sometimesalwaysmusic

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

JUNG SHADOW

We caught up with Kevin (Ex-Destroy Clocks vocalist/guitarist) to discuss his new solo electropunk project, Jung Shadow (JS). Read on about the inspiration behind the name, huge influences, and the ebbs and flows of the Ottawa music scene (Photo: 1upcloud photography).

VITALS

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/jungshadow808

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/jungshadow/

Twitter:https://twitter.com/jungshadow808

BandCamp: https://jungshadow808.bandcamp.com/

Latest Release: Currently Recording debut LP

Upcoming Shows: Stay tuned! 

SA: How did this project come to be? JS :When my last band came to an end back in March and I didn’t know if I wanted to start another band or sell my gear and give up on making music altogether. I was pretty upset, angry and depressed about how it all went down and I really didn’t want to start all over again. While I was trying to decide what I wanted to do, I was reading about Carl Jung and his concept of Self and Shadow where basically the Self is what you present to the world and the Shadow is all the negative traits you try and hide. That kind of inspired me to use this project as an outlet to lean into all the negative stuff I was feeling and use it as a sort of catharsis. Any time I start a new project, I like to incorporate something new I haven’t done before. I had always been interested in electronic and industrial music so I figured now was a good time to buy a drum machine, trade a couple guitars for synths and it kind of just took off from there. I recorded and put out  2 singles online back in May and started booking gigs by June.

SA: Who are your biggest influences, musically or otherwise? JS: I could go on forever with this question but like I mentioned earlier, I took my name from a Carl Jung theory that inspired me with the direction of this project, plus I kind of like how it sounds like a Soundcloud rapper. Musically there are a few people that really inspired this solo venture. Justin Broadrick (Godflesh, Jesu, JK Flesh) would be a main influence on me. His ability to make layered heavy electronic fused noise was a huge jumping off point and got me into exploring some other stuff like Whtiehouse or Autechre. Ryan Patterson from Fotocrime would be another one. He came from playing in a punk band called Coliseum who I really admired. When they broke up and he started a solo drum machine goth band and that’s really where I got the inspiration to do it all myself. My favourite guitar player is Greg Ginn from Black Flag, and he also did a solo drum machine thing after they split. Seeing Youth Code a few years ago also made me realize how full and heavy your live show could still be without a more traditional guitar/drum combo. NIN was probably the first band I really got into in grade 6 so all those things made me move towards the idea of a one person project this time around. 

SA: Thus far in this project, what has been your biggest success? JS: Opening for Big Business was pretty cool. I was about 3 months into doing this and got to open for a band I really love. One of the members approached me after my set and told me how much he loved a new song I played for the first time that night. It was a great reassurance that I was on the right track.

SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you've faced, and how have you dealt with it? JS: The hardest thing is finishing songs. Having no input from anyone else, if I get stuck figuring out where something should go, or how it should sound, it’s really easy to spiral out and spend 2 weeks playing with how much reverb I want to put on the kick drum or which snare sound I want to use. I’m trying to take a more Guided By Voices inspired approach where if I can’t think of anything good enough for a second verse, fuck it, the song is a single verse and a chorus and is a minute and twenty seconds. Record it and move on.

SA: How do you approach the songwriting process? JS: I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone a little with these songs. I’ve had to learn to program drums, use synths and sequencers which is all new to me, but it’s cool because it’s almost a puzzle. You might know what kind of sound you want for the drums or bass line and you have to find a way to make it with the gear you have, then find a way to be able to play it all live using loopers and sequencers. I still do the whole heavy guitar and yelling over most songs so that’s still right in my wheelhouse but I’m trying to develop a solid set of songs that don’t use a guitar, so that’s new to me and making me rethink how I write. The way electronic music is built up and written is so different than something like punk or metal so I’m trying to blend some of those elements and techniques.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? JS: I’ve been gigging pretty regularly in Ottawa for about 17 years now in various bands, and saying that made me feel old, but I’ve watched the scene swell and dwindle over the years but we are definitely in a big swell right now. We have so many amazing bands, really cool places to play and a variety of genres that are thriving here.

SA: If you had to choose, what is your favourite song you’ve written thus far and why? JS: I’ve got this new song called “Year of the Worm” that I’m pretty excited to get recorded but as for songs I’m actually finished and performing, I have one called “Ashes” that I’m really happy with. It’s got these ebbing hypnotic downtempo layers in the background, and a really cool guitar sound that doesn’t sound like a guitar at all and a really cool dance break. Probably the most pop-centric song I’ve written but it’s still really dark sounding.

SA: If you HAD to describe three artists similar to your sound for the uninitiated, which would you choose? JS: Besides the influences I named earlier, I’d say mix of End Transmission/Bright Flashes era Snapcase, Big Black and something like Bauhaus or Cold Cave.

SA: What comes next for you in 2019? All the best heading into 2020! JS: Unless something really cool comes my way, I'm taking some time off to finish recording this record and also a few songs for a split release I have in the works. Both those should be out early-mid 2020.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

ALL DAY BREAKFAST This is an interview with All Day Breakfast: Alan and Stefan.They just got back from an East Coast tour and are gearing up for a weekend run of shows in Toronto and Ottawa in October. Give their music a listen at the links below and check them out when they play near you! (Photo credit: BCSMTH)

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alldaybreakfastmusic/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alldaybreakfastmusic/?hl=en

BandCamp: https://alldaybreakfastband.bandcamp.com

Latest Release: Piglet (Single, July 2019)

Upcoming Shows: Oct 24th - Bovine Sex Club (Toronto)  Oct 25th - Bar Robo (Ottawa)

SA: How did you guys meet and start this band? 
ALAN: We met at Algonquin College for the Music Industry Arts program when it was in its second year. Over the course of the program we became friends and started a band with a few other friends there with us. I moved to Toronto after the program ended. Stef came to play a solo show in Toronto and crashed on a pile of laundry in my tiny apartment. He showed me these demos he was working on and I sorta hijacked his idea. We started talking about doing a project that eventually turned into All Day Breakfast.

SA: Who are your biggest influences, musically or otherwise? 
ALAN: For me I’d say Conor Oberst, Arctic Monkeys, Radiohead, Born Ruffians, but tons of more stuff is in the DNA of this band. Right after seeing a good movie or episode of a tv show, I sometimes get in the mood to write. I try and let the world around me influence me. I think there will come a point where it will be fun to experiment with different writing styles, but for now I’m pretty patient with it. STEF: As hokey as it sounds, everything is an influence. I could be inspired by, or draw from, my own music library, pop radio, an overheard conversation, a line in an old movie or book, etc. Anything is fair game if you're open to it, and everything I've done is an accumulation of all the influences and experiences that have come before it.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? 
STEF: Selling out Live On Elgin during this last tour was a big one. This was our second sellout as All Day Breakfast, but the first at a venue with a capacity that we can be proud to have reached.  ALAN: I think success for me personally is just becoming more comfortable on stage. The more fuckin’ shit piss ass show situations we find ourselves in, it makes your armour stronger in a way. So when the shows come where it goes down professionally and smoothly it feels so good and comfy.

SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you've faced, and how have you dealt with it? 
ALAN: Bit of that in my last answer. I think the biggest challenge for us is just that we live in different cities. If we don't put effort into communication and planning we can get caught up in just the whole surviving as humans thing. I think we're getting pretty good though.  STEF: Agreed. I find the difficult part is having to plan every step very far in advance. For financial reasons shows, writing trips, recording, and any video/photo shoots all have to be grouped together over consecutive days. Doing one-offs usually means something didn’t work out properly haha. 

