Inspiration can be found anywhere.
Jon Landry, frontman for the Halifax-based quintet The Stanfields, cites AC/DC, Bruce Sprinsteen and Neil Young among his — which is unexpected, given the band’s distinctive bluegrass-punk sound. But something must have clicked, as the band has won fans all over Canada.
The Stanfields — which also features Jason MacIsaac on guitar, Jason Wright on keyboards and bouzouki (a Greek relative of the mandolin), Craig Eugene Harris on bass and Mark Murphy on drums — is an amalgamation of several other bands in the Halifax area.
Landry said they hung out at the same bars, went to the same parties, and became close friends before deciding to become a band. “It just kind of happened, and we decided to go with it,” he said.
The band’s name pays tribute to Robert Stanfield, the 17th premier of Nova Scotia, who is occasionally referred to as “the greatest prime minister Canada never had,” according to Landry.
It’s also taken from Stanfield’s Limited, an underwear brand. “It just made it easy to remember,” Landry explained.
Landry said the Halifax music scene is small and highly varied, but added that because of the scene’s size, many bands find a sense of community with each other, regardless of their chosen genre.
“It’s a really healthy music scene . . . there’s no room to be stand-offish,” he said.
This year has been fruitful for The Stanfields, a high point being their performance at the Vancouver Olympics.
In an excited tone, Landry explained that this year’s opportunities were a really great payoff for their hard work during the last few years, even though not all of these were ideal.
“You have to eat a lot of crap to get ahead, you have to work hard,” he said.
The Stanfields play at Grace O’Malley’s East Oct. 8.