Peter McCully: Welcome back to The PULSE Community Podcast. I'm Peter McCully. After one long, dry summer here on Vancouver Island, the rain has finally arrived.

Dave Graham: And I'm Dave Graham. You're welcome.

Peter McCully: I'm sorry, what?

Dave Graham: The rain, Peter. That was me. Everybody knows the surest way to make it rain is to wash your car. So for the last couple of weeks, I have gone to the car wash every day for two weeks.

Peter McCully: Every day?

Dave Graham: Every day. I bought the unlimited all-you-can-wash monthly pass, got the wash and the wax and, you know, the tire shine, and a growing pile of air fresheners. And, hey, now we have rain.

Peter McCully: Well, the weather folks have been talking about El Niño, Dave, so it's about Pacific Ocean temperatures.

Dave Graham: I'm pretty sure $200 worth of car washes had something to do with it.

Peter McCully: Yeah, that's right, Dave. Split the credit. It's you and an entire ocean. And we'd like to express our appreciation as this podcast is brought to you in part by Tablet Pharmacy. Locations in Parksville, Qualicum Beach, and Nanaimo.

Dave Graham: Visit them online and check their prices at tabletpharmacy.ca.

Peter McCully: Ladysmith singer-songwriter Ryan McMahon returns to The PULSE Podcast fresh off a major win. His single There She Is earned Best in Folk North America at the InterContinental Music Awards. Now he's releasing a rock-leaning double single, All in Good Time and Masquerade, while writing his ninth studio album.

Ryan McMahon: Happiness is fleeting, and it comes to us in these small doses daily if we are smart enough to recognize it. I'm just enjoying now just learning every day. So All in Good Time really just started kind of more as a folk song, and it is just truly an optimistic little major key number to remind myself that you kind of are on the right path, guy. You are figuring it out now, and you're doing better than you were yesterday.

Dave Graham: Did you hear that, Peter? Ryan's talking about all in good time, like the cause-and-effect process of car washes and subsequent rainfall.

Peter McCully: Well, I think Ryan's song is about personal growth, Dave.

Dave Graham: You say potato, I say potato.

Peter McCully: Never mind. Best-selling Qualicum Beach author Bill Arnott will be joining us on the podcast fresh off a Canadian Geographic expedition across central Mexico.

Bill Arnott: I was a little bit proud, if I say so, with a very small bag that I'd packed for that Mexican expedition. There was a team there to receive me and they said, "Where is your bag?" I said, "This is it." "This is it?" As I say, it's a little bit vain, but I was very proud of having just a tiny bag for a pretty good length expedition there. So the lean and mean. Don't get me wrong, I still like taking a change of clothes if space allows.

Dave Graham: A tiny bag for a long expedition. I hope to reach that level someday. I can't get out of the house for a run to the post office without being fully prepared for every possible kind of weather and contingency. I've got my umbrella and my rain jacket, my windbreaker, gumboots, spare socks, and then spare spare socks. And-

Peter McCully: We get the picture, Dave.

Dave Graham: And then there's the snacks and drinks and a phone charger. Oh, fire starter, gotta have that. Emergency chocolate. Oh, no, wait. I already ate that.

Peter McCully: On a future edition of The PULSE Community Podcast, we'll be chatting with musician David Essig of Protection Island. David spent close to 60 years writing songs that tell stories.

Dave Graham: BC native Jason Priestley and Cindy Sampson star in a TV show shot in Victoria called Private Eyes West Coast, and they are going to drop in for a visit.

Peter McCully: Musician Stephen Fearing of Victoria will be joining us soon. Stephen has a busy solo career, as well as being a member of Blackie and the Rodeo Kings.

Tablet Pharmacy: At Tablet Pharmacy, they provide the personalized service you deserve. Check their competitive prices online at tabletpharmacy.ca before you even leave home. They offer free delivery and blister packaging options to make managing your medications easier than ever. With convenient locations in Parksville, Qualicum Beach, and Nanaimo, Tablet Pharmacy has been serving Vancouver Island since 2019. Stop being just a prescription number. Experience the Tablet Pharmacy difference today. Visit them online and check their prices at tabletpharmacy.ca.

Ian Lindsay & Associates: Ian Lindsay of Lindsay and Associates has played an active role in the local community since 1979. He has been with RE/MAX, Vancouver Island's most advanced real estate business network, since 1996, marketing and selling residential, rural, strata, recreational, investment, and project development real estate. Ian has received several awards recognizing his exceptional community commitment locally, as well as awards for outstanding performance and achievement from both RE/MAX International and the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board. You'll find true real estate professionals at ianlindsay.ca.

Dave Graham: Congratulations to Pam Messig of Port Alberni and Pat McCotter from Courtenay. They both won tickets to the Great Canadian Road Trip on their swing through BC. It's with Michelle Wright, Jason McCoy, and Doc Walker.

Peter McCully: Congratulations to all, and keep an eye on our website, newsletter, and social pages for more contests coming this fall. Our first guest has done some epic trips, and he manages to pack light while he does it.

