thoroughly: This is Tele. www.telemusic.ca
- Jean-Paul DeRoover
- Lakehead University - The Argus

"Clearly Tele know what it's all about when it comes to delivering the goods on stage. Any time you combine good music with good looks, you're bound to win over the crowd exactly the way Tele did." - Rob Kingston, ChartAttack.com

"Singer/guitarist Matt Worobec's utilizes his wide vocal range from a strong, aggressive delivery to soaring and sweet. The songs, especially these, are radio-ready."

----------------------

U of A Interview

Tele visionaries combine rock, electronica for big, beefy sound

Tele - The Gateway, The University of Alberta
Simon Yackulic, Arts & Entertainment Writer
Thursday, 3 April 2008

With songs ranging in style from the rough and raw fist-pounding distortion of "Notice" to tunes such as "Monster" that have openings reminiscent of a classical sonnet, pinning down a good descriptor for Tele's musical stylings seems a little troubling. Even the band tends not to talk about it much.
"We sometimes describe it, in a general way, as extreme," explains keyboardist Zack Antel, speaking from Grande Prairie, where he, vocalist/guitarist Matt Worobec, bassist Brendan Berg, and drummer Derek Allard had just pulled in during their Canada-wide tour. "If we're doing a big song, we really make it quite big, and if we're doing a more sparse song, then we try to play that up."
As Antel acknowledges, both their classic rock lineup and keyboard-driven pop-rock tracks evoke comparisons to other bands. To him, "any of the British bands or electronic [musicians]" are considered to be major influences on the band as a whole, and each individual band member has their own personal taste in tunes that affects the musical output: Worobec listens to singer-songwriter pieces to boost his creative edge, while Antel notes his own preference for symphonic material. The net result is the unique sound coming from this Winnipeg-based four piece.
Creative sound engineering also plays a part in the strong sound that Tele creates. To create a keyboard sound that many a casual listener would swear is a distorted guitar, the inventive musicians ran keyboards through guitar amps with guitar effects and distortion, creating a sound described by Antel as "beefy yet also cut." While this has been done before by other bands, it fits in perfectly with Tele's existing sound and creates stronger riffs than a normal keyboard could achieve.
"I love that dirty, fat synth sound, like the band Holy Fuck or Justice—that really thick sound," Antel explains.
Tele is currently independent of any label, despite having received the praise of Chart magazine, where they were touted as "one of Canada's top breakout bands of 2007." While recognizing the advantages a label could bring the band in terms of promotiown and advertising, Antel finds the current arrangement is working really well for the band. Being accountable to only themselves, they remain "in complete control of [their] own destiny" and able to distribute their music extensively over the Internet. The band also looks forward to their return to the stage in Edmonton, where they've found success before.
"We had a blast [the last time we were in Edmonton]," Antel mentions. "The crowd was really energetic and really into it. We're just hoping to repeat that and just put on a really high energy, high emotion rock show." - Karen Bliss, Rollingstone.com and Canadian Musician Magazine AND Simon Yackulic

Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Record Review

Tele. Tele. Hailing from Winnipeg, Tele has quickly been gaining a reputation outside of their hometown. At its core, Tele's self-titled debut album delivers solid hard rock guitar riffs fused with complex keyboard arrangements and a dash of modern electronic influences. Imagine the ambition of The Who's Tommy or Guns N' Roses' Use Your Illusion and combine it with the electronic and art rock sounds of Radiohead and Muse. Arguably the most notable aspect of Tele is how powerful and unique singer/guitarist Matt Worobec's vocals are. Sounding like a cross between Soundgarden/Audioslave's Chris Cornell and Stone Temple Pilots/Velvet Revolver's Scott Weiland, Worobec aggressively delivers his versatile vocal range throughout the entire album. The astounding performance begs the question, however, of whether Worobec will be able to perform as well live as he does in the recording studio. The album is also quite short, clocking in at around 47 minutes and contains 13 tracks, allowing most of the songs to be short and sweet. The unique blend of styles is sure to satisfy any listener willing to open their mind. - McGill Tribune