4TheRcrd Mag.

I got to chatting with Hula Girl, a lovely young woman who, aside from jiving it with a hula hoop during some of Vancouver’s premier live gigz but is also, in her nerdy-slash-brilliant capacity, a sly manager of one of my fave fusion groups, Wassabi Collective. After a short convo (and facebook pokes) we had enough material for an interview, so here’s what we compiled for ya. Wassabi Collective is a forward thinking band whose lyrics spread a message of positivity. The band can be seen at sold out shows across this country and were recently nominated in the 7th Annual Independant Awards for Best Song “Blues on My Mind” and their song “Simplicity” was just featured on an episode of Road Trip Nation on PBS. Having just released their first full length studio album “Stories Not Forgotten” in the Spring 2007, they are already on board for a follow up.. “Wassabi’s joyous sound takes you on a cosmic carpet ride from satisfaction to pure bliss…THE ULTIMATE FEEL GOOD ELIXIR!” (EXCLAIM, TORONTO)

1. It’s a pleasure meeting you guys, I saw your last show at Richards
on Richards. I also caught you, young lady, at the Adham Shaikh gig
at the commodore this summer. My first question for you is, where do
you guys get the inspiration to collaborate with other Artists?

Its fun, we’re all friends.

2. Aside from collaborating, how would you differentiate yourselves
from other artists?

In our tour vehicle our steering wheel is on the right hand side!

3. Where did you guys get your name.

It got us and it still brings a tear to our eyes

4. What were your strongest influences when you formed the band, and
what are these influences now?

At first it was a chance to get the community together to jam and party, it’s still the same but the community’s bigger

5. Tell me about your evolution in terms of your largest hurdles and
challenges, broadly speaking.

Well, in between the long drives, little pay across the broad Canadian wilderness, tour vehicles breaking down, and balancing our family lives..we seem to have adapted very well. We are feeling great and know we are establishing our infrastructure in the industry.

6. What do you think about your fan-base in Vancouver, Victoria, etc?

We love our ever growing West Coast fan base. Vancouver has been going off and Victoria is a second home, we owe a lot to our roots.

7. What are your hopes for the music scene in Vancouver, tell me what
you think it needs.

It’s good to see the scene grow, it would be great to see more people supporting live music and promoting it. There is so much talent!

8. Any dreams, wishlists, plans you want to share with us?

We want to Travel the World, Play the Olympics, Sell Records, Inspire the Masses and Help End Global Poverty.

9. What have you always wanted from independent media in Vancouver and
what do you think of Beyond Robson?

Lots of Great Coverage!! Beyond Robson is a great site to do just that!! Its great value.

10. What would you do with a million bucks?

Invest in the Future

PICTURE CREDIT: Ella Pedersen’s photostream