Dave Graham: He's from Qualicum Beach, so he knows a thing or two about rain. Hey, I bet he knows some tricks to get it to rain or to stop raining or something. Anyway, here's Marilyn.

Marilyn: Today's guest is bestselling Qualicum Beach author Bill Arnott, fresh off a Canadian Geographic expedition across central Mexico. A fellow of both the Royal Geographical Society and the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, Bill wrote the award-winning Gone Viking travelogues, A Perfect Day for a Walk, and BC's top-selling A Season on Vancouver Island.

Peter McCully: Welcome to the podcast today, Bill.

Bill Arnott: Peter, thank you so much for having me on The PULSE. It's a pleasure to be on the show.

Peter McCully: I've counted 14 titles that you published as a writer. How did you get started? Were you always the kid in school who won first prize for his book reports?

Bill Arnott: To be honest, I think it was probably the opposite of that. I'd skate through some of those book reports at school, skim to just get a passing grade. Now, there were certain styles of books that I loved reading, but it was rarely on the assigned list through the school. So I became more of a passionate reader a little later in life as an adult, as a working person, for those little bit of escape.

Peter McCully: Now, Bill, you spent 25 years as a financial planner in Vancouver, freelancing on the side as a writer before turning that writing into a full-time job. What finally made you take the leap?

Bill Arnott: Working in finance and numbers, I was a 25-year career, as you said, and I turned 50, and I rather liked the roundness of those numbers. And so I sold my practice as a financial planner and retired from that and jumped both feet, as it were, into the writerly game. As you said, I'd been dabbling in the writing, finding my voice and an outlet, and then pleasantly surprised folks seemed to be enjoying the books. When some of your readers are saying nice things and they aren't necessarily those people that have to tell you nice things, you realize maybe there's a little something to that. So I think of it as turning my vocation into an avocation or an avocation into a vocation, whichever of those works.

Peter McCully: Did any of the financial planning years help you as an author, maybe on the business side and the marketing side?

Bill Arnott: It has, absolutely, and that tends to be something I'm often asked to speak on or present to fellow writers and authors. I liken it to wearing two hats, the creative and the commercial. So there's some definite benefit to the overlap, and you used the term author, which only recently I read a term differentiating between being a writer and an author, and it could be semantics. It may sound a little pretentious, but the one that struck a chord was the notion that authors are working in the business of books, so a little bit more of that commercial to go along with the creative beyond the writing, or I would use the terminology working on one's business rather than in one's business.

Peter McCully: You were born and raised in Vernon and spend most of your time in Qualicum Beach. What did growing up in the Okanagan give you that still shows up in your writing?

Bill Arnott: Interestingly enough, one of my publishers, Rocky Mountain Books, they're here on the island in Victoria as well as Calgary, and they had actually asked me to create a book called A Season in the Okanagan. In other words, going home but behaving like a traveller. Fresh eyes on familiar locales. So that alone was a huge privilege at this stage in life as a writer to just look at familiar terrain with a new perspective. Maybe that's one of the things I love so much about the island. We can use some of those cliches that are quite accurate. We've got the four distinct seasons. There's a warmth and an accessibility amongst the people. I do love access to water, whether that's fresh or salt. So a lot of those things definitely have bridged over to current life.

Peter McCully: Before the travel memoirs, your books included the Gamble novellas thriller series, an illustrated all-ages Alan's Wishes, and poetry. So how did a thriller writer and a poet end up as a travel writer?

Bill Arnott: We were talking about that transition from a more traditional career to something a little more artistic. In my case, working in finance and then becoming a full-time creative, a writer. I had practiced for my retirement for this next iteration of a career. Part of that was getting out into these different communities, these writerly groups. And so I made pals with poets, with songwriters, with fiction writers, trying to broaden my skillset as much as possible. Maybe a jack-of-all-trades is a decent label. I also found that pushing oneself in these different genres, there's always spillover and a cumulative effect or an aggregate benefit. And when I became super passionate about some of these nonfiction travelogues, travel memoirs, travel literature, some of my favourite authors I realized were in fact poets. And I thought, "Okay, there's something to this." So I embraced that wholeheartedly, and some of my greatest prose mentors are in fact poets. And folks say that does come through often in my writing, a poetic, a cadence or meter, which in my mind is not unlike songwriting. Lyrical word creation.

Peter McCully: Now, that's the second time you've mentioned songwriting. Have you written songs?

Bill Arnott: Yes, this has been an active part of my... On social media, my handle is Bill Arnott, author, poet, songwriter, or Bill Arnott APS, because I feel that that little triumvirate is equally important. A well-balanced three legs on a stool, so to speak. And I've been privileged to have keep company with great fellow songwriters and perform a great deal with that medium, and that's still something that I love doing. And unlike a large book, you can create a very satisfying and I think a decent song perhaps in the span of a day. Beginning, middle, end. You still have your narrative. You still have your story arc. You're still perhaps tugging on a listener or a reader's emotional strings or finding that commonality, eliciting a response and that sense of connectivity, which I find just a treat and a huge privilege

Peter McCully: Have any of these songs been published, recorded by other artists?

