IN CONCERT
What: Sam Weber
When: Friday, Oct. 25, 7 p.m.
Where: White Eagle Polish Hall, 90 Dock St.
Tickets: $20 from
Los Angeles has been a recurring theme in the life of Victoria musician Sam Weber, dating back nearly a decade. If things fall into place in the next few months, it might become a permanent home for the Stelly鈥檚 Secondary graduate.
Weber, 26, scored one of his first wins as a young musician nine years ago when he accepted a scholarship for a prestigious summer music program in California鈥檚 musical epicentre.
Los Angeles wasn鈥檛 his speed at the time, so he returned to Victoria. But Weber has grown to love the city in the years since. With a girlfriend who lives in California and access to a studio in the city鈥檚 Glassell Park neighbourhood, he鈥檚 entertaining the idea of a permanent move there, with an eye on raising his professional profile through promoting and touring his upcoming recording.
鈥淚鈥檓 back and forth a lot,鈥� Weber said Tuesday from Los Angeles. 鈥淚鈥檓 trying to spend as much time here as possible.鈥�
He isn鈥檛 100 per cent sold on moving to Los Angeles or staying in Victoria. 鈥淩egrettably, for as much time as I鈥檝e spent in Victoria, I feel like I missed the boat on a lot of the music community there,鈥� Weber said. 鈥淏ut that said, I think I鈥檝e found a lot of that community in Los Angeles, with different people. From an artistic standpoint, it鈥檚 so stimulating.鈥�
Weber is well-loved in Victoria and will undoubtedly have an audience of supporters at his Friday night release party for Everything Comes True. He has played the White Eagle Polish Hall in the past, but his new songs will better fill the corners of the room.
鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to find ways to pull people more into that trance and make it more of a listening thing,鈥� Weber said. 鈥淚 think what we do well as a band and what people engage with is spontaneous and improvisational. When we play the songs, we dig into where they are at that moment, versus playing an arrangement.鈥�
His music incorporates everything from 鈥�70s singer-songwriter work to modern-day folk-pop. Comparisons with Afie Jurvanen鈥檚 Bahamas project have merit, as Weber shares many of Jurvanen鈥檚 traits, including top-tier guitar skills and a warm singing voice. Weber is also an adept songwriter, which he put to good use during recent recording sessions at United Recording Studios on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles.
In the same room where recordings by Roger Waters, Paul McCartney and Radiohead have been made, sessions for his new recording were overseen by musician and producer Tyler Chester.
Through his relationship with Chester, Weber was able to secure an all-star roster of session players for Everything Comes True, including musicians with resum茅s that include work with John Lennon, Prince, Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, among hundreds of others.
Weber is hoping that鈥檚 a sign of things to come. 鈥淚鈥檓 pretty infatuated with the calibre of players and the whole attitude about it,鈥� Weber said with a laugh that suggested he was still coming down from his pinch-me experience. 鈥淭he roster for this record was pretty indicative of what the L.A. music community has to offer.鈥�
