Music has always been more than a hobby for Liam Aldous—it’s been his whole world since he was two years old and commandeered his dad’s iPod. By the time he was three, he could recite every Beatles album tracklist by heart—a testament to a mind already captivated by melody and rhythm. By four, he was playing drums. Then came piano at five, guitar and bass at seven, and writing and recording songs by the time he was nine. His first public performance was at a Vancouver street party at age nine, where he rocked Bryan Adams’ “Summer of ’69.” Around that time, his perfect pitch showed up —his mom was playing piano when he called down from upstairs to let her know that the piece she was playing was in the wrong key. Over the years, he’s been interested in sounds from all over: from Bowie, The Police, and KISS to Stravinsky, Zappa, DEVO, and Panda Bear. It’s pretty evident that his musical palette is as wide-ranging as it is deep. He’s done school musicals, jazz band gigs, solo guitar gigs and enjoyed playing with various combos and the Big Band at the VSO School of Music. He’s also played with Collingwood School’s Senior jazz band throughout high school. If there is a stage or an instrument nearby, he is usually on it. He’s a percussionist with the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra, sings in the senior choir at school (in December, he had the honour of performing with the Vancouver Welsh Men’s choir) and, up until recently, played drums with Vancouver punk/pop bands, Raw Nerve Endings and Highwire. He regularly shares his love of classical piano by performing at senior living homes with Collingwood School’s Classical Music Club, where his playing is enjoyed by the residents. Whether he’s scoring short films for friends or crafting soundscapes for Collingwood’s recent Winter Art Exhibit, Liam’s passion for music always shines through. Now at 18, Liam is heading to the University of Toronto in fall 2025 to embark on a double degree in Music and Political Science. A gifted multi-instrumentalist with an insatiable curiosity, he is a musician with both raw talent and passionate ambition.
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Which neighbourhood are you in?
I live in Ambleside, West Vancouver. I’ve lived on the North Shore my whole life. Naturally, however, most of the city’s musical activity takes place downtown and in other areas south of the harbour, so I find myself down there a lot, but I’m glad I have my happy community by the sea at the end of the day.
What do you do?
I’m a high school student in Grade 12. I’m a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer. I’ve played percussion in the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra for two years now, and I also play electric jazz guitar in the VSO School of Music Big Band, which I just started this year. Additionally, I’ve played piano since I was 5, and I’ve played string bass for the past few years. I’ve played drums in various bands around the city’s underground punk scene for the past few years, which has been very fulfilling.
What are you currently working on?
I’m always working on something or other. I have a home studio setup in my basement, and I love to self-record my own works. Right now, I’m in the final mastering stages of an electronic album I wrote. I’ve been playing around with digital synthesizer emulators on my computer and have been writing a kind of music that has been nicknamed ‘Glitch,’ which essentially serves to romanticize the aesthetics (and malfunctions) of digital hardware such as CDs. A lot of it comes out quite jittery and sporadic, but coming at it through the lens of a guitarist and an orchestral musician has been fun. I’ve also been writing more straightforward singer-songwriter stuff quite frequently, almost every day. I’ll most likely make those into a recording in the future. Up until recently I was working on my project for a research course I was taking, a 5,000 word paper that aimed to investigate correlation between Indeterminacy (a kind of music that leaves elements of composition or performance up to random chance) and in which countries it’s being released, and those countries’ pursuit of sustainability initiatives and climate action. Fascinating connections to be uncovered. Other than that, a lot of my time is devoted to schoolwork, spending time with my family, and making or listening to music whenever I can.
Where can we find your work?
Whenever I release music, I usually let people know on my Instagram.