Bill Arnott: I've been privileged to have a lot of good gigs and to have been a recipient of a national songwriting thing here in Canada. A highlight for me, once I was at a literary festival, I thought I'd surprise them with a live musical performance. By the second pass-through of the chorus, a great big room full of strangers were singing along. That, to me, was a beautiful sense of connection, and I thought, "Okay, maybe that was a decent hook after all." So that, to me, really set a bar as far as the songwriting and sharing and performing goes.

Peter McCully: I was reading a review of your travel books, and the author said, "Everything bursts, zooms, whirs, zips, shimmers, and glimmers."

Bill Arnott: I was recently privileged to also be on a podcast where that host rattled back a line of mine to me, and she said, "Just the manner in which you phrase those words. No one would think to put that ahead of that," and that, she felt, was something that set me apart. And I appreciate that because it is something I absolutely work hard to do, to avoid tropes, cliches, stereotypes wherever possible. I want to push myself creatively so that I'm sincerely proud of what I am creating. I feel every new work of writing has surpassed the previous, and yet I'm still very proud of my backlist, my catalog of work to date.

Peter McCully: Speaking of catalogs and work to date, tell us about the series of books Gone Viking for our listeners who haven't read one yet. Where did the title come from, and what are they about?

Bill Arnott: There's times I just reiterate the title. That's Viking with a V. We're talking about the Scandinavians with the, often characterized with the horned helmets and the rowing of the boats. I had been travelling for some time and in the Northern Hemisphere, across Scandinavia and Western Europe, and every time I went to a museum, invariably it seemed there was some Viking history there. It really struck me. My eureka moment was in Roskilde, which is just west of Copenhagen in Denmark. There is a living archaeological museum where archaeologists are there at work. They're digging up Viking longships. I saw a map on the wall with the red arrows indicating where the Vikings had come from, traveled to, raided, traded, settled, and it covered the top half of the planet, Peter. It was so inspiring, and I thought like a little kid in a candy store, "Oh, I want to go there." I thought, "My goodness, I've been to many of those places. I know many of those experiences and geographical touchstones." With a few more years of concentrated effort, research, travel, writing, I felt I could cover the lion's share of these places where these Scandinavians had effectively gone Viking. Because Viking, to answer your question, was originally a verb. It meant basically to go voyaging, to go exploring. These were healthy societies, growing population on shrinking land resources. You tended to have the younger generation going abroad. So these Vikings were, in fact, voyagers. So it's a bit of wordplay, but in fact I am, over the span of eight years from my first Gone Viking: A Travel Saga, my travelogue, following in the footsteps of those famous Scandinavian explorers, reexamining some of these really fascinating things across the globe. Bit of history, bit of mild adventure, bit of humour, and people have loved these Gone Viking travelogues. And the publisher came back and said, "Have you got some more in you?" Sure enough. Fast-forward a few more years, and there are now three Gone Viking titles out there

Peter McCully: Now those Gone Viking expedition travelogues have earned you a fellowship at London's Royal Geographical Society, and since you've added one from the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.

Bill Arnott: Yes, those are things I feel terribly privileged to have received, and I'm very proud of those things. That Royal Geographical Society in Britain, I still pinch myself when I look at the list of the individuals that are members of that RGS, the Royal Geographical Society. I mean, we're talking about the past couple of hundred years, Darwin, Shackleton, these names that we associate with adventure. More recently, astronaut Roberta Bondar, Sir Michael Palin, and it felt like getting a seat at the grownups' table, being a part of that. And of course, the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, this additional fellowship that I just love being a part of that. And Canadian Geographic is a publication that I'm able to contribute to regularly as a writer and a traveller and a lecturer. So it's just been a remarkable, well, dare I say, spinoff from these travel adventures and writing that I never imagined these things that would open up as a network of capillaries, if you will, radiating out from the heart of this work

Peter McCully: I'm old enough to remember when Michael Palin couldn't sit at the big kids table.

Bill Arnott: Of course, yes. It's lovely. Even now when he's doing a highbrow lecture of his travels at the Society in South Kensington in London, he still can't help himself but insert a little bit of humour because he's still a Python at heart, in addition to all of these other wonderful accomplishments.

Peter McCully: Speaking of Canadian Geographic, you've just come back on assignment from crossing central Mexico for Canadian Geographic. Before the polished story gets written, what's a, a moment or two from the trip that's still rattling around in your head?