SA: How do you approach the songwriting process?
 ALAN: I mess around till I have a few nuggets of ideas, be it a chorus I’m in love with, or a full-fledged skeleton of a song. Then we do a writing trip. Stef helps me flesh out the songs in ways I am not able. He adds things from his perspective that make my ideas more than anything I could achieve alone. It’s like bringing a singer-songwriter style and trying to elevate it into something thats not just good writing, but good writing that is high energy and engaging. STEF: Alan is a phenomenal lyricist, so my contributions tend to be more about bringing the instrumentation up to that same level.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? ALAN: I think there are lots of dope bands. It feels like home to us, I’d say comfortably. Stef would have more to say, being a lot more involved in it.  STEF: I honestly don't think about it much. There are some phenomenal artists here as well as anywhere else. The only genuine argument I’ve heard against our scene is the lack of industry, but between where Ottawa is geographically and the way the world is leaning into the internet, there’s absolutely no excuse for not being able to reach hundreds or thousands of new audiences via touring or social media/streaming platforms.

SA: If you had to choose, what is your favourite moment from your recent tour what would it be and why? 
ALAN: I think it was just the people we got to spend it with. Each location we hunkered down in for a night or so we got to spend time with awesome people we love. In PEI we stayed with parents of friends who were incredibly kind and generous with their time and conversation. In Halifax my parents came down for a lil mini vacation for themselves and we did a day trip to Peggy’s Cove and it was gorgeous. Then in Montreal we got to see friends of ours from school who I’d say we consider brothers at this point. Aside from the long drives, the kindness of others kept it from feeling like a drag down slog bog couch sleep tour.  STEF: The ocean smelled nice.

SA: You’re forced to choose your favourite All Day Breakfast song. What is it and why? 
ALAN: I’d say Piglet honestly. It’s really relaxing to sing. It comes as a break in the live set where I can catch my breath. It definitely marks a point in the road of where we’re going with our sound. Its not all crash bang boom bah. Lot of real emotion behind it too. Which is simultaneously fucked up to relive and also energizing to perform. STEF: It'd have to be All The Rage for me. Its the most fun to play and I'm embarrassingly proud of the guitar parts I came up with for it.

SA: Dream tour: what two bands do you bring along for the ride, and why? 
ALAN: Our friends Okies, then Elliott Maginot cause our buddy plays drums for them and I want to see him more. Then like, Bon Iver, or The National so we could draw huge and play awesome venues. Hah. I’m picturing multiple huge outdoor shows. This is a dream scenario so fuck the reality of how shows are built. STEF: I couldn't tell you. Too many great bands and reasons to have em along!

SA: What comes next for you guys in 2019 and moving forward? ADB: We’ve got 3 new songs in the can to roll out over the next little while. We plan on releasing music steadily for the foreseeable future, until either one or both of us dies, or until we need to sell our instruments to buy food, for our mouths.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

SIBERIAN BREAKS

Siberian Breaks are set to release their new EP this September. We caught up with band members Jordan, Spencer and Stefan to chat about their dream records, favourite shows, and major influences. Read on and check them out at Live on Elgin on September 20th!

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/siberianbreaksband/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Siberian_break

Bandcamp: https://siberianbreaksband.bandcamp.com/

Latest Release: Unlikely Brother (Single, December 2018)

Upcoming shows:  EP Release Show - Friday, September 20th at LIVE on Elgin with Stoby and Amalgamation

SA: How did Siberian Breaks first start as a band? Jordan: I had been playing bass for a couple years in both Trunk (with Stefan) and Price of Gas (with Spencer) and at some point I realized that my fingerstyle bass technique translated really well to an acoustic guitar. I practiced for a while and eventually got decent enough to put together a few original songs which I showed to Stefan and our friend Rob (Chapman, of Trunk). We eventually landed on the current lineup (Jordan - vocals/guitar, Spencer - bass, Stefan - drums) and jammed for a few months before our first show at Pressed last January.

SA: Who would you cite as primary influences on your sound? Jordan: From a songwriting perspective, I’d say probably Jeff Tweedy of Wilco and Justin Vernon of Bon Iver. I appreciate how candid, honest and witty Jeff Tweedy can be with his lyrics but also how absolutely cryptic Justin Vernon’s lyrics are most of the time. I try to walk the line where the lyrics I write are transparent and honest at times but purposefully opaque when I feel like hiding the meaning a little bit. Spencer: I’ve typically played guitar in my previous bands so playing bass in SB lets me focus on the rhythm of my parts more and incorporate some dance influences. In particular, Justice is a big inspiration for the fuzz bass tone I use on a few songs. Stefan: I’m a big fan of Matt Helder of Arctic Monkeys and how he tends to write drum “parts” instead of just a straight ahead beat. I find his parts to be super creative and catered to the specific song and I try to take a similar approach.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? Stefan: At this point we’ve only been around for a bit over a year so I’d say our biggest success has been getting the EP fully recorded and eventually released. We were lucky in that we had ~8-10 originals finished pretty quickly but it’s been really rewarding to hear them in a more fleshed-out recorded state.

SA: What has been the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? Jordan: Going from playing bass in bands and being able to chill at the back of the stage with the drummer, to having to stand at the front of the stage, play a new instrument, sing in public for the first time, and figure out when to hit each effects pedal was quite the challenge for me at first. I like to think I’m getting the hang of it now but the sheer amount of energy that goes into some shows is so much more than the supporting role I had as a bassist.

SA: How do you guys approach the song-writing process? Jordan: Usually I’ll come up with a few basic lyrics and guitar parts on my own and then play them at practice and have the guys figure out their parts around that. Having a producer in the band (Stefan) helps tremendously with this. He or Spencer will suggest different directions to take the core ideas I present and the songs almost always end up in a much different, unexpected place than what I originally imagined. I like to think this keeps us on our toes a bit and so far has helped us avoid just writing the same sounding song over and over again.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? Stefan: Like the city itself, Ottawa’s music scene is much smaller than Toronto’s or Montreal’s but, also like the city, you end up with these tightly-knit networks of people and when you meet new musicians here, you almost always have a few shared connections with them. Jordan: Living between 2 bigger cities is also nice for touring (we haven’t toured yet but are looking into it) in that you can reach millions of people in just a 2-5 hour drive without having to cross any major borders.

SA: If you could have a meal with any three musicians, dead or alive, who would they be, and why? Spencer: Probably Aaliyah. She had such an interesting but short life and I’d love to hear her take on everything. Jordan: I’m a big believer in not meeting your heroes so I’ll go with Action Bronson since he’s got his own cooking show and everything. I’m not huge into his music but that meal would be delicious. Stefan: I’d say Iggy Pop; you know he’d have just the craziest stories to tell.

SA: What is your favourite show you’ve ever seen in Ottawa, and what was so great about it? Stefan: The first one that comes to mind was the time the Black Keys played at Bluesfest in 2011. There was a huge thunderstorm that rolled in right before their set, but the crowd patiently waited it out. After over an hour of waiting, Black Keys came on stage and put on one of the best 30 minute sets I’ve ever seen in my life. Jordan: Bon Iver at Folkfest 2012 back when it was still at Hog’s Back Park. It was one of the first crisp fall nights of the year and in the middle of a forest; absolutely perfect venue to see them. Spencer: One of the best Canadian Tire Centre/Scotiabank Place shows I’ve seen was probably Coldplay back in 2008. Viva La Vida was such a huge album for them, and they really did it justice live.

