TOQUE brings a Canadian rock celebration home to Saskatchewan (Tuesday, Dec. 29)
by Scott Roos
Todd Kerns photos by Lyle Chausse
Band photo courtesy of Toque
There are your average, garden variety concerts, exciting in scope and meaningful, and fun for band and audience alike. And then there are concerts that bring things full circle. When TOQUE rolls into Saskatoon on Tuesday, December 29, for a performance at TCU Place, Todd Kerns will be returning to a building that occupies a particularly special place in his personal history. Long before international tours, arena stages and sharing the spotlight with some of the biggest names in rock, there was a young kid from Lanigan, Saskatchewan, making the trip to the big city to see his favourite bands. And one of those early musical experiences happened right there at what was then known as Centennial Auditorium.
"My first concert ever was watching Loverboy with Bryan Adams opening," Kerns recalls during a conversation with NSMZ. "That's how long ago that was."
For Kerns, the significance of returning to that stage isn't lost.
"It's kind of religious ground for me," he says. "We played there with Slash once and I remember standing on the stage going, 'I was like right there watching Loverboy.' It's that weird feeling of, you know, this was the gateway drug to all of this nonsense."
It's a fitting way to describe the journey of a musician whose career has taken him around the world, while never really taking him away from the musical roots that started right here on the Canadian Prairies.
Kerns, of course, is no stranger to international rock audiences. His resume includes The Age of Electric and Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators to name a few. But TOQUE represents something a little different. The Canadian rock supergroup is essentially a celebration of the music that four accomplished musicians grew up listening to. Alongside Kerns, the band features guitarist Cory Churko, whose credits include Kelly Clarkson and Don Felder, and drummer Brent Fitz, who has worked with both Slash and Triumph. The group's lineup also includes drummer Shane Gaalaas, although the winter dates bring some lineup adjustments, with Fitz handling drums and Zach Throne taking on bass.
It's a collection of musicians whose individual careers could easily keep them occupied around the clock. Somehow, they've found time to come together and celebrate something they all share: a love of Canadian rock and roll. And Saskatchewan is very much part of that story. Kerns grew up approximately 70 miles outside Saskatoon in Lanigan, while Churko hails from Moose Jaw. Gaalaas is from Alberta, and Fitz comes from Winnipeg. In other words, TOQUE is very much a Prairie-rooted operation.
"We are definitely Prairie guys," Kerns explains. "We don't take it lightly being able to go from Winnipeg through Saskatchewan into Alberta."
In fact, Kerns says the Prairies have embraced TOQUE in a particularly meaningful way.
"For whatever reason, that's the area that has embraced TOQUE the most, at least so far."
For someone who remembers Saskatoon as the big city, the opportunity to return and perform for a hometown audience is something he clearly appreciates. He remembers the excitement of visiting Midtown Plaza as a kid, sneaking into bars to catch performances by Saskatchewan bands and making the trip to Saskatoon or Regina to see concerts.
"To me, it was the city. It was our city. It was the big city to us for sure."
Those memories also help explain the philosophy behind TOQUE. The band originally came together around the idea of celebrating classic Canadian rock, taking songs that had become part of the country's musical DNA and introducing them to audiences who might never have encountered them otherwise. It's a musical catalogue that includes artists such as April Wine, Loverboy, Rush, Triumph, Streetheart, Harlequin and The Queen City Kids.
For Kerns, there's an almost missionary quality to the project. He remembers driving around Los Angeles with Churko, listening to classic Canadian rock and realizing just how much great music had never really made it beyond Canada's borders.
"I just thought to myself, this music is so timelessly great and strong," he says. "And I just thought to myself, what a shame that so much of this music... didn't cross over."
He points out that other countries have their own musical treasures that remain largely unknown internationally. Canada is no different. TOQUE has made it something of a mission to bring some of those songs back into the spotlight. Kerns describes the band as a kind of curator of Canadian music, introducing audiences around the world to artists and songs that might otherwise have been forgotten. And while the group has certainly embraced its Canadian identity, there's no particular embarrassment about flying the flag.
"We have always been embarrassingly Canadian," Kerns laughs. "I mean, it's like we have no shame whatsoever."