Bill Arnott: That was a wonderful privilege quite recently, and I traveled across Jalisco State. If people are familiar with Mexico, yes, it's central Mexico. It extends from the Pacific into Los Altos, or the highlands, which are in the interior. That part of the country is known for its world-class tequila. That's the birthplace of mariachi music, and the Mexican rodeo has its roots there. So people will say Jalisco is Mexico, and the cultural depth and breadth there is unparalleled. So it was a huge privilege to travel around that part of the country. One of the standout points would be getting access to a restricted archaeological live dig site. It is not open to the public. Having to go off-road into the hills, a proper trek. It felt mildly adventurous and a huge privilege to be there with one of the local archaeologists walking me through some of these historical things. And the dating of that, Teocaltitán is the name of the temple ruins, predates the Toltec and the Aztec. So there was a couple of millennia worth of history that I was privileged to be a part of. That would be a highlight for sure amongst all of the lovely things.

Peter McCully: Now you're a travel ambassador for Canadian Geographic and Adventure Canada, and travellers can join you on trips. So what's it like going from a solo trekker to guide and storyteller for a group?

Bill Arnott: It's an interesting transition. I would say that some of those packaged travel experiences when the travellers, let's say it's with Canadian Geographic or as you cited Adventure Canada is a small ice class cruise ship line that likes to take 100 to 200 passengers to some more remote places around the Northern Hemisphere. Most of those travellers have a rather independent mindset, ironically, even though they're clustered in a little group. But folks are there to have a very active, informative, educational vacation experience. They make sure that people like myself, there's could be as many as a dozen experts, regional experts, historical experts, and archaeological experts, and obviously glaciation is a huge part of the northerly exploration. So it's an interesting balance. Yes, folks enjoy camaraderie and being in a group, but I often found certainly myself and others are often looking for those opportunities to get out on their own, maybe connect with a cool bit of land or something that's culturally unique. So although we tend to be travelling in these groups, folks like to get out there on their own as much as possible, and I was certainly one of those along with all the others.

Peter McCully: I was reading your biography, Bill, and it mentions that you're a culinary school dropout. So how much does food drive your travels?

Bill Arnott: It's a key part of it. And I think it would be that way for most of us. We think of what's a cultural touchstone? Is sharing a meal. That culinary experience. Circling back to the recent Mexico expedition, myself and a fellow traveller, who was really my handler and translator, the two of us sat down to a very nice meal, and the cook came out and really, his sense of pride, and he had made us two different types of moles. That M-O-L-E, that multi-ingredient, slow-cooked Mexican sauce. Savoury, rich flavours. He was very proud that really he was telling us his grandmother's story through this dish that he had proudly placed on the table. In fact, two dishes. And that, I think we could find that anywhere. Again, circling back to my Okanagan upbringing. My Ukrainian grandma, my baba, every time she was laying out food on the table, and we see this across the globe, that is a sense of pride, community, sharing, and a lineage in those ingredients and the manner in which it's prepared and served and shared and enjoyed.

Peter McCully: Your books are often given as gifts, especially around Christmastime, because they're great gifts. You've got a couple, A Season on Vancouver Island and A Festive Season on Vancouver Island. Perhaps you could tell us about those.

Bill Arnott: Thank you. So first off, A Season on Vancouver Island was a book that I created, again with my publisher on the island, Rocky Mountain Books in Victoria I'd mentioned earlier. I got together with my publisher. He was excited with the success, surprising success of the Gone Viking series. Again, we're finding this lovely balance between creativity and commerce. There's certain things I may want to write about. There's certain things a publisher may want to, in fact, publish that they feel would be popular and still be prideful with respect to what they endeavor to share with readers. But they still wanna make sure these things are gonna sell. I'd been travelling. My wife and I were waiting anxiously post-COVID for our provincial, the ministry... You may remember at that time, Dr. Bonnie Henry, she went on her 1:00 PM announcement, I believe that was mid-June of 2021, saying it is now safe to travel between health regions in British Columbia. My wife and I were on the next ferry to come back to this place on the island, Qualicum, in Mid-Island, that we love so much. Then my publisher said, "Would you write about it?" I said, "I'd be thrilled." And the line that I like to share, which is very true, we came for a five-week holiday, and we left three months later. And it just happened to fall more or less from the summer solstice to the fall equinox. It was A Proper Season on Vancouver Island. It's still very popular. A year on the BC bestseller list, and because they only allow a book on a bestseller list for a year and then give someone else a chance. Now, a lovely follow-up to that, published very recently, was A Festive Season on Vancouver Island, and where I'm again exploring Vancouver Island from the north end to the south, back again, examining this late fall and winter and the new year time of the year. I'm visiting with folks of all different walks of life, all different faiths or agnostics, a whole range of people. What does this time of the year mean to you? In addition to going to all of the fun festivals, concerts, plays, markets. It's a lovely, vibrant time anywhere, and I just happen to have parceled it on Vancouver Island because it is my home, largely, in addition to the mainland now.

Peter McCully: Bill, you've been doing this for a while. You must be an expert on how to pack a bag now.

