The passing of Steve Wright

Steven John Wright 

April 25th 1977 - March 16th 2026 

With heavy hearts Stan Antone and Thom Ryerson announce the passing of our former drummer, Steve Wright. He was an amazing drummer, a great song writer, and a singer with an expressive voice.

Eighteen year old Steve joined OWEN on November 25th 1995 as our drummer, and stayed with the band until it mutually folded on September 24th 1996. He was featured on the Prophecy EP as well as the singles Smalltown, Surreal, Not Your Toy and That Power Over Me. 

On October 20th 2014 OWEN reunited for a one-off practice, in which a live version of Chainsaw was recorded and released to YouTube. There were hopes to move forward, but life got in the way. 

When Thom and Stan formed THE CARVING KNIFE on May 22nd 2023, Steve was our first pick as the drummer. The band rehearsed eighteen original songs to debut at the Richmond Tavern in London, ON, for August 13th 2023. Typically, Steve was burning his candle at both ends, and didn't feel the band was ready, so we parted ways yet again, on August 10th 2023. 

Steve lived his life his way, and touched many people in the process.

We're going to miss you, Steve.

Thom & Stan  

Thom's in the new issue of the Brant Beacon

 

Thom's in the new issue of the Brant Beacon

First Gig in 12 years!

 

Thom & Stan played thier first gig together in twelve years as 'Thom Ryerson & The Carving Knife' played at the Richmond Tavern in London on Sunday August 13th 2023. The show went really well, and the six folks who paid to get in really enjoyed our original music. Special thanks to Stan, Ruben Borges and Bernice Marcotte for your continued support. Hoping for a gig at Nico's in Woodstock next.

"Our Christmas"

 

My 1st cousin Mike Winegarden and I have finally begun to record the vocals for "Our Christmas," a CD we HOPE to have out on Nov 1st 2023. Mike is pulling double duty to make sure this happens. I have wanted to record a Christmas CD for twenty years! We got down three tracks today. Nice to be back in a professional studio after too many years. 

The Opening Act

By some miracle we finished in the top 20 for this HUGE American contest. We've now done better than the 2011 CBC "Search Light" contest that we entered at the time. We didn't even make the first cut in a Canadian Contest, and now here we are in an American contest and finishing in the Top 20. Don't even try to figure it out! 

Thom Ryerson & The Carving Knife have begun to practice!

 

We are still looking for a bassist, but Thom Ryerson, Stan Antone and Steve Wright have begun to practice for the first time in nine years. Thom will have to wean his voice back into doing 45 minute sets, and is making sure he keeps breathing from his diaphragm and not his throat. The first practice was held in Bright, ON on June 15th, and the second on June 17th, when Brantford bassist Lucas Wachowiak-Gralewicz was a no-show, and later explained that he felt the band was not for him. Thom has a defined direction for the band; all originals with the odd cover tossed in for good measure. 

Thanks to our booking agent Ruben M. Borges, we have a debut gig happening on Sunday August 13th 2023 at the Richmond Tavern  located at 370 Richmond Street, London, ON. The show will be opened by Steve Wright, and will contains two original sets of music. We will be soon promoting the hell out of this show, Thom's first in 22 years!

Thom's 8th Single Is Out!

 

Thom Ryerson's 8th solo single, released on January 1st 2023 is a duet with his 5th Cousin on the Ryerson side, none other than Rockin' Bobby Harris! This toe tappin' song will have you humming the chorus long after you've listened to it! The song is taken from Thom's 4th solo CD, '#4,' and Rockin' Bobby's second CD, 'Volume Two.' This is Rockin' Bobby's debut single, and Thom's third using Rotor, and like the first two times, it was a pretty cool experience. We here at Mouton Music Canada hope you enjoy it! View the video HERE!

You can also purchase the single by strolling over HERE!