Local Charm

This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity, spelling, and readability. Music excerpts are noted where they appear in the episode.

Cold open

Jesse Hubner: Everything I had been writing, nothing I had been writing felt genuine. I don’t know if it was because I was lacking in inspiration or what, but as soon as I moved out here, it was like an untapped well of songs that I didn’t even really feel like I was writing. They just kind of were writing themselves.

Music excerpt

---

Eric Chan: I’m Eric Chan and this is Inlet Wire, your direct line to BC artists.

In this episode, I’ve got Jesse from Victoria band Local Charm.

We talk about how his move to the coast changed his songwriting and how this record traces back to an old high school connection.

Jesse Hubner: Local Charm is a five-piece indie folk group out of Victoria, BC. We’re all originally from the Interior, Okanagan, but we play music out on the coast here.

Eric Chan: At first, it sounds simple: a five-piece band from Victoria. But Jesse told me the story behind this record goes way further back. And the old connection is with the guitarist, Shane.

Jesse Hubner: We grew up in the Okanagan together. We went to separate schools, but we were both involved in the music scene in Vernon.

We never hung out much until we were both graduated, but at one point, once we were graduated, we got together. So that was probably like 11 years ago.

And we wrote “New Tiers,” which is the first song on the album. We wrote “New Tiers,” and we also wrote “Forget.” Anyway, those two songs were written when we were writing songs together when we were 19.

And then he moved to Victoria here, and I stayed in the Okanagan for another 10 years.

And then it was more just like, “Okay, these songs are written.” And maybe someday we’ll be back together and we can record them or something. But if not, whatever kind of idea.

Music excerpt

Jesse Hubner: And I didn’t actually probably hear from Shane. I don’t even know if we talked for so many years, which is kind of crazy to say, but people kind of fall apart for a while. We’re still good friends. It’s just funny.

We’re only eight hours away, but we never talked really. But as soon as I found out I was moving to the coast, I got ahold of him.

It’s been nice rekindling that friendship because it kind of completely fell away, and now it’s completely back. So it’s great. Everything just seemed like it was meant to happen kind of thing.

Music excerpt

Eric Chan: When they are writing, Jesse says they don’t try to force it. If it comes naturally, it stays.

Jesse Hubner: I had kind of started some songs when I was in the Okanagan, but I had no real inspiration musically. Everything I had been writing, nothing I had been writing felt genuine.

I don’t know if it was because I was lacking in inspiration or what, but as soon as I moved out here, it was like an untapped well of songs that I didn’t even really feel like I was writing. They just kind of were writing themselves.

It was almost like something that was supposed to be was just kind of happening. I didn’t have to try so hard, which made it feel more genuine, which was kind of something I was searching for.

Something about moving here just gave it a whole new breath of air in a lot of different aspects of my life, but particularly in songwriting. I don’t even know if I was there and writing it, but songs just kind of started coming out.

Music excerpt

Jesse Hubner: When I moved to Victoria, it was almost like these songs started coming out. They were kind of recapping things I’d learned, experiences and relationships, where I am now, who I want to be, and what I want to do differently than what I was doing back then.

Just reflecting on different areas of being a person. It’s hard to explain exactly a theme of it all, but it’s all just reflections of my everyday life.

Eric Chan: That approach is part of why this album came together quicker than you’d expect.

Jesse Hubner: It wasn’t actually as long as we expected. When I first moved to the coast, I had maybe three songs kind of almost finished. Then we got together for a practice or something the first time, and we wrote two or three songs. So after one or two practices, we were almost halfway to writing the album.

And then the other four songs progressed really naturally over just a few more practices. So we almost had all the songs together within maybe a couple months of even forming the band, and even before we had turned into more than a two-piece.

The songs came super naturally. And once we had the full band together, they were able to write their parts for it. Once we all felt comfortable playing it together, we were able to get into the studio and record it.

Music excerpt

Eric Chan: With the full band together, they went into the studio and recorded their self-titled album, Local Charm. For Jesse, there was one moment in the studio that shaped the whole thing.

Jesse Hubner: Getting into the vocal booth and just being able to do the ten songs back to back. It all felt like most of the takes were probably first try, which felt very free.

I was able to do all those takes, and I’m not usually very happy with listening to myself, but I was able to listen to those takes and was like, they recorded them great and I can actually bear to listen to my tone.

The guys liked it too. So that was probably the best part: just rattling through the vocals that fast and having them turn out the way they did. It was great.

Music excerpt

Eric Chan: The most meaningful track isn’t always the obvious one. For Jesse, it’s something different.

Jesse Hubner: Personally, this would be “Get It Got It.” It’s one that kind of sits in the background for us. We don’t get super excited to play it.

To me, if there is a theme for the album, I feel like the lyrics in “Get It Got It” kind of are that. It’s a reflection of you thought you were listening, but the person you were talking to didn’t feel like you were. You can see that now.

Just learning things too late — not too late, because you learn things late in life — but just learning things later than you’d expect maybe.

Music excerpt

Eric Chan: And that’s Jesse from Local Charm.

I’m Eric Chan, and you’ve been listening to Inlet Wire, your direct line to BC artists.