2010 has come and gone, and we couldn't have asked for it to end a better way. We had great fun closing out the year with our December Hospital Tour, where we traveled all around Winnipeg playing for patients young and old. We met lots of amazing people and gave away dozens of CDs, occasionally receiving an obscure gift or two in return from those who absolutely insisted. Thanks again to our friend Samanta Katz for joining us one afternoon to take pictures.

Exactly one year ago today, we tracked the majority of the Professional Life Characters in my basement on a chilly Monday afternoon. It's hard to believe that was only a year ago; we're a notoriously forward thinking group and before PLC had finished manufacturing we were already talking about what's next.

So, what is next? Stay tuned, we'll be creating again soon.. in more ways than one.

Hi friends. We have no performances to update you with this time around, but we've been happily playing more than ever.. in the basement. We're writing again, and having tonnes of fun doing so. There's something deeply gratifying about sitting down with two of your closest friends and pulling endless musical ideas from one another without any previous consultation. Collectively and independently we live to create, and we look forward to sharing what's in the kitchen cookin' now.

Thanks to our friend Samantha Wiebe for thinking of us while working on a recent school project. She was tasked with creating a band poster for her typography class, and she decided to take on the challenge of doing one for us in a style that in no way depicted our own. The end result looks great, and nonlinear typography with a textured grunge background is definitely not what we're used to! Thanks again for thinking of us Sam, but for now we'll stick with Helvetica. =)

Talk soon.

Greetings children. We are pleased to announce that we will be playing a show at Finn McCue's Friday, July 16th. In other good news, The Professional Life Characters is now available on iTunes worldwide. You should buy it here

Unfortunately, due to a mild dose of laryngitis we were unable to play Maximum 60's tour opener on the 11th. However, we did pick up a gig at Finn McCue's and had the pleasure of playing Lorne Acheson's Hardman Classic for the 5th year in a row this past June 18th. Check out setlists from those two dates here.

Hope to see you all at the gig on the 16th.

Cheers!

Ahoy friends! On behalf of the band, I wanted to say thanks to those who came out and supported us at the Surf Club last Saturday and Sunday (May 22 and 23). Due to poor weather, we didn't get the chance to play on the Monday but were very thankful get a few days of sun. We posted some pictures from the shows and have updated the setlists page for your viewing pleasure. Before we left for Grand Beach, we played a short acoustic set at the Park Theatre with Grand Master and Forever Gold on Friday May 21. Thanks to Shane from Grand Master for the opportunity. Check out the setlists page for details from the Park Theatre show.

On June 11 we will be playing the "80's Rocker Party", a kick-off show marking Maximum 60's Ontario Tour. We have a number of other shows planned for June and July including some dates at Finn McCue's and a return to the Grand Beach Surf Club so please check back often for details.

Cheers!

Hello friends. Last weekend we played a little acoustic set at a social benefiting CancerCare Manitoba. The three of us all crowded around one mic and sang a set accompanied solely by Luke playing acoustic guitar. Setup and soundcheck were a breeze with this simplified approach, so we’ve collectively decided learning to sing is an essential next-step for the band so that we can leave our big gear at home more frequently. Until that happens (never), we’ll keep rocking the trio (usually). Anyway, the night was a definite win-win. Check out our setlist here.

This coming long weekend, we’ll play the Grand Beach Surf Club Saturday-Monday starting at 2:00 p.m. each afternoon. We’ll play out on the deck for a few hours each day, though we could play more or less depending on what the skies think of it all. Come hang out while getting your bronze on; this is another win-win that we’d love to see you join in on.

See you at the beach!

Just wanted to say thanks to those who made it out to the Fort Garry Hotel on Wednesday; We're happy to finally share this album with you. We've posted the setlist from Wednesday's fun over on the setlists page. You can now purchase The Professional Life Characters online or through Brad, Luke and myself. Expect to see the new album on iTunes alongside You Can Have the Window Seat mid summer. Check out the music page for lyrics from the new release and please check back often for more information on summer gigs!

Our new CD is finished, and we can’t wait for you to hear it. The Professional Life Characters was written, recorded, mixed and designed entirely by our trio. As always, doing virtually everything ourselves was both greatly satisfying and completely consuming, but in the end we’re left with a product that looks, feels, and sounds exactly the way we want it to, and to us that’s worth it.

Thanks again to our friend Brian Lucey at MGM for his excellent job mastering the album, putting the final polish on a project the three of us worked so hard on. In my personal opinion, every musician should record and mix their own music, but nobody should master their own mixes. Keeping that in mind, I'd recommend Brian's work to anyone. He's not only great at what he does but he's also exceptionally reliable and, most importantly, he listens to what you want.

Join us April 28th at the Fort Garry Hotel when we release the new album in conjunction with the U of M Faculty of Architecture graduation after party. We'll be taking stage at approximately 8:00, up on the 7th floor in the Concert Hall Ballroom.

Head over to the pictures page for the full image set from the PLC sessions, as well as sketches of the album art documenting the creative growth of this concept. Visit the music page for the album track listing, and lyrics which will be posted when the CD is formally released on the 28th. New too is the "buy now" button in the top right hand corner of your screen, which allows you to pre-order The Professional Life Characters, shipping April 28th, 2010

On behalf of the trio, I just wanted to say thanks to those who had the chance to make it to the Park Theatre show last Thursday. We shared some good laughs and hope you enjoyed the night as much as we did. Also, we really appreciate the comments and constructive criticism from this past year. We hold great value in your opinions as they keep us 'on our toes'. Growing musically is still a large part of why we keep playing. So again, thanks so much for all the comments, love and support!

In other news, we have again established ourselves in the studio in preparation for another musical journey. If you haven't caught on to what I'm blabbering on about, a new album is currently in the works. Our intention is record and release an EP by early 2010. We have some other details that could be shared but for now, are lips are sealed. Please check back for updates!

Also, we've posted the setlist and pictures from the Christmas show at the Park Theatre.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

We've booked the Park Theatre December 17th for a pre-Christmas evening of awesome featuring yours truly and our new friends soma. Tickets are $10 and available through TicketQuest or at either Quest Musique location in Winnipeg.

This will prove to be a night you do not want to miss, so be sure to get your tickets early and get pumped; with a poster this awesome imagine how much fun the show will be..

Thanks to Nicki & Ryan for giving us the opportunity to play at their wedding ceremony and reception this past weekend. We had a ton of fun and met a lot of great people at the reception; it looks like there may even be a Luke Alexiuk fan club in the works headed by some of the kids that Nicki had coached in soccer and ringette over the years (watch out Linds).

We’ve posted the setlists and pictures from the day's festivities. Enjoy!

And we're live, because you're reading this. Welcome to www.hoistmusic.ca, home of the three twenty-something year old guys who make up the Winnipeg trio Hoist. My name is Brad Cerasani, and I designed and developed this web site from the ground up. Here you'll find documentation and media covering what those Alexiuk brothers and I have been up to for the last few years as Hoist.

Don't be afraid to click around and explore; we're thrilled to have this content to share. I encourage you to use the Facebook comment buttons you see around the site to let us know what you think of our work, and don't worry, commenting is totally safe. Your login information goes directly through facebook.com to sign you in, allowing you to use your already existing account as a "pass" to express your thoughts here.

I hope you enjoy our site.