Jay Semko at the Duncan Showroom

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Sunday, February 22nd, 2015
8:00 PM

Jay Semko of Northern Pikes fame performs at the Duncan Showroom on February 22, 2015.

Tickets are available in advance for $20 at www.showroomproductions.ca/buy-tickets and for $22 at the door.

Jay was born and raised in Saskatchewan, spending much of his first 11 years living on a farm. After moving to Saskatoon in Grade 7, Jay began honing his skills as a guitarist and bassist, and played in numerous rock bands through his high school years. After a year at the University of Saskatchewan, and after stints in a number of bands in and around Saskatoon, Jay formed the Northern Pikes, a guitar based pop rock group featuring twangy, atmospheric guitars and unique three part harmonies, with Bryan Potvin, Merl Bryck, and Don Schmid. After releasing 2 independent albums which charted highly on College and Indie playlists in Canada and the USA, the Pikes signed an international record contract with Virgin Records, and the band's career went to another level, releasing a total of seven albums on the label and touring across North America.

As a member of the Northern Pikes, Jay was awarded four Gold records and one Platinum, with sales of over 1 million units worldwide. The Northern Pikes had a number of Canadian hit singles, including Teenland, Things I Do for Money, Wait for Me, Hopes Go Astray, She Ain't Pretty, Girl with a Problem, Kiss Me You Fool, Twister and Believe. Two of these, Things I Do for Money and She Ain't Pretty, appeared in the USA Billboard Charts, and many of the band's videos charted in the Top 5 on MuchMusic, including Girl with a Problem, which reached #1. The band received 8 Juno Award nominations, and Jay received two Canadian Music Publishers Association Awards, for Teenland and Girl with a Problem. During the course of their career, the Northern Pikes have released twelve albums. In 2012 the iconic Canadian band was inducted into the Western Canadian Music Hall of Fame. More at http://www.jaysemko.com/bio/