Alex Stap has been working for over five years as the CEO and lead woodworker at Cambridge's Galt Wood Co. But before re-locating to his hometown (Cambridge), Stap was the lead guitarist for the band Nightshade and toured all over Europe and Asia.
"I always worked with my hands as a kid, and always liked messing around with power tools. But I also love music. So I moved to BC to learn fine woodworking so I could start building my own guitars and that's where we all met," says Stap, referring to the digitally socially serendipitous circumstances that placed him at a rock band touring internationally.
"We all met on Facebook, actually. The main guitarist and the drummer were based out of Paris, France. The singer's from Winnipeg, and the bassist is from Vancouver. The bassist reached out to me, and I became their guitar player," Stap sums up, simply.
Yes, just like that, the budding woodworker joined Nightshade, which covers themes like grief, and not at all snail priest or pirate metal as I suggested to a chuckling but aware Stap. You can Google those later. They exist.
"You don't make a lot of money in a metal band. You do it because you love it," explains Stap, for whom touring was really trying despite being amidst picturesque European and Asian architecture.
Here's why: "You woke up absurdly early, sometimes at 4:30 am, depending on how we expected to travel, and a lot of the time we'd be in long train rides, or long van rides during the day," Stap recounted the gruelling schedule that depended on the band rising and shining, and travelling for 10 to 12 hours to go straight to the venue to be on time, test their sound, and play the show later that night.
But after the show, the night wouldn't end there as the band would typically toast to the locals post-gig. "Then, we'd start all over again come morning," emphasizes Stap.
His schedule is much more predictable now. "I love having my own shop and being able to come and go as I please," he notes about his days which he begins at 8:30 am, a much more suitable time. At such time, he meets his bookkeeper, and sometimes makes deliveries in person to Galt Wood Co. customers.
This is part of the reason why Stap is looking for another handyman to join him. "I need help," Alex confides, noting that he's wearing many a-hat as the CEO, lead woodworker, designer, consultant, and delivery man.
For now, Stap loves listening to mostly podcasts - not as much heavy metal these days, and enjoys the process of his work which tends to housing market needs, though he's looking to grow into other ventures, and still dreams of creating the perfect guitar.
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