Amy Arsenault

Amy was born in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada, but relocated to the capital city of Victoria where she attended Victoria High School to focus on her new found passion for singing.

During her time at Vic High she enrolled in several music programs, including the Victoria High School Rhythm and Blues Band where she sang both lead and backup.  At 15 years of age, Amy had joined as lead vocalist for the R&B show band "The Midnights".  The band played throughout British Columbia where Amy built a reputation as a strong lead singer with an outstanding stage presence.  Performing in The Midnights was a very valuable experience that enabled her to continue refining and developing her onstage performance style and persona.

After completing high school and a successful run with The Midnights, Amy decided to return to Vancouver.  In 2002, she enrolled in Blanche Macdonald to give makeup artistry a try, but it didn’t take long for her to realize that her true calling was the stage and singing.

Drawing on her dynamic ablities as both a lead and backup singer, Amy collaborated with several local projects while searching for a band to fit her eclectic style.

In late 2005 Amy answered an ad in a local newspaper for a female lead singer, and set up an audition for the Vancouver-based band AutoViolet.  The band members immediately recognized that Amy’s exciting voice and presence blended perfectly with the new upbeat sound they were after, and the circle was complete.

In late 2006 she signed with the New York-based management company Lorito Management, Inc. and is currently recording AutoViolet’s début CD and performing live engagements with the band in both Canada and the United States.

Quick Facts

• Top Five Musical Influences:   Britney Spears, Arch Enemy, No Doubt, Marilyn Manson, and Mariah Carey
• Favorite Movie:   Labyrinth
• Favorite Colour:   Pink
• Favorite Number:   5 or 12

Chris Dang

loops, samples, keys, guitars

Chris is the founding member of AutoViolet and was born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.  He attended secondary school in Vancouver, British Columbia where he began his journey into the realm of music.

Chris cut his teeth in the industry fronting the hip hop group Epicentre as an MC and programmer for several years.  After a successful run of local engagements and festivals, he left the group.  During this time, he enrolled in a record engineering program at Turtle Recording Studio.

Changing gears, Chris took his angst and fueled Vicarious as the founding member, programmer and lead vocalist of this industrial metal band.   The group recorded an album and toured Canada and then disbanded.  He took on the role as samplist, keyboardist and programmer in the alt-rock band Ultravisit.

In 2003 Chris formed AutoViolet and has not looked back since.  Chris brings with him a wealth of musical diversity and technical knowledge that continues to shape and push the envelope that is the dynamic sound of AutoViolet.

In late 2006 he signed with the New York-based management company Lorito Management, Inc. and is currently recording AutoViolet’s début CD and performing live engagements with the band in both Canada and the United States.

Quick Facts:

• Top 5 Musical Influences:  Abba, Public Enemy (The Bomb Squad), Pantera, the Chemical Brothers, and Garbage
• Favorite Movie:  Lost Highway and 8 ½
• Favorite Color:  Black
• Favorite Number:  50

Chris Banting

drums& percussion

Chris was born in Richmond, British Columbia.  He was surrounded by music from an early age and began playing the drums around the time he was 10 years old.  For years he was self taught, playing along to records in the basement emulating the drumming styles of his favorite bands. 

Chris studied drums and percussion privately at home with some of the top local instructors and continued his formal training in musical theory, composition, orchestral and jazz performance throughout his school years. 

As a young student, Chris had been selected by the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra to study at the University of Calgary and at the Banff Centre. He would later perform with the ensemble.  Chris then went on to further expand his musical knowledge with guitar, bass and keyboards.

Along with his classically trained abilities, Chris brings a good deal of contemporary experience to AutoViolet.  For seven years he was a member of “Beyond Possession” which recorded for Death Records/Metal Blade.  In 2005 he became a member of “Carnival Divine” who were signed to 5 Points Records. Chris also had brief stints in “Baked Potato” and “21 Tandem Repeats.”

AutoViolet had set up auditions with a number of local and international drummers, and Chris outshined them all sealing his membership in the band.

In 2008 Chris signed with the New York-based management company Lorito Management, Inc. and is currently recording AutoViolet¹s début CD and performing live engagements with the band in both Canada and the United States.

Quick Facts:

• Top 5 Musical Influences: Bad Brains, Pat Metheny, Rush, Jane’s Addiction and Tool.
• Favorite Movie: Baraka
• Favorite Color: Black - it is the absence of color
• Favorite Number:  16

Brent David Johnson

bass

Brent was born in Surrey, British Columbia, and completed high school at Mt. Boucherie Secondary School in Kelowna, BC.  At the age of eight, Brent’s parents enrolled him in The Technics School of Music in Saskatoon where he studied keyboards for three years.  When Brent turned 13, he transitioned to trumpet in high school and performed with every concert band, stage band and jazz combo that were available.

After graduating from the British Columbia Institute of Technology, Brent taught himself bass and developed an affinity for the instrument.  With the musical experience from keyboards and trumpet, Brent quickly became skilled with the bass.
                                                                                                                         
Early in 2003, Brent began seeking out other local musicians with whom to collaborate.  Eventually he came across an advertisement in a local newspaper for a newly forming band that was seeking a bass player.  After passing the audition he became a member of AutoViolet.

In 2007 Brent signed with the New York-based management company Lorito Management, Inc. and is currently recording AutoViolet’s début CD and performing live engagements with the band in both Canada and the United States.

Quick Facts:

• Top 5 Musical Influences:  Metal/Hard Rock, Motown Soul/Funk/RnB, Marilyn Manson, John Paul Jones, Frank Sinatra
• Favorite Movie: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
• Favorite Color: Dark Red
• Favorite Number: 24