SA: If you could have played on any album in the history of time, which album would it be, and why? Spencer: I’d say Stone Roses self-titled album. It really rejuvenated guitar music at the time and made it sound fresh and interesting again. Stefan: Consolers of the Lonely by The Raconteurs just seems like such a fun album to play on. It’s got an amazing feel front-to-back and has a ton of great drum, bass and guitar parts throughout. Jordan: I wouldn’t want to ruin any of my favorite albums with my playing but I suppose if I played a few notes on Thriller I’d be making some pretty crazy royalties right now…

SA: Lastly, what are the future plans for Siberian Breaks post EP-release in 2019? All the best, guys! Jordan: After a year of preparing this EP, it’s back to the studio for us! We recorded the current EP last December at Poole House Studios (Stefan’s studio in Ottawa West) and so we’re going to try to make it an annual thing to record at least a few songs over the holidays each year and release them at some point in the following year. Other than that, we’ll be playing some more shows promoting the EP and hopefully book a couple out of town shows too. Thanks for having us!

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

EL ORCA

We caught up with Richard Girard (guitar, bass), Doug Wilkinson (drums, guitar), and Kristina Kamichaitis (keys) of Ottawa band El Orca. We talked influences, top albums, favourite live shows, and their upcoming album.

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elorcaband/

BandCamp: https://elorca.bandcamp.com/

Latest Release: Going, Going, Oregon  (Single, Jan 2019)  

Upcoming Shows: Stay tuned! 

SA: How did El Orca come to be as a band? DW: The four of us have had an on and off musical relationship for over ten years. El Orca morphed into its current form when Matt, Richard and I started playing together more or less regularly in 2015. K joined this year.  She helped out with a gig, after which we realized we wanted her to be as full-fledged as possible. 

SA: What bands or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? KK: I would say, if I had to pick one, it would be Operators/Handsome Furs. Searing guitars and fat, chewy synths - yum.

DW: I think we have a family resemblance with bands like Do Make Say Think, Godspeed You, Black Emperor! and maybe some Pink Floyd. 

RG: Dynamics. I think that any music that brings drama and dynamic changes into their arrangements have had an influence on us. Without lyrics we need to tell a story and convey emotion with musical ‘feel’. All the bands mentioned above as well as the Rheostatics, Byrne/Eno (My Life in the Bush of Ghosts), and maybe even some Zappa.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? DW: Probably our one show, opening for Atlas:Empire at Pressed in May.  It was short, but super fun. Our friend, Paul, helped us out on guitar. Richard and I also got to speak a couple of times with tic, a DJ over at CKCU.  He’s great. 

SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? DW: Maybe scheduling. We’re all middle-aged parents with non-musical day jobs. 

SA: How do you guys approach the song-writing process? DW: Basically we find a melody or beat that stands out and try to make a song out of it.  Sometimes we’ll pick an unusual time signature and go from there, other times a band member will arrive with a completed tune. Both our albums were recorded over many months.  A series of jams, with a lot of final takes happening between 9:45 pm and 10 pm.  Then the whole thing is handed over to Matt and after a week or two it’s done. The third album is on the way, but with K on keys, which is opening lots of cool doors.  You can hear a little piece of something new here.  

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? KK: I wish more bands came through - wish there was a decently large place downtown, for them to play. But it’s a chicken and the egg thing right? I think the scene is improving, though, and what I love about Ottawa is how everyone is so supportive, positive - there is no pretense.

SA: What is the favourite show the band has played, and why? DW:  By default, our one and only show, at Pressed. It was great to test out the music on stage.

SA: What is the favourite show you have seen, and why? KK: Really hard to pick, but one that definitely stands out is PJ Harvey at Metropolis a couple years ago. Wow.

DW: I saw Apostle of Hustle at Zaphods, about 10 years ago.  Unbelievable sounds. 

RG: Too many to whittle down to just one. David Byrne at Cityfolk last year for the incredible choreography and performance, St. Vincent at Ritual for the raw unbridled guitar wizardry and Gil Scott-Heron at the Mercury Lounge circa 1997 for the legend. 

SA: A question for fun: your three desert island albums. What would they be and why? KK: For me, it might have to be Glenn Gould playing Beethoven’s piano sonatas. It has got me through many, many tough times - his interpretation, touch, spacing is pure genius. 

DW: Veedon Fleece, by Van Morrison. It’s reliably mesmerizing, which would distract me from the doom of being on the island. Cosmo’s Factory, CCR. 

RG: A Love Supreme, Coltrane; Stubborn Persistent Illusions, Do Make Say Think; Who’s Next, The Who.

SA: Finally, what comes next for El Orca moving on in 2019 and beyond? Best of luck! DW: New album, hopefully before 2020.  And maybe another show.  Or maybe more stuff like this. Thanks, Pierce!

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

POINTLESS AESTHETICS 

We caught up with Pointless Aesthetics (PA) band member Jesse Seheult (vocals, guitar) to talk about the band’s influences, singing in Danish, Ottawa, and favourite shows.

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PointlessAesthetics/

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/jesse-seheult-880379192

BandCamp: https://pointlessaesthetics.bandcamp.com/releases

Latest Release: Eleutheromania (LP, June 2019)  https://pointlessaesthetics.bandcamp.com/releases

Upcoming Shows: Stay tuned! 

SA: How did Pointless Aesthetics start as a band? PA: When I first came to Carleton University in Ottawa I had recently left my previous band from high school and wanted to start with something fresh. Mutual friends introduced me to a few guys that I would jam with and they introduced me to Mitch. Then when those other guys left it was just Mitch and I for a while and then we slowly grew back finding Jeff and then later Declan to fill out the rest of the bands roster.

SA: Who are your biggest influences, musically or otherwise? PA: Death Cab For Cutie’s Ben Gibbard inspired me to be a songwriter, the way that he tells stories within his songs helped me develop my lyricism. Musically I look to bands such as This Town Needs Guns and Delta Sleep in the way that they play intricate melodies within interesting rhythms. There are also many other different influences, not all of us are into the same type of music. Mitch is actually more into Avicii and stuff like that than modern rock bands, Declan is really into blues style bands like The Arctics Monkeys, and Jeff has different tastes as well, but nonetheless we take all of those outside influences and use them to create our own unique sound, our own unique voice.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? PA: I would say finishing this record. We have played sold out shows in smaller venues throughout Ottawa and we have had success bringing people out and providing them with a good time, but there is nothing more gratifying than taking all the work that we have accumulated over the past four years and grinding it out in the studio for the world to hear.

SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you've faced, and how have you dealt with it? PA: One of the biggest challenges that we faced was when Mitch went away on exchange to The Netherlands. We were happy for him of course, but taking a semester to try and find a replacement to still be able to play live shows was a chore and when we did find a guy he could barely keep up with what we were doing. So, after that failed experiment we did take some time to focus on school and I ended up writing a bunch of other material for when he got back, songs such as The Sun Reaches and Atlas.

SA: How do you approach the songwriting process? PA: For me every song is different in the way it gets finished. For the most part it always starts with a guitar line and I take a long time to keep refining it until it is exactly how I want it to be. Then the lyrics come and I guess I always either write what I am thinking about in the moment or I take a line from a song I like and recontextualize it into something I want to say, because usually a line like “creating a substance while you get high” just resonated with how I was feeling in the moment I was writing Atlas. I guess subconsciously I ended up writing a cohesive story as well. With Eleutheromania the entire album’s lyrical themes all revolve around the idea of introspection. From “Headphones (A Leitmotif)” to “Hygge” everything that I went through an amalgamation of my inner turmoil and failed past relationships are all looked back upon to show where I have been and where I got to. 

