After Feist dominated the Junos last year, it seems that there is a whole plethora of artists popping up all over who are heavily influenced by the Calgary native. Thank Magnets, a female duo from Alberta, say they have her to thank for paving the way.
“I’d say we were definitely inspired by Feist, Eric Clapton and a lot of local bands,” says band member Jasmin Frederickson. “The Calgary music scene is very under-appreciated and underrepresented. It’s definitely there. There are amazing artists in Calgary. People just don’t take the time to learn, appreciate and support local talent.”
But, unlike Feist, Thank Magnets has two women, Frederickson and Aislinn Grant, which means double the fun and double the talent. Frederickson has many adjectives to describe their music.
“Simple, yet very satisfying, intellectual, but relatable,” she says. “There’s a harmony between Aislinn and I. I hope people feel how passionate we are and they too can feel passionate about their dreams and go for it.”
Frederickson says dynamic duo has been fervent about music from a very early age.
“Through high school we both were very interested in music, but never thought it was practical,” she recalls. “After we were done school, we decided that if it was a passion we would make it work. There haven’t really been any very big sacrifices, just more time dedicated to music rather than family and friends. Following music has made life a struggle in some ways, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Even though music has always been a part of them, it took some growing up for the couplet to blossom into the lyrical thrill they are today.
“In high school, I had an idea that I was alright [at music],” Frederickson admits. “I wasn’t confident about it. Confidence is half of being good at music. Basically just someone had a guitar and booze, we sang and something clicked. Then we started doing some open mics, then created a couple original songs and just worked.”
After coming together, they faced the next step: figuring out a name. Staying true to their mythical aura, they landed on Thank Magnets.
“[Thank Magnets is] philosophy of life to thank whatever brings you to a situation or brings whatever and whomever is in your life,” Frederickson says. “We believe that relationships and friendships are important. A friend who wrote me a letter about thanking magnets is what started it all.”
At the end of the day, it does not matter who you pay homage to, as long as you’re doing something you love. They have devoted themselves to their passion, which has proven to be a wise choice. They are now part of the small, but very talented music scene and things can only go up from here. They are very humble and plan to keep it that way forever.
“In 20 years, hopefully we would like to be established artists, helping other developing artists,” Frederickson says. “We have a dream of owning a big cottage with a recording studio, so we can make music whenever we want.”