Busybee's Playlist

It’s like living in a rock’n’roll musical

“American Pie” singalongs while loading the dishwasher. Spontaneous jamming sessions in a hammock chair. Salt shakers, and kazoos. Whiskey bottles passed around. Beach hats and lake dips. 

On 17 September 2023, Old Soul rocked the Gussapolooza stage, and gave Ontario a taste of one of Montreal’s finest. 

Gussapolooza is a three-day camp out music festival based in Cookstown, Ont., set to shed light on Canada’s emerging music and arts scene. Having started out in 2016 as a simple backyard celebration of original music from Ontario-based indie bands, Gussapolooza aims to launch independent artist’s careers to the next level.

The road to the Ontarian festival has been an eventful, and busy one. Since my last talk with Old Soul in February 2022, the band has had a remarkable year. 

Overgrown, the band’s debut album, was released on 21 February 2023, and some of their most renowned songs have been streamed thousands of times, namely: 

• Debut single, “Fall Into Your Love” – 3,770 streams.
• Track #1, “Swampy Girl” – 1,142 streams. 
• “Why Don’t You Love Me” – 1,279 streams. 
• “Hot Tramp” – 2,590 streams. 
• And “SWANKY” with the most streams, at 28,873. 

Note: Stats as of September 2023. 

While “SWANKY”’s upbeat tempo and inviting lyrics make it an inevitable crowd pleaser, there is no denying that the music video, released in March 2023, raised its popularity. 

It was produced by Other People Productions, directed and edited by Old Soul’s bassist, Joseph Bottaro, with Brandon Barsoumian stepping in as First Camera, Bottaro handling the second, and Alexi Eusepi as Production Coordinator.

Going back a little on the timeline, on 24 February 2023, Old Soul sold out their album launch at Cabaret Lion d’Or, performing for over 250 people. 

Suffice to say, the event has been the catalyst to a hustling year, where you can catch them playing a show every weekend. 

“The release was actually such a success,” says Old Soul guitarist, Peter Rallis. “We literally got the beautiful venue, and a large room full of over 250-300 people that came just for us. And to draw that kind of crowd on our own, without it being like Canada day, or that we’re playing for the city. It was all for us, they came just for us and they wanted to come.”

“There was everybody that we love and even more people that have always been excited to see us, people that never saw us. like there was like a blend of people who just showed up for us and were excited to be there,” agrees singer Loreta Triconi. “That was really awesome.”

“It’s our first album too, so we were excited,” continues Bottaro. “We were excited with the release of it, that now we actually have like a calling card. People can check us out everywhere, it’s universal, you know? I mean everyone listens to their music online, and now we’re a part of that.” 

“And not even a day after, we drove all the way to Sherbrooke to do a show!” says Triconi. “Because we took such a big hiatus to make a big hype for our album launch, it’s like once the album launch happened, we just started doing shows, and we haven’t stopped.” 

“I’ve been loving it,” says drummer Ryan Palfalvi. “We’ve been so busy, and it’s been tiring. But I feel very well received. Every show feels as if it’s growing off the last.”

The last time Old Soul and I sat down and spoke, it was a time where pandemic safety measures were still in place, and were expected to be lifted around the time the band were about to play their first post-COVID show, in March 2022, at the Blue Dog Motel, alongside Proximity to Temptation and Squeeze Mason.  

“It’s been a big year,” Bottaro says. “We kind of forget when we couldn’t play at places anymore. But it was a very tough time for us. We really wanted to get out there, and as soon as the gates opened, we kind of just accepted any show that we got asked to play. And we haven’t stopped really since.” 

“And regardless of who receives you, and who comes to see you, you still have to put on that show,” Rallis says. “And like you could have high expectations, we gotta hope there’s gonna be 1000 people there. But even if there’s 15 people there, you’re playing for yourself, and you gotta put on a good show.”

An Old Soul concert is the closest you can get to achieving time travel from the 21st century to the 1970s. 