Another little inside look the lake that I refer to throughout the album was actually a poster of a dock that I had in my bedroom and when re-working Pass On Passion thought that it would be cool if the character was a songwriter as well who went “to the lake to fantasize” and I thought that from Headphones which was already finished at that time I could create a location for the narrative to take place.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? PA: Ottawa was absolutely one of the best things I could have asked for as a member of an indie band trying to get his music out there. There is a comradery between all of the other acts that you play with, unlike when I spent time mostly in Toronto with my other band. Everyone genuinely loves music here and the sounds of the city are exemplified through a diverse cast of bands such as Lost at Sea, XiL, Lessons in Crime or Siberian Breaks, just to name a few. And honestly we noticed that our age demographic, the university students, were always looking for something to do and loved supporting the growing Ottawa music scene. 

SA: If you had to choose, what is your favourite moment off of Eleutheromania and why? PA: I am super biased about my favourite moment on the record because obviously I wrote it to be my favourite moment. But for me, it would have to be when I attempt to sing in a poorly google translated Danish towards the end of Hygge. When I was writing it I thought it was so clever to write maybe the most depressing lyrics in another language to embody what the whole song was about. Hygge translating to comfort / comfortability, I wanted to make the listener comfortable with what I am saying but not understanding a word of it. I guess it came from listening to a band like Sigur Ros and not knowing the language but obsessively translating the lyrics to discover their deeper meaning. However, people have been reaching out to me about the album and saying a bunch of different things, most people like songs that I wouldn’t expect them to like and each answer is different, so Pierce which is yours?

SA: What is your favourite show that the band has played, and why? PA: My favourite show would have to be the first one that we played with Declan, mostly because we were kind of throwing him into the wolves, he had only just learned how to play Headphones, Pass On Passion, and other songs that didn’t make the cut of the record like Memento Mori, Skyline and Sad Songs in Sadder Tones. It was also the first show we ever sold out at Live On Elgin, opening for an amazing Canadian band from Kingston called Kasador. The other one would have to be our album release show where almost 2 and a half years later we sold out Live On Elgin again. 

SA: What comes next for you guys in 2019? All the best this year! PA: Honestly, there is nothing planned yet. Three of us have just graduated from Carleton University and are moving on with our lives. We are spreading around the record and there have been murmurs amongst the band members that we may do a reunion show sometime next year but I think that we have accomplished so much in a short time. I have been sending the album around to some local radio stations and I am constantly writing music, and I know the other guys are not done playing either, so maybe there are some future projects you may see us in the future. But for now Pointless Aesthetics lives on through Eleutheromania.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

YARNS

Since relocating from Belgium, his home country, to Ottawa, Martin Dawagne (aka YARNS), has been busy, releasing his first full-length album called Summer - Fall -, complete with songs named after cities and neighborhoods where he has travelled and composed. We touched base with Martin to discuss his musical background, his diverse influences, and his ideal “exclusively Belgian/Canadian” tour mates. Stay tuned for his next album, titled Winter - Spring -.

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Yarns.music/ 

Web: https://yarns.bandcamp.com/releases

Latest Release: Summer - Fall - (Album, March 2018)

Upcoming Shows: July 26th @ Jamari August 2nd @ Bar Robo August 28th @ House of Targ

SA: How did this project come to be? YA: After several years of touring and composing in a hardcore band (Now, Voyager), I felt the need to explore a different kind of music. Something connected to introspection, journeys, and widely opened to interpretation. Also, I wanted to try something where it would be 90% me creating, from the composing to the artwork, as well as the live performances. I always call Yarns my most “selfish project”, as it is highly autobiographical, and my main guideline is that all the creative ideas – or at least most of them – have to come from me. That being said, there has been some incredible artists involved in the project, such as the actress Megan Carty (the voice, and the main help in creating the proses), Mike Tompa (the producer), or my brother Bruno Dawagne (who created the logo).

Finally, I started Yarns when I was at an emotional crossroad in my life, and I decided to leave my native country, Belgium, to come to North America, and try to create in an environment far from everything I knew. All the proses on the album are based on places where I lived, which explains their titles.

SA: What bands or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? YA: Mainly some soundtracks and composer pieces. I am a huge fan of Jonny Greenwood, Max Richter or Arvo Part. I am also highly influenced by rock music, like Nine Inch Nails, The Chariot, Meshuggah, Gojira, Sufjan Stevens, Bon Iver, Sigur Ros, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Arcade Fire, etc. I also love finding influences in music that is far from what I create (world music, kids shows, hip-hop, etc.).

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been the project’s biggest success? YA: Like I said, Yarns is a self-centred project for which I decided I would never try to please anyone but myself, and put my instincts and integrity before anything else. The fact that it resonates with some people is something I am really honoured by, as this project does not obey to any structure, genre, or need to please. Another one of my influences, Bjork, said that “the moment you try to satisfy others than yourself, you’re not satisfying anyone”, and I think there’s a lot to be learned here, musically speaking.

SA: Conversely, what is the biggest challenge you've faced, and how have you dealt with it? YA: Every performance is a challenge to me. Before I started Yarns, it was impossible for me to even conceive being by myself on a stage, and even less performing only with looping pedals (which can be quite punishing, when you mess up). No matter how many times I played a show, I always experienced stage fright, and thus every concert is challenging. The hour before playing, especially, is always nerve-wracking for me.

SA: How do you approach the song-writing process? YA: I always try to start with an emotion and with my hands first. For Yarns, I am not able to begin creating from scratch behind a computer. It needs to first be myself sitting with an instrument and my pedalboard, and search how I can express a specific emotion accurately. After hours of looping some stuff around, recording some jams with myself – and, also, going crazy – I only start editing on the computer. On parallel to that, I start writing a prose and edit/go deeper into the theme with Megan Carty. Once I have a first version of a song, I go to a studio to record it. After that “official” version is done, I go back to my instruments and figure out a way to perform the studio version live, or to re-adapt it.

It is a long and tedious process were you go back and forth between “this is awesome” to “I am a shitty musician, why am I even bothering?” all the time, and it’s exhausting. But Yarns is about introspection, and this process expresses it accurately, I guess. 

SA: I understand you are a transplant to Ottawa. What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? YA: I think there are some gems of venues around here, and people are really open-minded, especially the metal/punk/hardcore scene. I love the size of Ottawa, because it is not too big or overwhelming like Toronto or Montreal (great cities too, though). However, I think the city would benefit from having three or four more venues with a capacity somewhere between Mavericks and the Canadian Tire Centre, because apart from the Bronson Centre, that doesn’t really exist here and that’s too bad.

SA: What is your favourite show that you’ve played, and why? YA: I think that it was at Pressed, where the venue was packed because Nighttime in Kansas was playing. I felt I progressed from playing in front of such a filled-up room, and little by little taming my terror as the set went by. Also, I messed up big time at that show, and realizing that I was the only one noticing about it was quite rewarding.

Finally, pretty much any show at Ask a Punk is always a great time. That’s my favorite place to perform in Ottawa.

SA: Thus far, what is your favourite Yarns track, and why? YA: It’s one that is on my next album, and it’s called Fault Lines. It’s a track that mixes all the different looping techniques I learned while creating the other Yarns tracks. It also mixes all my influences, from metal to sinister soundtracks. It’s very doomy, scary and a little optimistic too. Unfortunately, this is the only song I recorded that I am not yet able to play.

