Interview: Dave Wanless of Sven Gali
Sven Gali made their debut on the Canadian music scene in the early 90’s, with a self-titled debut that went gold and launched the band to hit music videos, Juno nominations, and world touring alongside the likes of Def Leppard, Foreigner, Pearl Jam, and April Wine. Life took the band in different directions, and they split in 1996, but Sven Gali is back this year with a new EP, 3, set to be released on June 12th via RFL Records. Sven Gali frontman Dave Wanless took the time to answer some questions about the band and the new EP.
When you released “Kill The Lies” in 2018, it was to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the first album going gold – did you have any plan of continuing on to an album at that point, or did you think it might have just been more of a one-off reunion at first?
I think all of us at first thought it was a 1 off and maybe a couple of shows, but when we got together and played it felt good, shortly after everyone’s ideas were put on the table and the “therapy sessions” began.
Now that you’ve had activity beyond 2018 single, some recent touring, and now an EP, how do you all feel as a band? Does it seem like revisiting your early days or more like a new incarnation moving forward?
It feels like waking up doing whatever you want with absolutely no pressure at all! The early years were a good time and the foundation of the band but now with the addition of Dan and Sean from Varga, the band is heavier. So we look towards the future remembering where we came from.
It wasn’t just a reunion of the band, but also a reunion with David Bendeth, who produced your first album. Nowadays, he produces a lot of modern hard rock bands, so do you feel it was like a step toward modernizing your sound for the new releases?
Well when we decided to record, and the topic of producers came up we thought of Dave right away. We are very comfortable with Dave; he knows us very well and gets the best out of us. We really like what he has done and knew he was fit for the new tracks.
You also had Jon Howard produce a couple of new tracks – what was the difference between working with the two producers in terms of how they helped you bring Sven Gali into 2020?
I think David had a vision of where he was going with “Kill The Lies” and “Break Me”, he was a huge part of the Sven Gali sound, we co-produced with Jon on “Now” and “Hurt”, a couple of songs written back in the day…we kept bouncing ideas around until we thought we had something, Jon brought the heavy to the studio right off the bat and that was that!
You’ve had other bands and projects in between, so what was it like to step back into the role of Sven Gali frontman?
Well, live with the new line up it feels like a new band, we are doing this for ourselves as well as the fans. I feel no pressure, I enjoy being up there with the boys again.
Sven Gali has toured the world alongside some big names – what’s a favorite touring memory or crazy story?
I remember our first show in England, the crowd was singing our songs, I remember thinking, shit, these people know who we are!
You sometimes get grouped in with the Grunge movement just because of the time period you guys were making albums, but you definitely weren’t completely in that world, with more metal influences and a tinge of the 80’s in there with your music. Did you ever feel like you had a genre or niche you had to fit in to or was it more of a “here we are, and this is what we sound like” kind of attitude?
I think on the first record we had the attitude that we needed to fit in, but that became less important during the making of Inwire and definitely 3, with the new EP we just played, never thought once about who was going to hear it.
I’ve heard you once presented Neil Peart with “Drummer of the Year” at the Toronto Music Awards – can you talk about that experience?
So, I was looking forward to presenting Neil with the award, myself, and the singer of 5440, that night Neil did not make [it] and we accepted the award on his behalf…the guys have not let me forget it…
What’s the near future looking like? Obviously touring is held up for a time for everyone, but do you have any ideas or a plan to record a full album next?
We have a lot of material as a jumping point. it seems like the next step if we can’t play live then we may start recording.
How about a message to fans who are excited to see Sven Gali back in action?
I would like to thank everyone who has supported the band over the years. We look forward to getting out there live again. Until then give 3 a listen and stay safe.
Keep up with Sven Gali via their official Facebook Page.