Triconi’s timeless vocals, as well as personal style, take you back to a time where bell bottoms, chunky belts, and luscious waves headbanging were the norm. Palfalvi’s feral playing on the drums almost always leads to him ending the show shirtless, drenched in sweat. Rallis’ face melting solos will get everyone, from his bandmates to the crowd, on their knees, eager for more. And Bottaro’s baseline, intricate and precise, carries the tune, as he joins Triconi’s headbanging with his own silky black bob — in true bassist fashion. 

Come rain or shine, small crowd or sold out show, Old Soul’s passion for their music and presence on stage is nothing short of spell-binding. 

“If you can’t sort of like in a way, turn yourself onto your own music,” says Palfalvi, “no amount of people will be able to do it for you. I mean, they can provide you with greater confidence. And it’s beautiful because you feel as if you’re interacting with so many people having a positive experience from your music. But if you truly believe at any time, it’s at the highest quality possible, then that’s all, you have it in your control.”

There is no better show to testify to Palfalvi’s statement than the triple-whammy Day of Music on 13 May 2023, where Old Soul played 3 shows in one day, at different venues, with the same flair and energy levels as if each was the first one of the line-up. 

They kicked off the day with an outdoors show at Beau Garage in Beaconsfield, at 10 AM, moving on to Beaurepaire Village (Marché Beau) at 4 PM, and ended the night at the Blue Dog Motel, opening for Yesterdaze alongside The Space Wizards at 9 PM. 

In an attempt to joke around with the audience, during their Blue Dog set, vocalist Triconi pretended to feel dizzy, claiming the pressure of three consecutive shows had taken a toll on her. For almost a minute, the crowd was worried, murmuring amongst each other to get her some water, until she jumped back up and the band launched themselves into covering James Brown’s “I Got You (I Feel Good).” And for some reason, the energy in the room tripled after Old Soul’s stunt. 

“The guys convinced me to pretend I was sick right before,” Triconi laughs. “And I was over here like, really getting into it, and then when I felt everyone had enough, I just jumped up and went “Wow!”

Old Soul have been making music together since 2017, but the well-known foursome of Triconi, Rallis, Palfalvi and Bottaro has been together since 2019. One thing that has never wavered, but if possible, gotten stronger , is their bond.

“I feel like it’s obviously the only way that [our friendship has] changed has been in the positive facet,” Palfalvi says. “We’ve just become closer as friends and every time that we have an opportunity to do something in the band, in sort of a selfish manner, you get to spend time with the people who you would otherwise spend time with if you were not making music. So that stayed the same, I think our friendship, our loyalty to one another, our vision. And when we’re [up on the stage,] we’re not in competition. We’re in complete collaboration on the desire to have fun.”

“We’re more confident with each other,” Rallis agrees. “You know, we have each other’s backs and we truly believe we do. We look out for one another.” 

“Every time,” Triconi chimes in, “I feel like I make a lot of mistakes on stage, but you wouldn’t be able to know that because these guys, they always got my back, and they make us sound so good. A lot of people in the audience say that they don’t feel the little hiccups. But we felt like we did. But sometimes, even I don’t know that it happened.”

“And it’s part of the moment, the magic of playing music live,” Rallis says. “When you’re seeing a band that’s up-and-coming in a sense that, obviously, they’re not going to be perfect at first, I mean, that’s what the human process is, it’s to get better at your craft. And this is how we get better. And we’ve reflected that through our shows. If you watched us two years ago, three years ago, and you watch us now, you’d say night and day. We had the heart, and you could see the heart and the passion. And we still have it, but now it’s coupled with more seasoned talent.” 

On Friday 15 September, Old Soul got on the road bright and early, and packed up their cars for a weekend away with friends in a chalet in Innisfil, Ont.

As the saying goes, you gotta party hard to rock hard. And Old Soul sure knows how to turn it up. 

In addition to their chemistry and energies being palpable on stage, a weekend away with the band serves also as insight into the types of people behind the lyrical and rocking tracks. 

