Harbour are an old school pop punk band from Toronto, Ontario.
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
Jamie Mittendorf - Vocals & Bass
Henry Dowling - Guitar
Mike Bielawski - Guitar & Vocals
Josh Bombay - Drums
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Harbour? How long has the band been around?
We've all been in a number of bands before starting up Harbour. Jamie was in a pop rock band called Victory Sweet Victory for a few years. The band was getting some serious hype but he didn't enjoy playing the type of music and things were starting to fall apart, so he decided to leave and start Harbour. Josh and Henry were in a pop rock band called The Estate. When Jamie quit the band he was in, he asked Josh and Henry to start a pop punk band, so The Estate folded and then began Harbour. Mike joined after a couple member changes.
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
Jamie thought of the name just days after talking with Josh and Henry about starting the band. We hadn't even written a single song or even jammed.
Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs and do you think these topics will change over time?
Instrumentally, Jamie writes the basis of each song and then we all build off of it as a band.
Lyrically, Jamie writes everything. He writes about his own life and the situations he goes through. Life is a struggle and he just tries to stay real.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
A lot of our inspiration comes from late 90's & early 2000's pop punk. Bands such as MxPx, Rufio, The Startling Line, Allister, etc. You can basically say anything from the Drive Thru Records roster. We do enjoy some newer pop punk such as Hit the Lights, Masked Intruder, State Champs, Teenage Bottlerocket, etc.
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
We all attended local punk and metal shows when we were younger, which is how we all met. I'm not sure if there was a particular band or show, but I think all of the local shows we attended made us want to pick up an instrument and start our own bands. We saw how much fun it was to be in a band and thought hey, that could be me up there!
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, etc …
Drink as much Jager as possible! But serious, we just try to have as much fun as we can wherever we are. We like to skateboard, play frisbee, bring water guns to shows, pretty much do whatever we can to get ourselves set up for a fun night. We don't really have any pre-show rituals or anything to prepare. Josh will stretch out his arms and legs and drum on a pad, Mike eats pizza.
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
Signing with Bullion Records in Japan. Having our record released and pushed hard in a Country where people love this sort of music is amazing. Also, being on the same label as some of our favorite bands is a dream come true. We will also be performing a festival in our hometown of Brantford in June with some of Canada's biggest artists including Hedley, Lights and Big Wreck.
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
I think collectively, we would say Rufio. They've been one of our favorite bands for a while now and we all take a lot of influence from them. Others we’re fond of are The Starting Line, The Used, Hit the Lights, and maybe Underoath. Each one would be unreal to tour with.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Be sure to check out our music video for “Grade School Summer” on YouTube and like us on Facebook to see where we’ll be next! You can pick up our latest record Grade School Summer on our Bandcamp or merch store! Thanks a lot!