THE YEAR THAT WAS

Hey everyone I’d just like to start with a blanket apology for everything from not playing enough shows this past year to not keeping everyone updated enough throughout some major developments with the band. The beginning of 2007 started off with the completion of our album “We Are Not Normal.” This album couldn’t have happened with out the help of many people. It turns out doing an album on your own never seems to work out that way. Also as we completed the album we joined the Kharma Management team which has been the greatest boost to both our commitment and focus to this band. To have the full support of people in the industry who believe in us is a healthy dose of confidence.

After becoming good friends with Kharma family member and well known Toronto producer Byron Wong during the “We Are Not Normal” album (thanks for letting us borrow so much stuff!) we all decided our next project should be together. As the Winter was ending we started working out some songs for our next project at home in Bracebridge. Thankfully I had found a few months of free rent in Bracebridge from my amazing Aunt and Uncle. I was house/guitar-sitting for them as they went away to do some traveling. We used this opportunity to set up our equipment and do some writing and practicing to prep.

In the Spring as we started working on the songs with Byron a few of us had been hit with some family health bombshells. Lets just say we all grew up a little bit in 2007 and even though these issues are ongoing we’ve learned to really appreciate where we’re all at in our lives and as a band. It was amazing going through the writing process with Byron and learning so many things about song structure and creativity and learning to balance it all.

As we rolled through the summer in Muskoka with the exception of our weekend travels to Toronto we lived for Muskoka Dry Gingerale, Boating/Wakeboarding, bonfires and lakefront band meetings on the dock. We really tried to take it in this year because I think we all feel that it may be the last regular summer we’ll have for at least a few years. We also decided that it was time to make two major changes. It was time to move on in more ways than one. We decided that come summers end we would move to Toronto together and we would change our name. For some reason we thought that moving to Toronto was going to be the easy part. Such was not the case!

We found a loft in Toronto in an old factory that is now filled with rehearsal spaces for local and touring bands. We lucked out and got our hands on this loft which is actually a live-in rehearsal studio with four bedrooms. The price was right and after a weekend of painting and cleaning in September we’ve all grown to love this place.

The band name was a difficult task. We were four or five months coming to agree on something and we decided on Winhara. This is a really personal name that relates to us all. We grew up and together as a band on Winhara Rd. The Hara is also known to some as “the vital center of man” and it is the belief of not distinguishing between body and soul but finding that balance that brings them together to help find harmony and fulfillment. It’s that balance we’re trying to find as a band and as men. The ability for us to win hara is directly linked to our ability to take this band as far as we feel we can and hopefully you’ll all join us along the way.

I hope to see you much more in 2008

Kent