FIVE QUESTIONS WITH BRANDON ALEXANDRE PASCOA

Burlington Music Stalwart Brandon Pascoa of Sessions Brings His Singer/Songwriter Showcase to The Dickens in Burlington on December 22nd

Written By Ben Rispin

12/09/2024 - I've known Brandon Pascoa most of my adult life. We met in the early 2000's when he took over singing duties for legendary Burlington skate punk band The Spicolis. The Spicolis had recently parted ways with their former front man Mike Eastick of Idle Sons and Slurpy Mondae, who sadly passed away in August of 2023. 

At the time, many of us scoffed at the idea that anyone could fill Mike's shoes or replace the beloved front man. What we didn't realize is that Brandon knew this too, but had decided to bring his own energy and love of writing and performing music and proved us all wrong. Brandon's version of The Spicolis took on a new life and was wildly successful for the time. 

Brandon, who now writes and performs with Toronto based pop punk quartet Sessions, is well celebrated amongst all who know him and have grown up next to him. He's not only an integral contributor to the extensively growing history of Burlington musicians, but an avid supporter of the scene itself. 

Sessions performing at Bovine Sex Club in Toronto

Brandon is the best of us and the most pure. He'd rather celebrate each other than compete. While it took years for many of us, myself included, to come around to his positivity, when we finally did, his character never allowed him to say "told ya so" even though he'd be well within his right to do so. 

On December 22nd Brandon brings some of his favourite player to The Dickens in Burlington for a singer songwriter showcase that features Travis Miles of The Penske File, Ashley Sloggett, and Producer, musician and podcast host, Danny Smart

Tickets are available here or by clicking the image below. 

LISTEN TO SESSSIONS

FIVE QUESTIONS WITH BRANDON PASCOA OF SESSIONS AND THE SPICOLIS

WHEN AND WHERE DID YOUR LOVE OF MUSIC FORM? 

New Kids on the block was a game changer for me. I really fell in love with vocals and multiple part harmonies. In grade 5 my parents got me a set of drums, and I became obsessed with 90’s rock bands. It was all down hill from there! 

WHAT WAS THE FIRST CONCERT YOU WENT TO? 

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK - December 8th 1990 at the Skydome in Toronto. 

WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST “BIG SHOW”? OR YOUR FIRST SHOW EVER? 

One time my old band [The Spicolis] won a contest to play at warped tour. We played the Ernie ball stage. The stage was near the entrance of the festival. When we went on there was a sea of people watching us. That was pretty big for me. 

WHAT WAS YOUR WORST SHOW OR FUNNIEST SHOW MEMORY?  

With that same band. We were on tour across Canada. Our van kept breaking down. We made zero money. Our last show was in Winnipeg at some hell hole of a venue. The venue had a fun reputation for being the place that had most stabbings in Canada that year! We got there in the morning. Spent the day keeping the local “walking dead” away from our trailer. When it came closer to show time, the doors weren’t open yet, and we still hadn’t seen a single person in charge of running the show. Fed up with this tour… saying nothing to each other. We all just got back into the van, and drove 32 hours straight, back home to Ontario. So, even though we didn’t play this show, it was my worst show experience. 

WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOUR BAND

We’re going back into the studio at the end of January to start recording our second Album. We’ve been slowly making moves toward our goal of becoming full time musicians. We’re just going to keep putting out what WE think is great music, and continue to build our Audience bit by bit! Our live show is also pretty good. If you’re reading this, come see us at our next show! 

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