Sudbury will get a heavy dose of grunge and rock music on Nov. 6 as Stone Temple Pilots, Seether, and Default will take the stage at the Sudbury Arena.
The Canadian leg of STP's tour is making 14 stops in the true north strong and free and six right here in Ontario. Unlike many major tours, this one doesn't make the usual stops in large centres like Toronto, Ottawa, and Montreal, but instead is hitting spots like Sudbury, London, Peterborough, and Oshawa.
That suits Seether bassist Dale Stewart just fine, as he says he can't recall performing in Sudbury before, and actually prefers tour stops in smaller cities.
"I feel like the smaller cities and towns we get better crowds," said Stewart. "You look at big cities like Toronto where there's concerts every night it seems; the night before Bruce Springsteen was in town so who cares about Seether?"
It's been an interesting journey for Seether, who are based out of South Africa, but have a distinctly mid-90's era grunge rock sound.
"It's funny because we grew up in South Africa but we were heavily influenced by American pop culture," said Stewart. "We grew up on bands like Nirvana, Alice in Chains, and Stone Temple Pilots and naturally we became fans of that style of music."
That influence would seep into the band's style and in the early 2000's they began to pick up some international recognition and air play on North American radio stations. While their star was growing overseas, the response back home was less than favourable.
"There's a distinct sound to South African rock music, they incorporate traditional sounds and instruments and we have more of an American rock sound," said Stewart. "It took a while for us to be accepted in our own home country. Maybe there was a bit of jealousy or animosity and people thought we weren't being true to our roots, but over time they warmed up to it and they're really supportive now."
Seether went on to win Best Alternative Artist at the 2008 MTV Africa Music Awards and were nominated for Artist of the Year as well.
The chance to share a stage with one of the bands that helped bring 90's grunge music to the mainstream is one that Stewart says he's excited about.
"It's pretty humbling to be on tour with these guys and to get the chance to hear them play live," said Stewart. "I had never seen them play live before so it's exciting. I'm a fan of these guys just like the people who are coming out to the shows."
Tickets for the Nov. 6 show range from $77 - $105 and are available at the Sudbury Arena box office or online here.
