Andrew Wright, 24, singer and guitarist of Belleville’s The Enrights and a seasoned veteran of almost 10 years in the Quinte music scene, says that you may not have heard of many of Belleville’s newer artists largely because local musicians don’t have as large a platform as they may have had in earlier years.
Andrew Wright has been instrumental in Belleville’s music scene over the last decade, releasing multiple albums and playing countless shows in the region. Currently a Long & Mcquade employee after graduating from Loyalist College in 2018, music is a staple in his everyday life. Photo by Allen Steinberg, QNet News
“There were around 20 active, young bands making original music in the area when I was in high-school,” says Wright. “Genres like post-hardcore, alternative and emo were big in the early 2010s. There would be 10 to 12 of those bands on one bill at Parkdale Community Centre. Because there were so many bands, if every band brought out a couple people to the show it would feel like there was a big audience.”
“Bands like Our Fiction, Hero For The Weak, Carpenteers, Theatria and bands that are bigger now like Long Range Hustle were bands that would play all the time,” says Wright.
Wright played in a handful of Belleville-based bands since he was 13. His first band, Iron Road, had their first show at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic School. Wright has also released albums and with his bands Music For Deaf People, Rabid Flowers, and currently, The Enrights. He also releases music under his own name. Multiple songs from The Enrights, as well as his solo song, “Knew You Best“, are featured regularly on 91xFM, Loyalist College’s campus radio station.
While Wright, in his adolescence, has released an abundance of music, he says that he’s an outlier of sorts. “There’s a lack of youth presence in the area … A big lack of young musicians making original music,” he says.
Bentwood Rocker and The Enrights have made music at very separate times in Quinte, but both say that today, Belleville’s music scene isn’t what it was in terms of artists creating original material: “In Belleville, there are quite a few cover bands, but very little in the amount of current bands producing originals. And nowadays, it’s easier than ever to produce decent music and to put it on a platform like Spotify,” says Wright. “There’s not a band that could be labelled as ‘Belleville’s band’, where I feel a lot of other cities have defining bands like that.”
Wright, often times, will resort to Kingston to play original sets. “We play The Mansion all the time in Kingston. They always have local bands or smaller Ontario bands playing with bigger, sometimes national bands. Belleville needs a venue like that, something more welcoming to new and local acts.”
He insists that local bands are an integral part of building culture in a city. “Music brings liveliness to a city and makes the place more fun, supportive and positive overall. Think of it like you’re supporting a small business when you go and see a local band,” says Wright.
The Enrights are gearing up to release a full-length album in 2020 with plans to record from Andrew Wright’s living room in Belleville.
Blog of Allen Steinberg 