Bill Arnott: It's funny you should say that, Peter. Recently, I was a little bit proud, if I say so, with a very small bag that I'd packed for that Mexican expedition. There was a team there to receive me, and they said, "Where is your bag?" I said, "This is it." This is it. As I say, it's a little bit vain, but I was very proud of having just a tiny bag for a pretty good length expedition there. So the lean and mean. Don't get me wrong, I still like taking a change of clothes if space allows. And travelling in a vehicle can be liberating. Just toss stuff in the trunk until it's full. I am pretty good with some of the technical gear and the rather unglamorous washing one's socks in a sink when you're camping or what have you

Dave Graham: Bill Arnott, a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. Two societies. I can barely cope with one. Now he's back from central Mexico with one small travel bag and a lot of stories. You'll find links to Bill's books in our story notes at thepulsecommunity.ca.

Peter McCully: Stories are at the heart of all that we do here, and that includes stories for the young ones. Our Skookum Kids series features Captain Dave and his Mellow Submarine, and Peter and Gracie, the American Eskimo dog.

Dave Graham: In the latest story, Peter becomes Gracie's exercise buddy. And to add to the fun, we now offer colouring pages to go along with each new episode.

Peter McCully: Cindy Thompson of Parksville brings life-changing stories to The PULSE Community with her podcast, A Resilience Project.

Dave Graham: And our Radio Archaeology classic radio series brings back original episodes of Dragnet, featuring Sergeant Joe Friday, and Gunsmoke, with Marshal Matt Dillon.

Peter McCully: Erin Haluschak and Chef Jonathan Frazier of the Comox Valley return to The PULSE Podcast Community with F3: Football, Food, and Fantasy Football.

Dave Graham: You'll find these podcasts and more at thepulsecommunity.ca.

Maya Cook: Hi, everyone. This is Maya Cook. I write music that's a blend of jazz, folk, and blues. Songs about healing, love, and all that I learned from the land, the ocean, and my body. I'll be playing an intimate acoustic show at Char's Landing in Port Alberni on November 26th. I grew up in the Gulf Islands and lived for a time in Nunavut as a circus artist. Recently, though, I've come back home, and I'm so excited to be performing around here where I grew up. I've got a mix of old and new tunes for you, so you can check out my music and get your tickets online. And I can't wait to play and share some stories with you all on November 26th at Char's Landing.

Tablet Pharmacy: At Tablet Pharmacy, they provide the personalized service you deserve. Check their competitive prices online at tabletpharmacy.ca before you even leave home. They offer free delivery and blister packaging options to make managing your medications easier than ever. With convenient locations in Parksville, Qualicum Beach, and Nanaimo, Tablet Pharmacy has been serving Vancouver Island since 2019. Stop being just a prescription number. Experience the Tablet Pharmacy difference today. Visit them online and check their prices at tabletpharmacy.ca.

Peter McCully: Our next guest is back with an award on the shelf and some brand-new music.

Dave Graham: Let's see if he has any songs about rain. You know, when you start to think about it, there are a lot of songs about rain out there. You know, we could always use one more, or maybe we could get him to write a song against rain. I'm beginning to think I might have overdone it with the car washes. My basement could attest to that. Here's Marilyn.

Marilyn: Ladysmith singer-songwriter Ryan McMahon returns to The PULSE Podcast fresh off a major win. His single There She Is earned Best in Folk North America at the InterContinental Music Awards. Now he's releasing a rock-leaning double single, All in Good Time and Masquerade, while writing his ninth studio album.

Peter McCully: Welcome back to the podcast today, Ryan.

Ryan McMahon: Good to be here, Peter. How you doing?

Peter McCully: Good. Not as good as you, obviously. It's a mixed day for you. You've got a birthday and a head cold.

Ryan McMahon: Yeah, even-steven. It's fun to have birthdays, I guess, as fun as turning 47 can be, but it's the first time I've been sick in four years. First time since COVID. It's funny because I've had a couple interviews lately where I do mention my age and how much wiser I do feel in my 40s, and whoever has been interviewing me ultimately tells me that, "Oh, just you wait, because you'll have it all figured by 50, and you'll have it figured by 60." And I go, "Wait a sec. I want to enjoy figuring a few lessons out now in my 40s, so just pump the brakes."

Peter McCully: We are the sum of our experiences. It has been an exceptionally busy year on Vancouver Island for musicians and live music. I trust you had a busy summer?

Ryan McMahon: I did have a busy summer. I played a bunch of shows, more so this year than in recent years with my band. So I have some great backing players that I've been playing with over the course of the last year and a half or so. As always, I got Joel Splett on piano and organ, and he's been with me for years. Picked up Sarah Vero on drums and Jay Stevens on bass. I think it was like a midlife crisis thing. I wanted to make more noise and get a little bit louder again. And so it was fun. Fun to play as a full four-piece all through the summer. We'll be doing more of that probably in '27 as well.

Peter McCully: So you mentioned Sarah Vero is your drummer in your band. She plays with other musicians around the Nanaimo area as well.

