As the son of late 80’s-early 90’s Canadian rocker Barney Bentall, Vancouver’s Dustin Bentall is looking to leave his own mark on the Canadian music landscape. But rather than following the exact same musical path of his father, Dustin’s music owes more to fellow Canadian artists such as The Band and Neil Young than to the blue-eyed rock n roll his father is known for.
The growth that Bentall experienced in the time between his 2007 debut “Streets With No Lights” and his newest record “Six Shooter” is rather remarkable. Although glimpses of Bentall’s potential shone through on his debut, those fleeting moments of brilliance are now in abundance as the musician grows increasingly comfortable with himself as well as the world around him.
While some parents might be inclined to discourage their child from trying to pursue a life in the music business, Bentall says that his father was supportive but insisted on his son finding his own way. Dustin believes that his father’s background role ultimately helped him find his own musical style to pursue.
And while his father didn’t push anything on him musical or otherwise, Dustin was observant enough to have taken in many things over during his father’s heyday:
“I could see and feel how hard he had to work and how much he sacrificed to go as far as he has,” Dustin says. “There is so much that I learned about the behind the scenes aspects of how the music business runs from the musician’s point of view.
“I can really only begin to describe how much I’ve learned from him and his band. I have to say that I have been more influenced by his passion for rock n roll than his success.”
Dustin’s road to success hasn’t been paved with gold thus far. He jokingly sums up the world of touring as “famine famine famine famine feast (family dinner at some friend’s house) famine famine borrow some money feast famine famine famine…” although you can’t help but get the impression there is little else he would rather do.
Bentall is getting set to hit the road to promote “Six Shooter” as the support act for Blue Rodeo starting in Saint John, NB on Saturday January 23. Bentall is opening a total of 22 shows for the Canadian legends between January and the end of March, including a three-night run at Toronto’s Massey Hall at the start of February.
The 26 year-old Bentall recalls joining Blue Rodeo on stage to perform The Band song “The Weight” at a show on Vancouver Island more than 10 years ago.
“I actually met them through my father at a festival on Vancouver Island. I got up with them and played ‘The Weight’ and was positively beside myself,” he remembers.
“That was the first time that I heard 5000 people cheering while I sang. And come to think of it, it might have been the last time too!” he laughs.
Visit Dustin Bentall online at www.dustinbentall.com