Andrew Whiteman is excited.

“When we come play Winnipeg it’s a very special show. It’s our first show of the tour and we’re opening for Gogol Bordello, which is going to be amazing,” the Apostle of Hustle singer-guitarist said by phone last Friday, taking a break from jamming with the band in Montreal.

Although he has previously described Apostle of Hustle as a band for introverts, stoners and bathtub listeners, they intend to pick up the pace when they hit the stage of the Burton Cummings Theatre.

“[We’ll] warm up the audience, get their blood going and heart rates up so they’re prepared for Gogol Bordello.”

Life has been busy for Andrew Whiteman. The 42-year-old is currently performing a juggling act between his recent marriage and musical commitments.

To put things in perspective, not 24 hours before Whiteman arrives in Winnipeg, he will be in Austin, Texas playing with legendary indie collective Broken Social Scene.

“I have a job, and the job is being in Broken Social Scene, and I’m very lucky I have that because it allows me this other window where I can do what I need to do musically,” Whiteman said of Apostle of Hustle.

Whiteman hasn’t let fame get to his head. He explained how his love for reading keeps him on the straight and narrow.

“I’m a little too much of a book nerd really,” he explained. “If I get too wasted every night I wouldn’t get a chance to read. I can’t really read when I’m drunk.”

However, he understands that when it comes to partying, the ideal lies somewhere between being a teetotaler and being a drunk.

“I don’t believe in this artist-monk routine because ultimately I’m not a holier than though figure – I’m an entertainer.”

Yet Whiteman admits it can be challenging to remain open as a performer while maintaining boundaries. He feels that one must be an alchemist, transcending the darkness by transforming it through the creative process.

This notion of transformation and conflict is central to Eats Darkness, Apostle of Hustle’s third and latest full-length release. The album acknowledges the unseen forces at work in the world.

“I believe there are multiple layers of reality and planes of existence,” Whiteman said. “I absolutely believe that part of what Eats Darkness is about as a concept is that we actually live in a universe that is populated with spirits, witches, shapeshifters, transformers, demons, vultures and vampires. I don’t mean like New Moon vampires, I’m talking about energy vampires – emotional vampires – and maybe they can’t even help it.”

Whiteman has developed strong tactics for dealing with the darker aspects of performance – aspects that could be destructive.

“When you put yourself out there on stage, it has to be at a distance. So I treat it as a ritual, some sort of ceremony. That way I can do what I need to do on stage. I’m very open but at the same time my precious underside and psychic underbelly are being protected.”

He wants to last for a while as a musician and not burn out in flames of glory like so many other musicians have.

“It’s not my ego I’m taking on stage. There have been incredible performers that were based in ego, but like I said: I’m a long-term guy.”

Published in Volume 64, Number 5 of The Uniter (October 1, 2009)