Ryan McMahon: Sarah is very prolific and plays with James Vickers and David Gogo, and she's just young and super, super talented and like a little walking, talking metronome. I think it's good advice to go and play with as many people as possible, not just to get as much work as possible, but just to get that experience under her belt, and she just is a delight to work with. She's awesome.

Peter McCully: Now, last time you were here, you brought us some new music. There She Is, the single, had just come out. And now it's won Best in Folk for North America at the InterContinental Music Awards. Where were you when you found out about that award?

Ryan McMahon: I was online with the people presenting the awards. That's where I was. When I found out that I was nominated for the award, I didn't know that I had even been submitted, so that would be my new management that had submitted me for that. I'm never at the tip of the tongue for people who give awards to people, so I've resigned myself to the fact that's not really a part of my life. It's not that important to me. But I do understand that there is supposed to be some kind of validation that goes along with that, but it just doesn't even factor into why I do this. So I was happy. It's nice to get hardware, and I'll probably give it to my mom.

Peter McCully: Who did you tell first?

Ryan McMahon: My mom.

Peter McCully: I read on your blog that you had said you don't get awards very often, and that if you won one, you would give it to your mom. So you did.

Ryan McMahon: I'm waiting for it in the mail. Apparently, it's quite heavy, and it's really a, like a real paperweight, so I don't know what to expect. But Apparently they're well-crafted, and I'm kinda teasing it a little bit because I think that's just in my nature, not to take it or myself too seriously these days, but I'm happy to get recognized. I'm happy that the people like the song, and Steve Dawson did a great job producing it, and Jordan Burchett mixed the heck out of it. The team that I have working with me these days is pretty phenomenal. I'm lucky that way. So cool to be recognized, but once a song is out, I'm like, "Cool. What's next? What are we doing next?"

Peter McCully: You've always called yourself a genre fence-sitter, somewhere between folk, Americana, country, rock. But it's a pretty big deal to be recognized specifically as the best in folk, whether you're on the fence or not.

Ryan McMahon: I love the work so much. I think it's an age thing, too. I think if I was 25 and I won that award, I would've been telling people all about it, and in telling you that, I might as well tell you, my mother and I went to buy my 80-year-old dad a new computer at Best Buy. I recognized the clerk behind the counter, who looked like he might be in a band. So I was talking with the kid a bit, and I said, "You look like a bass player," and he was, of course. I nailed it, 'cause his hair was long, and he was in a metal band. And my mom, of course, she's a little, tiny little, half Italian lady, and she says, "Tell them about your award." And I'm like, "No, Mom, no. No, don't do that. Don't do that." She's very proud, and as of today, I'm three years away from 50, and it's like moments like that make me feel like I'm still 25. So I'm glad they recognized me, but thrilled to be moving on, and also seeing how prolific I can release music over the next maybe 10, 20 years, 'cause I have a lot more to say.

Peter McCully: You've already started. You've got some new music coming up. We're going to feature some today, All in Good Time and Masquerade together as a double single. Why release two songs at once instead of one at a time?

Ryan McMahon: Because I had two songs in the can that I really believed in, and I wanted to get them out as fast as possible, because they were recorded actually during the same session as Here in the Dark, which also came out a few months back. The same producer, Steve Dawson, over in the warehouse in Vancouver. But I wanted to get them out because I'm going back in the studio to make a full-length album in February with a new producer altogether. New location, new songs, new vibe, everything. And these were just sitting there, and I didn't wanna just put them up on my Bandcamp page and have them go unnoticed. I wanted to give them proper releases, because they kinda rock, and they kinda make some noise. And I wanted to just get something out before the year end, because they are two songs that I really do believe in. They're fun as heck to play live, so I wanted people to have a place to access them somewhere else other than just on stage.

Peter McCully: And I wanted to mention that you've called these songs a departure that rockers might enjoy. What's different about them, and what pulled you towards perhaps a louder sound?

Ryan McMahon: That's a heck of a question, Pete. I've always had two speeds, and by two, I mean four or five. I don't ever sit down and think, "Oh, we're gonna write a slow tune today." It's just how I'm feeling that day. And you take a guy like Uncle Neil, he's got these beautiful love songs like Harvest Moon, and then the next minute he's ripping your face off with a record like Mirror Ball that he recorded with Pearl Jam in the mid-'90s. So I love all kinds of music. I love jazz records and punk rock records, and just every different colour on the palette. Somebody asked me the other day, they're like, "Yeah, there's all these different speeds and tones to, like, what it is that you do." And I think that's one of the things actually that's held me back, is that the industry doesn't know where to compartmentalize me or put me, right? And that's okay with me because None of us mid-level artists or lower, we're not getting paid enough anyway, so you might as well create art that you really believe in. Just tell your truth and have fun, and my audience is small and loyal, and I think that they'll follow me wherever I go. Just because a song is loud and rambunctious like Masquerade, one of the ones we're talking about here, it's written the same way. It's just me showcasing a little bit more bite, a little bit more teeth. The approach is no different than something softer.