Her Monster is also an important one to me, as it took me more than one year to write, and Yarns started with the two main chords of that song. I had just arrived in Montréal in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, and I was very unsettled and depressed. All I had to create was a tiny acoustic guitar, and these two chords came naturally out of it, and became the backbone of Summer – Fall -.

SA: A tour consisting of you, and only your favourite Belgian and Canadian acts. Who is on it? YA: If we have to go for Canadian, definitely The Arcade Fire, as they are my favourite rock band! A tour with A Silver Mt. Zion would be pretty dope too. For Belgium, I’d love to play with a band called Amenra, which is a sludge-hardcore band with some spooky imagery. Very twisted and meditative.

SA: What comes next for you in 2019? Good luck this coming year! YA: I have been postponing forever the release of Winter – Spring –, the sequel to Summer – Fall –, since I have been busy working on other creative projects, mainly some soundtracks for some theatre pieces. Releasing an album when you’re the only person in the band is a colossal work. So yes, this is what’s next, and having a proper merchandising, too.

Thank you very much for this interview, Pierce, good luck to you too!

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

QUEENYY x CHEVDOT

We touched based with hip hop/R&B artist Steph Marcantonio, a.k.a. queenyy, and distinguished First Nations Cree producer/choreographer Chev Cheechoo, a.k.a. chevdot. They bring their lifetimes of working with beats, dance, and songwriting to the collaborative project. The duo released their new single Pretty Young Thing on May 24, which was followed by an accompanying music video.

VITALS

Social Media: @queenyymusic/@chevdot

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/queenyyxchevdot/pretty-young-thing 

Web: https://snd.click/dKCsK

Latest Release: Pretty Young Thing (Single, May 2019)

Upcoming Shows: Stay tuned!

SA: How did this project come together for you guys? A: In December 2017, Queenyy ran into Circa Beatz and he told her about a beat battle that was happening in the city the next day. Queenyy showed up solo to the beat battle specifically to network and find a producers to connect with. Low and behold, chevdot was one of the competitors, Chevdot stood out for Queenyy because a) his beats were fire and b) he danced to his own beats. Once the battle was over, Queenyy chased Chevdot outside and got his contact information and two months later they started creating and not knowing what direction they would go.  

Late 2018 they decided to start recording and putting out music as a collaboration project. All the recording, mixing and mastering was done in the city at Audio Valley with Engineer/Producer Carde Blanche.

SA: What artists or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? A: 90s throwback R&B mixed with modern day Hip-Hop and Brazilian Baile Funk with the biggest influences being Timbaland, Missy Elliot, Aaliyah and TLC.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been the band’s biggest success? A: The biggest success so far is the positive feedback and support we have been getting from local radio stations (shout out to CHUO FM, NUBRL Radio, Bring Ya Eh Game), Capcity Hip-Hop, local DJ’s, dancers and people sharing and spreading this project around the world.

SA: Conversely, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? A: Plain and simple, putting out a project in the arts independently without management and support is one of the hardest things we’ve had to do and are still doing. So to answer the question “how do we overcome it?”-  we just keep going.

SA: How do you guys approach the song-writing process? A: We try to keep our creative process as organic as possible. Chevdot comes through to the sessions with beats and the sounds that queenyy vibes with, she’s able to come up with melodies and lyrics. We then bring a structured song to the studio and Carde Blanche makes it sound like butter.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene, and what are you looking to bring to it? A: The Ottawa music scene has a lot of potential but it’s missing something and can’t quite to put a finger on what it is and we feel people need to support each other more in the city. Big shout out to OMIC (Ottawa Music Industry Coaltion) for the Ottawa music strategy and we hope to inspire other artists to continue to push their boundaries.

SA: Tell us a bit about your recently released video for Pretty Little Thing. A: Pretty Young Thing was directed, shot and edited by Ottawa Native but a resident in Toronto Jeremy Cherpit aka Flx Vsn. Originally Queenyy and Chevdot came with the idea and Jeremy brought the ideas to life. We wanted to showcase our passion for music and dance and invite listeners to groove with us.

SA: Hypothetical scenario. You get billed on your dream tour. Who would be on tour with you? A: 6lack and Dani Leigh. Their style would fit with ours and we would all compliment yet bring something different to the table.

SA: If you had to choose, what three records would you cite as most impactful on your sound in this collaboration? A: Aaliyah - Are you feeling me

Sabrina Claudio feat 6lack - Belong to you

Missy Elliott - Hot Boyz

SA: What comes next for you guys in 2019? Good luck this coming year! A: 2019 we are set to complete our collaboration project and continue to spread the love.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

LOST AT SEA

Lost at Sea (LS) are a four piece rock and roll band that writes and plays their own original music. Formed in the small town of Russell in 2010, they have since released a full length album in 2018, and more recently, a new music video. We caught up with Colton Snook (lead vocals, bass). Check out their album and read more about their favourite venue, standout tracks, and plans for the rest of the year! 

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LostAtSeaOfficial/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZt3gyVrIJq_ZQ3an3ldiVg

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/lost-at-sea-5

BandCamp: https://lostatseaofficialmusic.bandcamp.com/

Latest Release: Stationary Vacation (Album, Nov 2018)

Upcoming Shows: Stay tuned!

SA: How did you guys start as a band? LS:  Three of our four members grew up in Russell, this small town outside of Ottawa. Jimmy, Phil, and I lived on the same street, so naturally we met and became friends. Honestly, Jimmy and Phil, who are brothers, always had a musical family, and had access to instruments since they were kids. I ended up getting my first instrument later on. But the one thing that gave us the idea to start jamming and creating our own music... was the video game Rockband. Stupid, I know. But we figured we were pretty amazing at the game, so why would it be so hard to do that for real? After a good many years of practice, here we are.

SA: What bands, musicians or artists would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? LS:  I think with Lost at Sea, it's always been more of a situation where each individual has their own idols, influences, and playing styles, and THEN bring that to the table. We have an amazingly bluesy guitarist, a metal-head drummer, and a jazz-obsessed vocalist. Where I would cite bands like Hey Rosetta! or the Strokes as my influences, other members would cite Megadeth, Hendrix, CCR, or even Frank Sinatra. It's a clusterf*ck that, I think, works well for us.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? LS:  We released our first full length album, Stationary Vacation, back in late November, 2018. That whole process of booking studio time, working around everybody's schedules, ensuring each song is recorded the way we want it, finding cover art, promoting, I think makes it our biggest success. Just having a finished product is nice to be able to say. Obviously it's far from perfect, but it's been so fun, and a giant learning experience. Hearing our tunes played on the radio stations, LIVE 88.5 and Rebel was also pretty exciting.

SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? LS:  Right now our biggest challenge is self-promotion. I, personally, have a very hard time saying to people, "check out my mixtape," or posting about these things. Even the process of booking a show and inviting people is hard sometimes. We're all students or full-time employees as well, which makes it hard to commit 100% to this band. However, we've dealt with this by just scheduling a little better, and devoting at least a segment of each of our time to sharing what we've  worked on with our fans.

SA: How do you approach the song-writing process? LS: Phil Baril and I seem to contribute most of the lyrics, and I think we both start off with a chord progression on guitar thats catchy, then hum a melody that sounds nice overtop of it. Then, replace that humming with words that don't sound completely awful or derivative or stupid. After we have a full song out of that, we'll bring it to the band the next time we practice and see if drums and bass can be smoothly added to the song. I'm not gonna lie, marijuana helps with each step of this process. Hahaha.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? LS: I'm super grateful for the Ottawa music scene. We've always been super welcome to play on bills even when we were first starting out. It's a welcoming community, and we've met so many great musicians through the scene. Nightlife in Ottawa in general though, it's becoming less and less about live music. This leaves only a handful of bars a band can actually play at, which can become stale when making events. I don't know, we still have a lot of love for these venues obviously.

