Trevor Kustiak (on guitar) performs at Music Midtown festival in Atlanta in 1997. (Facebook/Cool for August)

By Alison Sandstrom

Searching for a Saskatchewan star

U.S. rocker returns home

Oct 16, 2019 | 2:17 PM

The 1990s were the height of the post-grunge, alternative rock scene in Los Angeles, and Shellbrook native, Trevor Kustiak and his band Cool for August were at the center of it.

“Everything happened quickly for that band. I think we had done less than 10 shows and we had record companies offering us deals, flying us to New York, the whole wining and dining thing. We settled on Warner Brothers and we did an album,” he told paNOW.

Cool for August went on to tour with big acts like the Foo Fighters, Matchbox Twenty and Third Eye Blind, and perform on the Conan O’Brien Show.

After the band split in 2001, Kustiak began working with Kevin “She’kspere” Briggs, a producer best known for his work on TLC’s hit No Scrubs. Collaborating with Briggs, Kustiak discovered his passion for artist development–finding and working with new acts.

“From there my band days were kind of done, and I was on to the other side of the desk,” he explained.

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Now after nearly 30 years living and working in the U.S., Kustiak is back in his hometown of Shellbrook and he’s looking for the next big thing in Saskatchewan.

“You’re looking for something that is unique… something special about their delivery, their ability to evoke emotion,” Kustiak said.

Kustiak has mentored bands in Canada and the U.S. including Evans Blue and Any Given Sin.

He says the key is building on the artist’s strengths and making what they already have more effective.

Although the industry has changed since Kustiak formed Cool for August in 1992 (he found his band mates by posting an advertisement in the local paper), he says the digital age offers amazing possibilities for musicians.

“It’s a level playing field for everyone as far as distribution is concerned,” he said, recalling in the past when people would approach him at shows and complain they couldn’t find his music in their local stores.

“Now anybody can have their music accessible to the world. You can do what you’re doing from anywhere,” Kustiak said.

“If you make enough noise, the industry will come to you.”

Kustiak plans to spend the winter in Shellbrook, before relocating to Saskatoon in the spring. He’s already seen some exciting acts there, including Bombargo, a Saskatoon-based group that features two brothers from P.A.

Kustiak recalls seeing both Pearl Jam and Arcade Fire before they were famous and being struck by a certainty that the bands would make it big. He said he had the same feeling watching Bombargo perform.

“They’re lightning in a bottle,” he said. “They have it in spades.”

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alison.sandstrom@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @alisandstrom