Signal Hill
Joining the Lineup: The Three-Month Grind
In May 2019, Jason Campbell phoned me to see if I’d be interested in joining Signal Hill as a full-time member. I had just come off a two-year hiatus spent learning the ropes of songwriting, recording, and mixing, and I was hungry to get back on stage. I accepted the offer and immediately dove into rehearsals on my own, tackling an extensive repertoire of over 100 songs.
It was an immense challenge. While I had been singing harmonies in cover bands for decades, learning intricate guitar parts while simultaneously training to become the essential fourth lead vocalist was a massive undertaking. I had roughly three months to get up to speed before flying to Halifax that August for group rehearsals, which went incredibly well.
My full-time run officially kicked off on September 26, 2019. We launched straight into 11 consecutive tour dates—a personal record at the time, which we later broke by grinding out 13 shows in a row.
Life on the Road
During my five years with Signal Hill, we covered a massive amount of territory. We toured all of the Maritime provinces, plus Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. We became regulars at high-profile spots like Grace O’Malley’s in downtown Toronto and the Crazy Horse in Ottawa. Of course, our true home base was the iconic Lower Deck in Halifax, where we held down the legendary Sunday matinee slot alongside several week-long residencies every year.
The journey also took us far beyond Canada, including a memorable run in the Turks & Caicos. We were even booked to perform in Switzerland, though that specific international gig was unfortunately lost to the 2020 pandemic lockdowns. Along the way, we shared the stage with Canadian rock royalty such as Alan Doyle & Hicks, and opening for the likes of Matt Mays and Kim Mitchell.
The Missing Piece: Writing for the Crowd
One thing I believed in fiercely during my tenure was that Signal Hill had a massive, loyal audience that was hungry for original music. I knew that if we had our own songs tailored to that high-energy, maritime crowd, it would open doors to even bigger festival stages.
With that vision in mind, I wrote over 20 songs in that distinct, driving Newfoundland traditional style. While I ultimately left the band before we could find an avenue to integrate them into the live set, I ended up tracking and releasing several of those songs on my own as part of my From the Rock sessions.
Stepping Down
I performed my final show with Signal Hill on January 28, 2024—just four months shy of a full five-year run from that initial phone call. While I loved every single minute on stage, the relentless touring meant being away from my family too much, and I needed to be home.
I fully understand what it takes to be a touring musician based out of Newfoundland. Given the right opportunity down the road—and if the timing aligns with my family—I would absolutely step back into the professional musician world again. I deeply love and miss those guys; when you grind out that many shows together, you don’t just feel like a band—you become family.
Our first photos together for promo
Our very first photo together as a band, taken at the Lower Deck.
This was a photo we had taken for promotion. It was our main marketing image before the George Street Festival pic was taken.
Another from this session.
george street festival
One in a million shot. I’ve played some great gigs, but this particular one is my all-time favourite. We had played Thurs, Fri, Sat, and Sunday in Halifax, then flew to Newfoundland on Monday to play GSF Tuesday, then back to HFX to play North Sydney on Wednesday!
Taken just before we played the George Street Festival for the first time with me. I was lucky enough to play the same show again next year.
Moi at GSF!
Shediac Festival
Probably my biggest show ever. I took the bottom two pics! The Venue is made up of multiple tents, and depending on how big the show is, they open up. This was a full tenter!
turks & caicos
Taken just before we played!
sense of humour holiday photos
Merry Christmas! Can’t remember if this is Ottawa or Alberta.
We had to wear our Christmas sweaters at a gig in Fort McMurray.
2 years later, we played the same gig lol. Terry still had the same outfit!
Calgary Alberta
This was a fun show at the University. We played here one night, then flew to Fort McMurray for a corporate show.
The Lower Deck
The famous Lower Deck! Signal Hill has played this venue a million times. It’s a historic place. Alan Doyle talks in his book about Great Big Sea playing here a lot when they got started. It’s a really cool place to visit with a lot of history.
The Lower Deck is the home base for SH. Every Sunday in the summer, when the weather is nice, we’d play in the courtyard.
Grace O’Malley’s
Signal Hill is a Newfoundland-born band based out of Halifax, Nova Scotia. It was cool to see fellow Newfoundlanders in Toronto raising the flag!
random photos
We played Jim Spatz’s Christmas party a couple of times. Cool guy! Chairman and CEO of Southwest Properties.
When I first joined the band, I got the flu or a cold a lot, which is really weird for me. Here I am sick as a dog. We played a private charity show at a church venue in Toronto.
Taken by yours truly at the Crazy Horse in Kanata, Ottawa
What a blast we used to have. This is how we started the pandemic.
Sometimes flying doesn’t go as planned, and you have to fly all over the place to get to your destination. I loved it, though. I could live in an airport.
We played Little Canada in Toronto and they miniaturized for all eternity for their Halifax display. Here we are standing outside the Lower Deck.
Sometimes, fans would dress up as us for Halloween. I’m the chick on the left. 😂
Alan Doyle joined Signal Hill for Paddy Murphy at the Lower Deck one night. He was looking for extra footage for his new video. So, I got to play a song with him!