SA: For somebody who hasn’t heard your music before, which song of yours would you recommend and why? LS:  We finally have new material! so I'd say if you like slow acoustic, We Don't Have to Wait is a good one. If you like it heavy, check out It's All Backwards.

SA: What is your favourite venue to play in Ottawa? LS:  Each band member probably has a different answer, but I like Bar Robo a lot. Its a smaller venue, but that makes for intimate, energetic shows. Plus their menu is great.

SA: Thus far in your careers, what has been the band’s favourite show? LS: We were younger and less experienced when we did this one, but we played the Tim Horton's Brier a while ago, which is like this curling event at Lansdowne in that big flashy building. Kinda strange. But it was the biggest, most professional stage we've ever been on, with lighting, and this fog machine. Not to mention, there was a backstage area with free beer and food... my god.

SA: What comes next for Lost at Sea in 2019? We wish you all the best, and good luck! LS: We've been on sort of a rest period since about March. But we just put out a music video for our song Just Like Smoke, so I believe we'll be trying our hand at more videos this year. I wouldn't be surprised if we hit up another studio and release a few singles this summer as well. Above all, we'd like to leave Ottawa try touring the east/west coast! Thank you very much!

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

NEVERFRIEND

Neverfriend is set to release a new album called Strong Like a Girl, which includes an upcoming accompanying music video for the title track. They have planned an album release party at Mavericks for Saturday, June 15th. Read more to learn about the topics behind their songwriting, the diversity of their influences, and their new plans for releasing new music.

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/neverfriend/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/neverfriend

Web: www.neverfriend.com 

Upcoming Release: Strong Like a Girl (Album, June 2019)

Upcoming Shows: Saturday, June 15th - CD Release Party, ft. Wyntr, Norse’s Thorn, & Hot Jupiter. 7:30PM. $10. Maverick’s. Ottawa, ON.

SA: How did this project come together for you guys? NF: The Strong Like a Girl album has been in the works for nearly two years.  We’ve had a few line up changes and as a result a few delays, but it was all for the best as the new members have added their flavour and we think the end product was certainly worth the extra time.

The title track Strong Like a Girl is a key song on the album as it is about putting an end to harassment, violence and abuse against women. Written on the cusp of the #MeToo movement, the song was inspired by our lead singer Gina’s personal experience with workplace sexual harassment over a 6 year period, the devastating toll it took on her life, and the courage it took for her to stand up to her predator.  And in the end, she emerged victorious and determined to tell her story so that others in similar situations can know that they are not alone and that there is hope if they too speak their truth. A video for the song is set to be released on June 13, 2019.

SA: What bands or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? NF: This is a tough one. If you were to examine each of our Spotify playlists, you would see everything from Foo Fighters to Led Zeppelin and the Beatles to a wide range of 80’s hair metal to Slayer and Motorhead.   But traditionally we try to emulate the mix and mastering approach of Green Day and Paramore in terms of overall sound.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been the band’s biggest success? NF:  That a tough one cause everyone’s definition of success is different.  In our case, we made a decision a few years back that success was touching one person’s heart with one of our songs...whether because the lyrics hit close to home for them, or the energy of the band or the groove of a song made them forget their day or made them feel just a tiny bit better about life.  That’s our version of success and from that regard, we’ve been doing alright!

SA: Conversely, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? NF:  This one is easier...finding time for everything we want to do as band!  We want to be gigging more, touring, writing more music, making more videos, connecting with fans and making new friends.  We want to connect with promoters, and radio jockeys, and music bloggers. We want to collaborate with fellow musicians and push the limits of our musical expression. And we also need to work our day jobs, and take care of day to day living stuff.  I don’t think anyone of us would hesitate for a second to do music full time if we could and that pull and tension is always there. Somehow though we’ve been able to find a balance...most of the time...because we never lose sight of our love for this band and for music making.  

SA: How do you guys approach the song-writing process? NF:  Usually it’ll start with Fraser coming up with a guitar riff of some kind and singing a hook wildly into a crappy phone app to capture the creative flow as it comes spewing out of him.  He’ll then ask us what we think, which is often Gina given her proximity. Her test is easy...if she can’t stop humming the hook, it’s a keeper. Gina then tries to flesh out the melody with the help of the rest of the band and matching the song feel and cadence to some of the many lyrics she’s continuously writing. Then the band massages the song structure and flow together, everyone works out their individual parts, and we lay down a rough recording of the song. Throughout, everyone’s ideas are welcomed. We’ve all been doing this long enough that no opinions will hurt our egos...likewise, we won’t hold back calling it if something sucks haha.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene, and what are you looking to bring to it? NF: Ottawa has a flourishing music scene with a lot of great artists. We’ve seen it grow a lot over the last several years and it’s really exciting to be a part of it.  These days it’s incredibly hard to make a living in the music industry and most of us do it purely for the love of making music, often at our own cost.  Everyone is in the same boat. So we try to help in our own way by encouraging other bands and supporting each other…the same good vibes we feel from them.  

SA: Can you tell us a bit about your upcoming music video for Strong Like a Girl? NF:   We took the lead from Gina on this one given that it was her story.  She had the idea of inviting some of the strong women she knew to be part of the video, to stand in solidarity against harassment, abuse and all the other forms of oppression against women that happen on a daily basis, in every walk of life, all over the world.  It was shot and edited by Kristopher Chandroo, who also did our Hurts to Breathe video. The result was one of the video projects we’ve been the most proud to be associated with. So far the feedback we’ve received on the early previews of the video have been really positive and we can’t wait to share it with everyone on June 13.

SA: You get billed on your dream tour. Who would be on tour with you? NF:  Well it would be a hell of a tour with our varied musical interests! I don’t know that we can answer this one.  Our list would be so long it would be more like a touring festival! Ok, for starters it would include Metallica and Weird Al Yankovic.

SA: If you had to choose, what three records would you cite as most impactful on your sound in this group? NF:  See answer above.  Truthfully we can’t say we try to emulate any one (let alone three) bands or records. Neverfriend has prided itself on trying to be as unique as possible while still staying true to what we genuinely love to hear...heavy, groovy riffs, dynamics, emotional content, character.  As a result, we’ve been labeled everything from pop punk, rock, metal, alternative rock, etc. This likely speaks to all of our very varied and diverse musical backgrounds that range from 80s hair metal, punk, ska, heavy metal, rock, etc....all the way to opera and classical music.

SA: What comes next for you guys, post album-release, in 2019? Good luck this coming year! NF:  Thanks!! We think we may step away from the traditional “album release” approach and focus more on releasing our music song by song.  In this day and age, new material is king, and since we all have day jobs, the writing process for an entire album can be quite lengthy and is simply too long for fans to wait for.  By taking the “release one song at a time” approach we can keep writing and keep releasing new content, and also delve into some different sounds without committing an entire album to it.  It’s a win win, really.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

THE DOWNTALKERS

The Downtalkers are a local indie rock band who who combine sparkling synths, fuzzed guitars along with passionate vocals. Building on the success of the lead single Heart Over Head, they released their album Carelessness & Callousness Etc. on May 24. We caught up with Dono Smith (DS, guitar, vocals) to talk about the band’s influences, songwriting, and three desert albums!