Peter McCully: And you've worked, as you mentioned, with Steve Dawson, Jordan Pritchett, Aaron Pritchett, Zach Cohen, and others. Who did you work with on the new songs, and what did they bring?

Ryan McMahon: So Steve did these songs as well. It's funny because Steve Dawson comes from a really folk Canadian traditional folk roots background, and these two were two of the snarlier ones that I brought in. We also had this other guy, Sheldon Zaharko, that is the engineer on the sessions, and he's worked with Matt Andersen and Billy Talent and a wide spectrum of artists. And Sheldon's awesome. Very quiet man, but when he's into something, you can really tell. When I met him, I didn't know if he had struck out or hit a home run. He's an onion. He's got some layers. I can hear Steve, who was playing guitar, especially on the Masquerade tune, Steve gets on the talk back in the studio and says to Sheldon, he's like, "Now we're kind of finally playing some music you're into. Hey, Sheldon." 'Cause he's into more rock stuff, right? And we had Leon Power on drums. Leon plays in the band City and Colour and plays with Frazey Ford as well. Just a multi-talented, one of the better drummers that I connected with ever on a session. He's super talented. And we had Jeremy Holmes on bass, Darryl Havers on drums, all awesome players, and of course, Steve Dawson on guitar. It's like the wrecking crew. These guys come in, and they're just so ready. They've charted all the songs. Everything is mapped out. But they're so gifted that they can turn on a dime, and they can improvise. If you decide to abort the direction that you were moving in on a song, they're completely able to do so.

Peter McCully: I don't usually ask folks about their cover art, but I understand the cover art for the new music is done by Phoenix Doyle, who's a 16-year-old neighbour of yours?

Ryan McMahon: Phoenix is a friend of my daughter's, and they've grown up together, so I've known Phoenix since she was five or six years old. She's a super freak, man. She's been making paintings and drawings, and she got super into Sonic the Hedgehog. I had to buy this super great painting of Sonic the Hedgehog in my downstairs bathroom down here. Yes. Phoenix is a talented and also a really kind kid. She's 16 now. Her and my daughter, same age, and her mom and dad are our friends. A lot of people making these AI covers and kind of mailing in their artwork now because it's, not because it's just easier, because it's cheaper and stuff, but it just, it doesn't look that awesome. So I was like, "Hey, Phoenix, maybe I could commission you to make the artwork," and so I kind of gave her the lyrics, gave her the background of the songs and why they exist and how they came to be, and I wanted to challenge her and see what she came up with. And you know what? Admittedly, her first submission to me missed the mark, and I was like, "Oh, no. Now I'm gonna have to give her this feedback and tell her I'm kinda going this other direction," and I wanted her to be free artistically, but also I need to stay on brand as well. She understood that it was a business, and so she was able to marry art and commerce in just the right way, and I'm super proud of her. Good kid.

Peter McCully: There's two new songs, Ryan, one, Masquerade. Tell us about the second, All in Good Time.

Ryan McMahon: All in Good Time. It's very simple. To me, all good things come to those who wait, and I had a real hard time waiting when I was younger. I've had my struggles with mental health and stuff over the years, and I had a couple of monkeys on my back. I used to partake in too many beverages, and it would just kinda derail life and business progress. That doesn't happen now. One of the things that really I would get stuck on was that happiness was this destination. I was on my way to it. I was always on my way to it, and I just was never quite grasping it, and that, of course, is absurd. Happiness is fleeting, and it comes to us in these small doses daily if we are smart enough to recognize it. I'm just enjoying now just learning every day. So All in Good Time really just started kind of more as a folk song, and it is just truly an optimistic little major key number to remind myself that, "You kind of are on the right path, guy. You are figuring it out now, and you're doing better than you were yesterday."

Song: All in Good Time

Peter McCully: That's All in Good Time with Ryan McMahon. Ryan, this summer you played electric guitar with your band and let the louder songs loose at the end of the set. How does that compare with the solo acoustic shows that folks are usually seeing from you?

Ryan McMahon: I think I get to unleash my innermost kind of rock star guy that I dreamt of being when I was in my late teens and early 20s. I've got all these tunes on what is now many records. Many of them lend themselves to a bigger band sound. Because of overhead reasons, you gotta tour solo and make the most out of six strings and your voice and your storytelling, and I love doing that also, and I will continue to do so. But collaborating and being on stage and sharing that energy with other players that believe in your songs also is unmatched. It really is special, and I'll definitely be balancing more of that as we get into 2027 because we had a hell of a time doing it.

Peter McCully: Recently you were part of a Tragically Hip tribute. What does the Hip's music mean to you?

