test

MUSIC
Clockwise from top left: Jon Hembrey, Jeremy Drury, Isabel Ritchie,
Simon Ward, David Ritter and Darryl James of The Strumbellas.
ings so it gives me some time to myself and I get to
explore all the cities that we visit. Sometimes it’s my
only chance to actually see the cities we’re playing in.
such an uplifting, phenomenal running song. Have
you ever tried running to it?
HEMBREY (LAUGHING): I don’t usually run to Spirits.
Maybe when we’re in the recording or mixing process
I might have thrown it on once or twice to give it
a bit of a critical listen while running.
“I GOT RUNS IN
MY HEAD AND
THEY WON’T GO,
SPIRITS IN MY
HEAD AND THEY
WON’T GO.”
The inside story of The Strumbellas
and how their guitarist — running with
his mom — co-wrote Spirits, his group’s
infectious, awesome-to-run-to hit song
By Ben Kaplan
Photography by Heather Pollock
IRUN: As your band gets more popular, does that make
you run more, or less?
JON HEMBREY: It might seem counter-intuitive, but
I’m actually running more these days. I’m not sure if
it’s just that I’m more into it right now or that we’re
so busy I find myself having to take advantage of every
bit of free time I get. So if I’ve got some time in the
morning, I might as well just get out there and run.
Once I get in the mindset of just, “Go out there and
do it,” I find I have more time than I think. So I end up
running more.
IRUN: Why do you think so many successful musicians
are runners? What does it do for you?
HEMBREY: I’m not really sure. It’s definitely a challenge
to keep active on the road. You’re travelling so much
and don’t have a lot time for yourself. I like it because
it’s easy — all I need are some running shoes — and
you can do it anywhere. I usually go out in the morn-
IRUN: Can you give me a sense of your current running
routine? How often do you go out, how far?
HEMBREY: I usually run somewhere between five and
seven kilometres two or three times a week.
IRUN: Your mom got you started, right?
HEMBREY: It’s kind of funny, but my mom got me into
both running and playing music. About five years ago
I had been casually running for awhile, really casually
. . . like honestly once or twice a month. My mom had
gotten into it and signed up for the Sporting Life 10K
in Toronto. She asked me if I wanted to try it, so I did.
Signing up for it really made me commit to more of
a schedule because I wanted to finish the 10K. Ever
since then I’ve been a pretty consistent runner.
For music, I had just randomly said to her one day
in high school that I’d like to play guitar. The very next
day she told me she had booked lessons for the next
week. That’s very much her attitude when it comes to
trying new things. Just get out there and do it.
IRUN: She sounds awesome.
HEMBREY: My mom has always been very active
and she’s all about getting out there and trying new
things. She runs and kayaks and takes her dog Henry
for a walk in the woods behind her house all the time.
She’s always been a big inspiration for me.
IRUN: Do you have any ambitions to further your running?
Do you see yourself as a marathon guy?
HEMBREY: As I’ve started running more I’ve been
thinking I might try a half marathon. So that’s my
current goal. And then once you’re there, you might
as well try for the other half and just make a full marathon
so who knows!
IRUN: I got to tell you, I love “Spirits” so much. It’s
Jon Hembrey is a pop music nut and proud of it. Here, he shares his running playlist, plenty of upbeat tunes to get you
across your next finish line (and please see iRun.ca for the Spotify version of this, ready for you to rock on your run).
“First,” Cold War Kids
“Ship to Wreck,” Florence + the
Machine
“Juliette,” Hollerado
“Coming Home,” Leon Bridges
“Love Like Ghosts,” Lord Huron
“The House That Heaven Built,”
Japandroids
“Where I’m Going,” The Wild Reeds
“Demons,” Imagine Dragons
“Wake Me Up,” Avicii
“Renegades,” X Ambassadors
“Leather Jacket,” Arkells
“Hello,” Adele
“Wrecking Ball,” Miley Cyrus
“The Mother We Share,” CHVRCHES
IRUN: Can you give me a sense of the songwriting process.
Do you know you have gold in the studio?
HEMBREY: Simon is the primary writer. He’ll usually
send out a demo to the band and then the rest of us all
weigh in with suggestions and parts to fill it out. It’s a
fairly collaborative process.
Unfortunately there is no easy “gold test” in the
studio. You’re so invested in the songs, it’s hard to
take yourself out of the moment and really listen with
fresh ears. You’re in there making the music you want
to make and that’s what you’re mostly focused on.
I usually find myself falling into two extremes
while in the studio. It’s either, “I can’t believe how
amazing this sounds,” or, “This is total garbage.”
IRUN: What do you like running to and, as a followup,
how do you feel on a run? (For me personally,
“Graceland” is the perfect running song — uplifting,
not too heavy, helps me keep my pace).
HEMBREY: “Graceland” is an awesome song. That’s
going on my running mix for sure! I usually go for
something a little on the pop side of things. Singalong
choruses and a nice mid range tempo. If I hear
something on the radio or if we play with a really cool
band, I’ll usually throw them into my running mix for
a couple weeks.
Nothing too fast either. I tend to play the air
drums while I’m running. So I’ll flail my arms along
to parts of the song I love. I imagine it might look a
little weird.
IRUN: If you could run with any musician of all-time,
who would you run with and, if you could both listen
to the same song, what song would it be?
HEMBREY: If I could run with one musician, it’d have
to be Jimi Hendrix. I’d put on “Don’t Think Twice It’s
Alright” and geek out about Bob Dylan.
“Take Me to Church,” Hozier
“Fools,” Wild Child
“Woman,” Wolfmother
“Graceland,” Paul Simon (thanks!)
“Letterbox,” Pickwick
“That Western Skyline,” Dawes
“Miracle Mile,” Cold War Kids
“Shut Up and Dance,” Walk the Moon
26 2016 ISSUE 06 iRun to raise money and I’m eight years old. — Olive Marie, Ottawa
iRun for the “me” time to think. — Lisa Campbell, Quebec City
iRun.ca 27