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedowntalkersband/

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/downtalkers/

Twitter:https://twitter.com/downtalkers 

BandCamp:https://thedowntalkers.bandcamp.com/

Latest Release: Carelessness & Callousness Etc. (Album, May 2019)

Upcoming Shows: June 12th - Blank Notion, The Downtalkers, Aisle 6. House of Targ, 8PM, $10. Ottawa ON. 

SA: How did The Downtalkers start as a band? DS: Well, Gabe, James and I were in another band with some other people that kinda flopped, so after that I started jamming with James, and for a while Gabe was in and out before he finally committed to the band. We went through two drummers before finding Ben, and we brought Ethan on board after recording the album to give me a bit more freedom on guitar.

SA: Who are your biggest influences, musically or otherwise? DS:  I think we all looked up to people who were doing their own thing. Personally I've always been a fan of Jack White, he was so versatile on guitar, and he wasn't afraid to cross between genres. I also love the Flaming Lips, which was one of the reasons I was so excited when James started experimenting with synths. I know that James is a huge fan of Car Seat Headrest and he kind of introduced them to us as a band. Gabe is all over the place music-wise, which I think is very telling of his personality really :)

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? DS:  Well, as much as the album is a huge accomplishment, and we've been able to play great shows with great musicians, I think the real wonder is how we've been able to stay together so long, especially since both Gabe and I share the responsibility of playing the frontman, we have some pretty legendary spats about musical direction. But here we are still!

SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you've faced, and how have you dealt with it? DS:  Finding a sound that felt like our own took some time, we've bounced around in the grey areas between genres a bit, but I think we're all happy with where we've landed. Not to say that we plan to stick with the same sound for any measure of time, expect change for the next album.

SA: How do you approach the songwriting process? DS: The same thing never works twice. I know that Gabe keeps a bunch of pages of song lyrics in his room and kind of boils them down and presents the distilled final product to the band. I kind of figure out a lead line, write whatever I think people should know, then once we have lyrics the rest of the band builds the song up until it sounds nice and big.

SA: With respect to your lyrics, what serves as lyrical inspiration? DS: Whatever's on our mind! With this album, it was a lot about disfunction in our personal relationships, and dissecting conflicts that we experienced. The album is definitely a story of the past year and a bit for us, so I urge everyone to listen to the full thing in order at some point and piece it together for themselves.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? DS:  Great music, great people, nice venues. It's one of those things where you kinda have to look a little to find it, but don't mistake that for it being lack luster or nonexistent, Ottawa is brimming with creativity.

SA: If you had to choose, what is your favourite moment off of your album Carelessness & Callousness and why? DS: That's like asking parents to choose between their children. I personally love Speak To Kill because I think it's some of my best lyrics so far, and the guitar line is super fun, but Knowing's a Double Edged Sword is so instrumentally deep, it's definitely one of my favourites to play.

SA: Your three deserted island albums: what would they be, and why? DS: Hmmm, okay so number one is definitely Teens Of Denial by Car Seat Headrest, because every single time I listen to it, it's like I discover a whole new album, and the lyrics are so sincere. Number two is At War With The Mistics, by the Flaming Lips, because that's the kind of songwriting that I strive for, it's just such an emotional roller coaster, it's really a masterpiece. And finally number three has to be July Talk's self titled album, because it is a very interesting psychological criticism of our modern romantic relationships, and I feel like it has a lot to say.

SA: What do you hope for musically in 2019? Our best wishes for your continued success! DS: If I can be frank? We hope to whoever's in charge of the universe, that people show music the respect that it deserves. Y'know? put it in the forefront instead of it being background noise, get to more shows, I also hope that the streaming situation should change for artists, music should be a viable job. Artists pour themselves into every song, and I feel like every time we stream a song, we're saying that we believe that their work is only worth the fraction of a cent that they're getting payed, and if that's not tragic, then I don't know what is.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

JONATHAN PEARCE

Jonathan Pearce (JP) has been a staple in the Ottawa music scene, having played in such notable acts as Winchester Warm, Poorfolk, and Mushy Gushy. Now he is embarking on a project under his name, his first self-titled release more than 10 years deep into his musical career. In anticipate of his album release show for Systems this Saturday, June 1, we caught up to discuss the background of the project, his favourite artist in the world (!), and his favourite song on the new album. 

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jonathanpearcemusic/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ponjearce/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/winchesterwarm

BandCamp: https://jonathanpearce.bandcamp.com/

Latest Release: Systems (Album, May 2019)

Upcoming Shows: Saturday, June 1 - Jonathan Pearce, Giant Hand. 9PM, $10. Pressed, Ottawa, ON.

SA: You’ve been active in the Ottawa music scene, in a variety of projects, for some time. How did this solo release come together, and when did you start writing these songs? JP: The best way to describe this group of songs is that they were some orphan songs of mine that had been kicking around for a while that for reason didn't really feel like they had a home anywhere else. I had a brought a few of them to Matt in Winchester Warm and they didn't really feel right for that project. But I kept coming back to the demos and they kept bugging me bit - like they wanted to have a home somewhere but wasn't really sure where. Then on a whim about 3 years ago, in the immediate aftermath of a relationship gone wrong, I suddenly decided I needed to the record the songs. So I recorded the guitar parts in my kitchen and messaged my old friend Pat Johnson (Steve Adamyk Band, The Acorn) to see if he might be interested in playing drums for some songs he had never heard before and he jumped at the offer. I messaged my friend David Gervais (Mushy Gushy, The Gallop) to see if we could record at this studio (Swell Studios) and he agreed. So we started this project kind of backwards. The guitar demos were done before the drums and Pat came up with drums parts very much on the fly. It was a much less deliberative songwriting/recording process but it was pretty liberating to work like that for a change. Then I sat the on the demos for close to 2 years and had my friend Dave Draves (Little Bullhorn) hear the songs and he strongly encouraged me to take these songs to the next level. Which led to me finally finishing the record. So it was kind of an unintentional album which was completely new to me but also pretty exciting. And a completely different approach to making a record for me.

SA: What bands, musicians or artists would you cite as the biggest influences on this album? JP: That's a very difficult question as I listen to so many different artists. And considering this record took something like 3 years to make it is pretty hard to pinpoint who might be the biggest influence on this group of songs.

SA: For this project, what would you consider to be your biggest success? JP: I think that considering this was very much a studio album where I played and sang a large variety of the parts (with the exceptions of drums, violin and backing vocals) I think a huge success for me will be somehow trying to recreate this studio effort in a live performance. It's been a pretty exciting and challenging process to teach the different parts to some of favourite local musicians and to try to perform these songs live. Apart from that, I am super proud of these songs and this record and would just love for as many people as possible to hear some or all of them.

SA: In getting this release out, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? JP:  The biggest challenge has definitely been the fact that I am finally releasing something under my own name. There is something I find somewhat terrifying and extremely vulnerable about putting my actual name on it. There has always been a comfort in masking myself and hiding behind cryptic monikers like Winchester Warm or Poorfolk, as opposed to finally stepping forward and standing behind these songs. It feels better now, but for some reason it still somehow somewhat terrifies me HA.

SA: How do you approach the song-writing process? JP: I don't really have a specific process when it comes to songwriting - sometimes songs come when I'm super busy with other things in brief spurts and other times I will be out on my stoop or out in the country where the songs will come. But I find you really cannot force it. That's the amazing thing about songwriting for me - usually a song will kind of present itself to me and I'll just kind of have to follow it down this other-worldly musical path or try to harness it in some way. And generally my songs come together in one sitting, which I find pretty amazing. It's like they are just kind of waiting out there for me.