Ryan McMahon: I think it was the third or fourth concert I ever went and saw in 1996 at Thunderbird Stadium. I was already kind of trying to find ways to buck the family tradition and not become a longshoreman. I was in bands, high school bands, and we were trying to kind of mess around with sounds, and we were pretty bad, but we didn't know it. And I went and saw The Hip in '96, and Gord came out, and he was hiding behind monitors and throwing invisible grenades out at the crowd and was just such a showman. And so also beyond his activism, which of course he has done some of the most important activism work of anyone in our industry in years and years, and that's obviously paramount to his legacy, but he was also a gifted poet and a great singer and a great writer, but also very cheeky, very funny. And that's something that I've sort of been reviewed for years, and I love having fun with an audience. And I'm an only child. I'll do anything for a laugh. I learned by watching their show in '96 and then going to ensuing concerts, he taught me how to be a performer, with a couple of other artists that meant a lot to me as well. But he really was one of one. It's always nice to be included in some kind of great event like that can pay tribute to such a great band.

Peter McCully: I was reading your blog this past summer, and you mentioned that you were going through a bit of writer's block. How did you work through it, and what's it like now that you're writing for your ninth studio album?

Ryan McMahon: This was an interesting thing. Writer's block, it only ever happens to me when nothing's happening. So maybe life is good. Life is easy. I'm too busy living this good life at the present moment to sit and reflect and draw it out. And so the thing that got me out of it really quickly was I knew that we were gonna release the double single on November 6th, but beyond that, I wasn't quite sure what I wanted. I've got all these singles, 'cause that's the kind of world we live in now, is just release a single. Where's the collection of songs? I like listening to records, and so I wanted to make a new record in '27. I just didn't know who I was gonna make it with. Once I had a chat with Jordan at the Noisefloor on Gabriola Island, he kind of makes really freaky punk rock records. He makes beautiful piano records. But he's very in the indie world, and I thought maybe I was a little bit too contemporary to even be sniffing around those parts. We had a good conversation to see whether we would be a fit to even work together. Jordan and I are gonna make a record in February of 2027. As soon as that I knew that I had a timeframe, I started writing like crazy again, because there was a place to put it. I had a destination in mind. I'm about halfway through the record now, I would say.

Peter McCully: When you were here almost a year ago now, you described There She Is, the award-winning tune, as the start of a new chapter, and a year later, what's the story in the chapter so far?

Ryan McMahon: Now, There She Is is written for a pretty special lady that I live with. It started simply as, like, to honor a great old friend who has now become a love. It's become so much more, like, There She Is, a sunrise. Realizing that, cliche as it may sound, that every day really is a gift. There she is. There she is, it's Thursday. Oh, bless it, it's Thursday. Be thrilled about it, because it's a clean slate. Once I get my chores done maybe this Thursday, I can do anything I want with it. It's a good day. I'm at a place where I'm grateful to still be doing this. It's insane to me that I still get to. There are really lean times financially. Sometimes it's, gets a little scary, and then other times everything makes sense and all the bills are paid and everything's okay. But ultimately, I'm still doing what I want, still doing what I set out to do at 18 years old. Had some bumps along the way, but I'm still here

Dave Graham: Ryan McMahon, winner of Best in Folk North America for There She Is. And then we have a new double single bringing a dash of rock with All in Good Time and Masquerade, and a new album. This will be number nine on the way. There's a man who's on the right path and making it happen. You'll find links to Ryan's music in our story notes.

Peter McCully: There's a line of his that resonates with me, Dave. "You're doing better than you were yesterday."

Dave Graham: Yeah, classic bit of optimism, that. Don't we all want to think that life is on an ever-improving trajectory? For example, today my basement is not quite as damp as it was yesterday.

Peter McCully: True. It's all about counting your blessings.

Dave Graham: Hey, we are grateful that you are listening in, and might I suggest that you sign up for our weekly newsletter. It'll keep you up to date on the latest podcasts, guests, and contests.

Peter McCully: And there's a host of programs to look into as we've added links to Island podcasts. Plus, we have webcam links to let you check out conditions from all over Vancouver Island.

Dave Graham: I've been watching the rain falling all over, and I should remind folks that I am but a small cog in the big rain-making machine. Primarily, it's the ocean temperatures or so I'm told. By the way, you'll find us on Apple, Amazon, iHeart, Spotify, TikTok, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.

Peter McCully: If you have someone in mind that you think we should be talking to, leave us a voice message or a text message or an email. Head to our website, click on the contact link. You'll find us at thepulsecommunity.ca.

Dave Graham: Sounds like we're done with another one. Good. I have to go. I got a project I'm working on.

Peter McCully: Okay, I'll bite. What's the project?

Dave Graham: To stop the rain. I figure if I let the car get dirty and then don't wash it, then maybe I can turn this whole thing around. It's just a theory I'm working on. In order to be properly scientific about it, though, I'm going to need to test it. So do you know of any good mud puddles around here, Peter? Something car-sized?

Rockin' Rhonda & The Uptown Blues Band: Here comes Peter, here comes Dave, oh listen. Bringing stories, making waves, no missing. Spinning tales in the podcast cave, so to speak. Laughs and insights everywhere - what a treat. Peter and Dave, they're on the mics. All right, join the ride. It's gonna feel just right.