The cutting-edge career of Big John Bates

The last time Big John Bates played Sault Ste. Marie, he had with him The Voodoo Dollz, a troupe of lovely and daring burlesque performers.

When he and the Dollz parted ways a few years back, Bates took the opportunity to shift focus from 'the show' to more adventurous music styles, he told SooToday.

"That shift is just something we wanted to do as artists."

He's no stranger to shifting musical gears, having played everything from thrash metal - he was a founding member of Annihilator, reportedly Canada's highest-selling band in the style - to rockabilly throughout his lengthy career.

"I've always wanted to do something that was cutting-edge. When I did thrash, it was pretty new. It was kind of underground and pretty hip. When I did the Voodoo Dollz thing, again it was a scene that was sort of rising," Bates said. "I'm a musician. I don't really define myself by the style I play. I definitely like to mess around with different genres."

Since delving into the Canadian music scene in the early 80s, Bates has always had a DIY attitude toward his craft.

Often self-producing, Bates said his 2015 release, From the Bestiary to the Leathering Room, was recorded in large part aboard his boat in Vancouver Harbour.

It was a very comfortable experience, he said, and the vessel afforded optimal acoustics with its hardwood floors and teak walls.

"I own it and it was a place I was a lot of the time. We could record at our own leisure and as we wanted to do it," he said. "We didn't want to be pinned down by someone else's schedule."

Keeping in line with that independent approach, Bates explained that he sees two sides to the Canadian music landscape.

"There's one side that follows the money, and the other that looks to its own voice," he said.

He told us that constant touring and the sharing of resources can lead to success, and he finds doing things on his own terms extremely rewarding.

Big John Bates performs this evening, Friday, November 27, at the Rockstar Bar with special local guest opener The Steeltown Playboys.

Doors open at 10 p.m. and you must be 19 or older to attend.

To learn more about Big John Bates, please click here.

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