If you’re a Canadian with a radio, chances are you’re familiar with the Arkells. The alt-rock band has undergone a slow but steady rise to mainstream music fame since their inception in 2006, and in recent years, they have played in sold-out arenas, the 2018 and 2024 Olympic Villages, and even the Grey Cup halftime show in 2021.
The energy at an Arkells show is truly unique, and that’s largely thanks to frontman Max Kerman’s creative pursuits. Onstage bits, unique outfits, and electrifying hits like “Leather Jacket” and “Knocking at the Door” make the band’s concerts an unforgettable experience.
Max’s enthusiasm and drive can’t be replicated, but it can be learned, thanks to his debut novel, Try Hard: Creative Work in Progress. Described as “funny, conversational, and relatable,” Try Hard aims to help readers make sense of their creative goals through the framework Max employs in his musical endeavours and beyond.
An Alberta appearance
I was a casual Arkells fan throughout my late teens, but it wasn’t until I saw them in concert in 2019 that I became hooked. Ironically, I bought tickets for that concert mainly because I wanted to see the opening act. It may have been my first Arkells show, but it wouldn’t be my last.
Try Hard is chock-full of anecdotes from Max’s years in the band, and I wondered if any of the shows I had attended over the years would make the cut. Each time I’ve seen them perform, they’ve done something unique and unforgettable.
In 2019, they promoted taking public transit to the show by playing a surprise morning set on the Calgary C-Train. Later that year, they did back-to-back performances at an intimate venue in Banff, where the crowd had to win their way in. In 2022, they performed a stripped-down set for lucky listeners at the Calgary Tower. When an Edmonton show fell on Halloween weekend in 2022, they encouraged fans to dress in costumes and even brought a group of Handmaids up on stage to dance to a cover of ABBA’s “Gimme, Gimme, Gimme” (and yes, they were aware of the irony).
However, it was a small show in Red Deer that ended up making the cut.
Ticket hunting in Red Deer
On page 197, Max recalls a blistering hot weekend in 2023. The band performed at a festival in Sarnia, Ontario, before immediately taking the bus three hours to the Toronto airport for an 8 a.m. flight to Calgary. From there, a farmer named Gary picked them up in a van to drive the additional hour and a half to Red Deer, where Arkells were set to perform at Westerner Days.
It was on this particular tour that the band had begun hiding physical tickets at key spots in the cities they played, posting clues on social media to give fans a chance to win them in a scavenger hunt. Despite the heat and little sleep, Red Deer would be no different. Gary kindly helped the band stop at some hiding spots, and the hunt went on as usual.
It was Arkells’ second show in Red Deer, 10 years after they had opened there for the Tragically Hip. Max writes that despite the ambitious travel itinerary, the band and crew were in great spirits.
“I thought about whoever scooped up those tickets and how they might feel a bond with our band, and certainly more connected with our music than if they hadn’t come to the show at all,” he writes on page 198. “They saw us cover Dolly Parton’s ‘9 to 5’ while I wore a cowboy hat. Great, right? They got to witness the passion of other Arkells fans. They probably told a few of their friends about this bright, unexpected part of their day. We left town with a new belief in Red Deer as a market that we could come back to and grow.”
The ROI
The chapter containing this story examines the “return on investment” of creative endeavours, and Max goes on to explain that he has no way of being sure if this — or any — plan was “worth it.”
“When I think about the decisions I make,” he goes on to write, “I often ask myself, ‘Well, what’s the alternative? What do I want to do with my time? What’s important to me today?’ I try to be pragmatic, and the ticket scavenger hunt is a small example of an exercise that might contribute to our long-term future.”
I can’t speak for whoever found those tickets, but I feel there’s always a return on investment when bands provide unique experiences and prove they care about their fans.
Read more in Try Hard: Creative Work in Progress by Max Kerman, available wherever you buy books. Arkells will next be in Alberta to perform at the Calgary Stampede on July 6.
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