PLAN 37 RECORDS NEW ALBUM
November 9, 2015
Hey everyone! Great news from the Plan 37 camp. We entered Taurus Recording Studio this weekend and under the guidance of producer Jon Drew we recorded 13 songs for our full length album. After three long days we were able to get all drum, bass and guitar tracks down. To be completely honest we did all of the rhythms live off the floor. So with the exception of vocals and my guitar leads, everything you hear on the album is totally live and raw. This process requires a little more time and patience but the end result can be something special if captured properly and the band is well rehearsed and up to the task.
Our good friend Nic Pouliot from RockPhoto.ca stopped by to document the recording session on Saturday afternoon. Nic is easily one of the best live band photographers around these days. Check out the pics on facebook at the link.
We’ll be returning to the studio shortly so Shawn get get his vocals down, followed by another session for back up vocals from all of us.
It’s my hope that this recording ends up on vinyl, but only time will tell. We have no information to share yet as to who will be releasing the record.
Our next gigs are on Friday Nov 27th in Guelph and Saturday Nov 28th in Toronto. Both shows are My Fingers My Brains showcase gigs.
Posted by Dyingscene.com on Friday, July 25, 2014 at 10:48 AM (PST)
In good news, the guys in Toronto punk act The Class Assassins have released a music video for their song “Start Again.” In not so good news, they have also announced the departure of longtime guitarist Cactus Vella, who is leaving the band to focus on his solo work.
The music video and a statement from Vella can be found below.
“Start Again” appears on The Class Assassins’ Treason 7-inch, which was released back in 2011 through Rebel Time Records. The band’s latest release, a 9-minute ‘concept single’ entitled The Addiction & The Solution came out last March.
CACTUS SINGS SPRINGSTEEN FREE DOWNLOAD
July 11, 2014
This past week Cactus released a free download of “Cactus Sings Springsteen”, two Bruce Springsteen covers. The download features “Going Down” from the “Thunder Road” compilation released earlier this year, as well as “Hungry Heart”, an out-take from that same recording session.
Both songs feature Katie Kaboom of The Mahones on accordion and were recorded by Moby Holman who also recorded the “Sailin’ On” EP in 2012.
Speaking of the “Thunder Road” comp, a big thank you to everyone who has supported it. We’ve reached over 100000 plays from the bandcamp page alone!
The good people at DyingScene wrote this little blurb about the release of “Cactus Sings Springsteen”.
Posted by DyingScene.com on Thursday, July 10, 2014 at 1:51 PM (PST)
Toronto’s favorite punk rock solo artist Cactus Vella has released a short EP entitled Cactus Covers Springsteen, featuring covers of Bruce Springsteen’s “Going Down” and “Hungry Heart.” You can stream and/or download it for free below.
Vella’s debut EP Sailin’ On was released in December of 2012. That’s also available on his Bandcamp page.
DYINGSCENE COVERS THUNDER ROAD COMP, DOGS 7INCH
May 15, 2014
Posted by JerryLowLife on Tuesday, May 13, 2014 at 9:26 AM (PST)
Anxiety Attack Recordings have released a new compilation album called Thunder Road. The album is a folk-punk tribute to Bruce Springsteen and features Cactus Vella, Jon Creeden, Jesse LeBourdais, The Matchup, and more!
Give it a listen below, and if you like what you hear, you can download it for free.
Posted by JerryLowLife on Tuesday, May 13, 2014 at 11:12 AM (PST)The EP was released by Rubber Factory Records.
KING X KING WEST AND MORE
December 11, 2013
I recently was asked to play the King X King West 2013 Music Festival at Bar Hop.The Music Festival is already in its 4th year I shared the stage with my friends The Deforesters as well as Joan Smith (Little Foot Long Foot). The night was sponsored by Beau’s Beer, and if you ever get the chance to play an event with beer sponsorship chances are you’ll be drinking for free! I stage-tested some new material that night and some of it went over very well. Some not so much…. Ha!
I also recently played a great show with my friends Jesse Lebourdais and Jon Creeden who just released a split inch. Jesse and Jon were making their way across Canada on tour and I booked us a gig at the Bovine Sex Club. Those two dudes are some of the hardest working Canadian folk-punkers I know!Be sure to check out their split 7inch here.
And lastly, I forgot to share this a few months ago. I’m really honored to have been included in the most recent Toronto Scene Report in Maximum Rock And Roll Magazine. The report incuded Sinkin’ Ships, The Class Assassins, Whiskey Hearts and my solo stuff! I’ve been reading MRNR since 1991 and it always makes me happy to get any kind of mention.
EXCLAIM TV PERFORMANCE
June 5, 2013
Posted by http://exclaim.ca Tue June 4, 2013
Over the past two decades, Toronto rocker Cactus Vella has been spreading his passionate brand of punk, but has recently shifted his focus to acoustic music. He has merged this newfound passion with his old one, and accordingly, labeled it “acoustic punk.”
The term fits his new music perfectly, as we learned when he came by our back patio to record a session. The song, “Ship Wreck,” has yet to appear on an album, but its full of Vella’s trademarks, including a strong nautical theme, gruff vocals, and a simple-yet-effective chord pattern. Watch the video below. Read the rest of this entry »
BLOG: Whiskey Hearts, Class Assassins and more…
April 2, 2013
I’ve been pretty busy these days making music with my band The Class Assassins, as well as the Whiskey Hearts Collective.
Whiskey Hearts recently recorded two songs that will be on our debut 7″.
The songs were produced by Dave Baksh and mastered by Jon Drew.
The 7″ will be available via Stereo Dynamite Recording this June. You can pre-order your limited edition color vinyl here.The debut Whiskey Hearts 7″ single is available in 3 different limited edition color vinyl options: Clear, White, and Purple.
If you can’t wait until June you can download the two songs through bandcamp right now. Read the rest of this entry »
Cactus Vella Music 
