Bio:
Chad Pabianek (Pa-bee-an-ek) was born in the northern Manitoba town of Flin Flon. From a young age music was his passion. After a few years of piano lessons Chad picked up the guitar and enjoyed playing so much that even when he didn't have a guitar in front of him, he would mentally play by going over chord progressions and scales in his head. As he grew older and knew music would be his career, he also knew he would have to leave the small town to follow his dreams and went south to Winnipeg. After hearing many people talk about the music scene out west he decided to take a road trip. A few years later Chad has become a mainstay of the Comox Valley’s music scene as a guitar, bass player, and an open mic host at two venues. Chad backs up various local artists but also really enjoys performing as a solo artist.
What started off as an interest in classic rock and grunge evolved over time into metal, then acoustic music like folk and blue grass, and these days there's a larger focus on jazz. All these influences give Chad his unique style. His curiosity in stringed instruments has led him to pick up the 5 string banjo, both electric and upright bass, and several kinds of guitars. Chad’s style mixes thoughtful aspects of jazz, foot tapping acoustics of blue grass in an unusual combination of crafted guitar and banjo tunings. His music varies genres from song to song, but maintains a consistency that’s relatable and reflective with lyrics on life's biggest questions and situations. He has self-released two albums; his debut in 2014 titled “The Arms that Surround Us”, is a combination of singer songwriter material, with guitar based instrumentals. It was a good learning experience about recording and making an album. His second album titled “Yesterdays Future” was released in the summer of 2017 and is a mixture of banjo songs, traveling songs, and songs about perspective. Now as Chad feels his level of musicianship has grown he is currently working on his third album. This studio-produced album is a combination of updated versions of songs from “Yesterdays Future” as well as new tunes.
Chad’s live performances can vary from gig to gig. One night you might find him on upright bass with a country band, then the next as a solo performer playing originals, instrumentals, jazz standards, blue grass, or anything with in interesting chord progression. His solo acoustic performances can be intimate and for electric performances, he will often use a looper pedal, or have other musicians back him up. Come listen to Chad Pabianek for a diverse musical experience!