Cold Weather Captains – Five Questions With

Cold Weather Captains Unveil Their New Single, “Royal Purple”

Cold Weather Captains are a Toronto-based high-energy rock band known for their funky and eclectic sound. The group was originally founded in 2018 as a unique instrumental trio featuring Bradley Scott (lead guitar), Erik Meechem (rhythm guitar), and Kevin Penny (drums). Shortly after the release of their 2021 EP, City Limits, CWC quickly morphed from a laid-back jam band to a fully rounded pack-a-punch machine with power-house additions to their lineup – magic man and lead vocalist, Justin Di Donato, and high-kicking bassist, Christina Dare.

“Royal Purple is about being kind and unapologetically yourself. When writing the lyrics, I imagined someone being in a full on royal purple suit, rocking it and disregarding any haters – kind of like Prince.” – Justin Di Donatom lead vocalist

CWC’s music is characterized by their ability to seamlessly blend various genres including psychedelic rock, funk, disco, rap, and hip-hop. Their catchy and original tunes keep the audience dancing on their toes, never knowing what’s coming next. There’s a little something for everyone and a guaranteed groove to move you.

Listen to “Royal Purple” below and learn more about Cold Weather Captains via our Five Questions With segment.

Care to introduce yourself to our readers?

We are Cold Weather Captains, a five-piece rock group based in Toronto, ON. The band was originally formed in 2018 as an instrumental trio founded by Bradley Scott (lead guitar), Erik Meechem (rhythm guitar/keys), and Kevin Penny (drums). Shortly after the release of our 2021 EP, City Limits, Justin Di Donato was brought in on lead vocals followed by Christina Dare on bass and backing vocals. The new additions to our lineup inevitably resulted in a massive shift in our sound, writing process, and energy as a group – which is evident when comparing our recent singles to our last EP.

Our music is defined by the way we blend various genres together such as psychedelic rock, blues, funk, and even a little rap and hip-hop. No two songs of ours sound the same because we often tumble down a different stylistic rabbit hole every time we write together. We’ve been described as both a multi-genre and genreless group since nobody to this point has been able to pinpoint exactly who or what we sound like – and frankly, we like it that way! We want to sound like us! That being said, we’ve settled with calling ourselves a rock group since that seems to serve as a catchall these days.

Simply put, we’re a band that knows what we like and how to thread it together.

Tell us a bit about your most recent release.

Royal Purple is the second single off our upcoming self-titled album which is set for release in September.

This track is our own homage to the music that shaped us individually and collectively as a group. We drew from those diverse realms of glam metal, pop rock, funk, hard rock, and blues, and took inspiration from legendary acts such as AC/DC, The Rolling Stones, Bon Jovi, Queen, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. The song is meant to be a playful and sincere nod to the music we all love as a group. We initially aimed to write a song that offered an element of audience participation through the call and responses when playing live – its creation was more of a necessity to round out the LP as we play live to pump the crowd.

The lyrical meaning of the track stems from Justin’s typical infectious positivity. Royal Purple is an anthem about being kind and unapologetically yourself. When writing the lyrics, Justin drew inspiration from Prince by imagining someone decked out in a royal purple suit, rocking it, and forgetting about the haters.

Where do you tend to pull inspiration from when writing?

It comes from a connection made when we’re jamming together. Erik calls it “creating vibes” – it’s those small moments where the band feels they are discovering a new groove and a unique feeling from the music together. When these moments happen, we try to capture and refine what we have until it’s a solid tune. We draw inspiration from each other and the different sounds and styles that each of us brings to the table.

Do you have any upcoming shows you’d like to tell us about?

We have an upcoming show at Dakota Tavern with the Spare Parts on August 10th. We took a small gigging break post-studio so this is our first show of the summer.

We will also be performing on August 22nd as a special guest for Casa Loma’s Soul in the City alongside Juno Award-winning Sean Jones and The Righteous Echo.

Lastly, we will be having our album preview show at the legendary El Mocambo on September 15th alongside the Boneheads.

What’s your goal for 2023?

Our main goal for 2023 was to put out our first LP which we are set to release on September 22nd. Having the opportunity to record at Union Sound Company in Toronto alongside Alex Gamble was truly our highlight of the year. The album will be a culmination of two years’ worth of writing and collaboration with the current lineup, so we look forward to finally releasing it into the wild!

Apart from the album, our ongoing goals continue to be playing shows, writing new tunes together, and making meaningful connections with other artists in the Toronto music community. 

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