That enthusiasm is reflected in the band's recordings, including its 2016 release Give'r, which celebrates Canadian rock classics. The project reaches its tenth anniversary this year, providing another reason to revisit the music that inspired the group in the first place. But TOQUE isn't interested in simply living in the past. The band has also been exploring its own identity as a songwriting and recording unit, most recently with the release of its original single, "This Isn't Over." For Kerns, there's no contradiction between celebrating the music of other Canadian artists and creating something new.
"It's very natural for four guys who come from a world of coming up with your own music to start creating our own music as well."
In fact, one of the things he enjoys most about TOQUE is the freedom that comes with it. With the members all having established careers outside the group, there's no pressure to fit into a particular commercial formula. Kerns remembers working on an earlier original song, "Never Enough For You," and discussing where a guitar solo should go. Churko simply asked whether they actually needed one. That kind of creative freedom is something Kerns appreciates.
"We could do literally whatever we want," he says. "We could have a spoken word here. We could do whatever the hell we want."
It's a refreshing approach in an industry that has become increasingly focused on immediate results. Kerns remembers a time when bands could release several albums and gradually build an audience. These days, he says, the window of opportunity can seem considerably shorter. But he also recognizes that the fundamentals of building a musical career haven't really changed. Whether you're selling records or selling T-shirts to put gas in the van, it's still about getting out there and finding an audience one pair of ears at a time. That's precisely what TOQUE continues to do. And while the band's members bring an extraordinary amount of experience to the stage, Kerns is quick to point out that the objective isn't to turn every performance into a technical showcase. He describes himself as a "street fighter," surrounded by musicians who are musical heavyweights in their own right.
The important thing, he says, is delivering a convincing performance and entertaining the audience. After all, this is supposed to be fun.
"When we play shows, to me, it's like a party," Kerns explains. "People are always like, 'I had the best time,' and I go, well, I'd be suspicious if you didn't have a good time with the setlist we're playing because it's, you know, it's like a mixtape of the best times ever."
That sounds like a pretty good description of what December 29 has in store for Saskatoon.
Joining TOQUE for the evening will be Regina rock trio Black Tea, another band Kerns is particularly enthusiastic about having on the bill. He says the group came to his attention through a recommendation, and the moment he heard them, he was impressed.
For Kerns, supporting emerging Canadian talent is simply part of what TOQUE is about. He remembers growing up surrounded by Saskatchewan musicians and following the careers of local artists who became heroes to young musicians like himself. He even recalls chasing down Queen City Kids frontman Alex Chowaniec on Second Avenue as a kid to get an autograph.
"I want to support all Canadian music," he says, "all up-and-coming bands in general."
And he isn't buying the familiar argument that rock and roll is dead.
"I've been hearing that often on my whole life," he says with a laugh.
For Kerns, a band like Black Tea is evidence enough that there's still plenty of life in the Saskatchewan rock scene. Ultimately, TOQUE's future seems to be built around that same spirit of discovery and celebration. There are original songs to write, classic Canadian music to revisit and audiences to entertain. With everyone involved maintaining busy careers, there's also an element of unpredictability about what comes next. Kerns seems perfectly comfortable with that. He says he's grateful to still be doing what he loves, particularly when it means returning to the places that helped shape him as a musician. And Saskatchewan remains one of those places.
"I feel very fortunate and grateful that at my age and as long as I've been doing this, to still be doing this," he says. "I'm just grateful that I get to go after all these years to come to Saskatchewan and play a place like TCU. That's a big deal (to me)."
For the kid from Lanigan who once made the trip to Centennial Auditorium to see Loverboy, it really is. And on December 29, he'll get to bring a little bit of that history back home.
Tour dates include:
Tue, Dec 29, 2026 Saskatoon, SK TCU Place
Wed, Dec 30, 2026 Regina, SK Casino Regina
Thu, Dec 31, 2026 Edmonton, AB Century Casino New Year’s Eve
Sat, Jan 2, 2027 Winnipeg, MB Club Regent Event Centre
Thu, Feb 4, 2027 Toronto, ON Horseshoe Tavern
Thu, Feb 11, 2027 Hollywood, CA Whisky a Go Go
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