On one hand, you would find them falling with a natural ease into music at any time, and any place, starting up impromptu jam sessions with Bottaro, Rallis or Palfalvi picking up an acoustic guitar and strumming a few chords, with another resounding 3 seconds later, and Triconi harmonizing with the made-up tune. 

On the other, they’re just four friends in their late twenties, blowing off some steam, living up their youth, and cooking tacos, making sure the kitchen’s clean — before messing it up later in the night, in search of leftovers to make a late-night burrito to ease the munchies.

Taco to myself again, am I right? 

And on the big day, September 17th, Old Soul took over the stage, looking and sounding every bit like the rock stars they are. 

Every weather app predicted rain during their set at 4PM that day, but as it turns out, the sun wanted to come out to watch them play. The clouds spread out, and the rays illuminated the stage, as the first strings of “Hot Tramp” began to echo. 

“I was super hyped up that day,” Bottaro says. “I was going on Peter’s [Rallis] side, he was going on my side, running around a lot. And that just feels more freeing. We’ve played bars where we’re really cramped up and we can’t even move, pivot even, because it’s so cramped. So, it’s nice when we can be more free and it’s just more relaxing. And we could feel the music more like that. And also, playing outdoors is one of the greatest joys of playing live.”

Right before they headed over to the festival, on the back porch of their rented Airbnb, the band huddled over together, sharpie and paper in hand, and wrote up their set-list, asking us if we had any special requests. 

As it was their first time playing a show outside of Montreal, the pressure seemed to be at a manageable level, making more room for the excitement of something new. 

“There’s always a sense of pressure, whether someone hasn’t heard of you before or not,” Bottaro continues. “But I mean, we were playing mostly our originals. So, at that point, it was just figuring out in what order we play them. Like what sequence is the set? You know, how do you cater to the vibe of what the next song will bring? Like, with context of what you played before? We’re not really overthinking. We just said, we’re gonna be playing mostly our originals, and throwing a few covers here and there. And that was that. But I find when you play to the same audience, multiple times, you kind of have to bring something new to the table, or else you’re just going to be hearing a repeat of the last show.”

Old Soul have been Montreal sweethearts since they started hopping from stage to stage, playing gigs all over the island. But to witness Ontario fall into their love was a sight to behold. 

The band’s set was supposed to be 45-minutes long, but the crowd roared for two encores, the sound manager happily allowing them to play a little longer. Cookstown’s showgoers were eager to hear more, giving Old Soul a standing ovation at the end. 

“In this particular crowd, it was honestly really beautiful to see all these people coming to that festival,” Bottaro says. “Just to have a good time and listen to music. And the great thing about the festival is that every artist had a different genre they were playing. And it wasn’t just one single kind of, you know, it wasn’t like a metal festival where everything is metal, everyone had a different sound, which was amazing. I love that. I love the variety. So people were there just to listen to music, and not really have any expectations of who’s coming next, or what sound they’re gonna hear. So, for this, or this particular festival, it was nice to see the audience just there for anything.”

Post-show, the excitement from the audience was just as intense as when Old Soul were on stage. People came up to them, requesting autographs and buying merch. Conversations between fans and musicians were had, as the prior gushed over how good they sounded. 

“They seemed very receptive, and that’s so great because they were interested in the music, not only in us, but the music also,” Bottaro says. “They asked, “Where can we follow you?”, they wanted to be updated with our next move, you know, and a lot of people followed us on social media, checked us out on Spotify as well and all that stuff. And they were pleased with how we performed. We’ve garnered new fans, which is great.”

“This weekend was a really big opportunity,” says Triconi, “because we’re extending ourselves into a whole different demographic, a different market than Montreal. And it was really exciting to see.”

When I first met Old Soul, virtually mind you in February 2022, we were strangers, emerging from a pandemic, striving to get back to our creative passions. In March of that same year, at the Blue Dog Motel, I extended my hand for them to shake, only to be pulled into a tight bear hug.

Old Soul is music and friendship; stomping feet and banging heads; rocking sets and resounding laughter — a beautifully curated rock’n’roll time machine.