RTL Talks: Bran Van 3000

Rock the Lake will shake Prospera Place from Aug. 11 to 13.

Ahead of the show, 104.7 The LIZARD, 103.1 Beach Radio, and Kelowna10 will be the place to be for all things RTL - from exclusive interviews to ticket giveaways!

Among the bands taking the stage is Bran Van 3000 on Saturday night.

Bran Van is a Canadian alternative rock and electronic music band known for their eclectic and genre-blending sound. Formed in Montreal in the mid-1990s, they gained international recognition with their 1997 debut album "Glee," which featured the hit single "Drinking in L.A."

The song's catchy hooks and laid-back vibe earned them a devoted fanbase and commercial success.

Ara, from 103.1 Beach Radio, sat down and spoke with DJ James Di Salvio.

Below is a condensed and edited version of the interview.

Ara: Drinking in L.A. was massive. People still love that jam and sing along and know all the words. It's go to be a good feeling as a musician seeing the fans sing your song back to you a quarter of a century later?

James: There's always a kind of a moment in the story that I remember, with Haig V, who produced the record with us, where we were working on ‘Drinking in L.A.’ and were a block away from the Metropolis in downtown Montreal.

And a couple of the VJs from MuchMusic, which was rare to have them in Montreal because they’re usually in Toronto, came by to say hi to Haig and Rod Shearer and everybody.

And I just remember they all came in - because they just saw The Chemical Brothers at Metropolis - and it was like, I don't know, '96 or something. They just came in and said, ‘burn your guitars, boys. Rock & roll is dead.'

Basically, it was that whole Electro 808 hip hop thing, it just came in like a typhoon. I guess in relation to [Drinking in] L.A., it was a nice moment in time because we were like, ‘do you want to hear this song we're working on?’ and [the VJs] were like, ‘unless, it has beats, I don't want to hear it.’ So [Drinking in] L.A., I guess, was a nice moment in time between hip hop and electro and rock and roll.

A: 25th Anniversary tour, has that sunk in yet?

J: It was a beautiful way to press reset. I think, because, all those years of everybody not going out, and in some ways, it was kind of like we still have one of our M.O. - which is to have a good time and dance at our shows.

It's still club music in its DNA. To come out and have our 25th anniversary tour, and people coming out of the pandemic and stuff, it was just beautiful timing. It was such a beautiful thing to live in and get to be out there again and dance and it's going on this year and just keeps on going.

We're going to play some newer music that we started writing. That was the best part of it all, too, is how well we got along, and how we're making a new record as a result.

A: How many members on stage? Every picture I see of the group looks like a huge party!

J: It's kind of a clan, you know? It came out like that. Depending on a show you can have 30 people on stage. But right now we're just enjoying touring with the core group of the summer.

A: Who does the DJ part in Drinking in LA? Was that a real radio DJ at the time? As a radio DJ myself I need to know. Who was the voice of the DJ?

J: Yeah, that was me. That was me and Steve "Liquid" Hawley. We’d go to L.A. and we'd hear that kind of voice, but it was done in like a deep Montreal winter. But yeah,, I’m that DJ and “Liquid" is the dude who calls in for the free tickets.

A: Rock The Lake - people are ready for a good time - are we going to have a mosh pit break out? What’s the vibe going to be like when Bran Van 3000 hits the stage?

J: Listen, anybody can jump in. That the jewel of the whole thing. Anybody who wants to mosh and jump, that's what we're all about. And with some nice disco glazing. But we're just hoping to have a great time. We're so excited to play in and be out west, which is new for us. It's been a long time since we were out west.