SA: Who is the best artist currently active in the world, and why? JP: Oh wow once again that is so difficult. But perhaps I will go ahead and say Sandro Perri because he made my favourite record last year, "In Another Life." The first side of the record is the title track and it goes on for something like 25 minutes and just kind of unfolds and changes slightly in front of you for the entire time. There isn't really a chorus or a verse, just a set structure that continuously changes from part to part. For me it really feels like a middle finger to this short-attention span, fast-paced, immediate, click-happy culture that we inhabit at the moment. It's a beautiful piece of work.

SA: A question for fun: if you could tour with any musical act, active or not, who would it be and why? JP: Hands down I would love to tour with Neil Young. Why Neil Young? Because it's Neil! And my father's a huge Neil fan so he would for sure come see us play. And also because Neil inhabits both sides of the sonic spectrum - loud and abrasive, quiet and soothing. And I love both sides in equal measure.

SA: What is your favourite song of “Systems”, and why? JP: I think the final song "Know" is my favourite. That song started off a bit more theoretical than others and I kind of envisioned where it went before I went there with it. And I feel like I came pretty darn close in the recorded version to the vision I had in my head when I first wrote it. And I'm really proud of the lyrical part that is sung over and over again at the end: "How will I know it now? I'll never know it now." It's a very open-ended line. The first half of it is worrying and the second half  kind of assuages that worry. Or accepts the fact that you'll never know it now. Because of course we all want to know it now. But it's totally ok not to know things.

SA: In your music career up to this point, could you specifically choose one gig as your favourite, and why? JP: My favourite gig to date was Winchester Warm's album launch for Belle Attente at Saint Alban's Church in 2014. We packed the place and played really well. And it's quite an amazing sounding room. Our vinyl wasn't there in time but it was such a great night that that didn't even matter!

SA: What comes next this year? Good luck with everything, and thanks for taking the time to answer our questions! JP: I'm really excited for the album launch on Saturday June 1st at Pressed with my old friend Giant Hand. Apart from that I am going to work on a few more videos and also look ahead to some shows in the fall.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

DEATHSTICKS

Deathsticks have been called 'controlled chaos', employing 'feedback, crashing drums, roaring power chords and screaming solos' to devastating effect. Personally, I hear elements of Death From Above and Pretty Girls Make Graves - doesn't matter, just listen to it, OK!? Transplanted from Peterborough, they have been destroying eardrums with their live shows and powerful releases, such as 2018's Deathsnacks and In The Motors. We spoke with guitarist Matt Post (MP). Check out their tunes, and a live show, if you'd be so lucky! 

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/buysomedeathsticks/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dethstyx/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Deathsticksband

BandCamp: https://buysomedeathsticks.bandcamp.com/

Latest Release: In The Motors (Single, Sep 2018)

Upcoming Shows: Friday, May 10 - Gleneagle at CMW. Cherry Cola’s, Toronto, ON. Friday, May 17 - Deathsticks, Torpor, Death Ex, and more. Pressed, Ottawa, ON. Sunday, June 9 - SOTO FEST III. Off Peak Green Barn. Ottawa, ON.

SA: How did Deathsticks first start playing music together? MP: Deathsticks formed in late 2015, originally with Evan Moore on drums (now of Toronto band Blankscreen). Laura joined a couple months later and we played our first show with this lineup in Feb 2016. Laura and I grew up in Durham region, in Oshawa and Whitby, but started playing together because of the Peterborough music scene. Laura was in a band that I was a big fan of and I sort of became their roadie. We had a mutual respect for what we’d been working on separately and just got along well.

SA: What bands or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? MP: We were definitely influenced by local Ontario bands when we first started out. I had seen some Toronto bands like Soupcans and New Fries, anything that was on like Telephone Explosion, Pleasance Records or Bruised Tongue in Ottawa was stuff I thought was cool and wanted to do something like that. Laura and I saw Holy Fuck together and I tried to rip off some of their vocal effects on the earlier Deathsticks recordings. The first Peterborough show I saw was at a fest Laura organized, noise veterans Nihilist Spasm Band played and also a local artist called Paulabulus. I didn’t really know you could make ambient/drone/noise music like that and saw that there was an audience for that kind of thing in the Peterborough community. More recently my friends bands like WLMRT and the London crowd around Isolation Party, Shoobies, Manager and Disleksick have helped guide me back to making music fun.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been the band’s biggest success? MP: We’ve been 100% DIY, with no help from booking agents, larger labels, publicists, or producers who would shape our sound. Of course everything is harder this way and takes longer but at least we’re not looking at spending the next decade locked in a record contract or something for art we could just continue doing the way we want to, on our own.

SA: Conversely, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? MP: This past winter we recorded about an EP’s worth of material and just scrapped it. It was all getting to be too self-serious and un-fun guitar post punk whatever. I’ve gotten over the angrier direction we had in the past and am trying to make music that’s still light-hearted while also still being destructive and cathartic. It’s difficult to look at something you’ve made and decide not to release it, but it’s important for a band to be real with themselves and understand that not everything you make is automatically worth listening to. We’re moving on with different instrumentation and new ideas we’re more excited about, rather than go through the trouble of paying for vinyl or tapes of music we don’t even care about any more.

SA: How do you guys approach the song-writing process? MP: With great difficulty. Usually we get a song either on the first time we play it. or from like weeks of cutting down a longer jam session to its bare bones. As long as the songs end up being like 2 minutes long or less I’m happy, and as long as it’s catchy then Laura’s happy, I think.

SA: I understand you guys are transplants to Ottawa. What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? MP: Ottawa has been kind to us. We just moved to the suburbs and that’s where it’s at. But we’re really grateful to have great venues like House of Targ, Pressed and Black Squirrel Books. Promotional things like Sitting on the Outside, Ottawa Showbox and Side By Side Weekend are showing the larger Canadian and international scene that Ottawa is worth playing and that there’s some great bands no matter what genre you’re into.

SA: What is your favourite show that the band has played, and why? MP: Our first show, but we spend way more time talking about our weirdest shows ever. We have a running list of strangest experiences and when you play hundreds of times across Canada in a lot of unconventional venues like ice cream parlors, people’s living rooms, or Chinese food restaurants (don’t worry none of those are the weirdest ones, those ones were all good) it’s more fun than just playing the same kind of bar all the time. If you put us on a bill literally anywhere we will play it and have a great time.

SA: Thus far in the band’s repertoire, what is your favourite track, and why? MP: I like whatever the newest song happens to be. Once I’ve played it a few dozen times I can get tired of it though. Some of the songs haven’t left the live set in the whole 3 years so far. People still respond to them, so they work. “Buzzkill” is definitely a fan favourite and it’s been the opening song for a couple years. I like playing “Fridge Nachos” I guess.

SA: Are Deathsticks cigarettes!? I feel like they’re cigarettes?!?! Are you guys fans/haters of NO FRILLS grocery stores? I can’t tell from the album art. MP: Deathsticks refers to Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones. In high school no one wanted to be in a band with me which is for the best but at the time I thought it would be funny to call a band Deathsticks because that band would be saying “you don’t want to buy this, you want to go home and rethink your life.” It still is funny.  

SA: What comes next for you guys in 2019? Good luck this coming year! MP: We’re going to tour the USA for the first time. We started a label called Not My Car so we’ve been working on releases for that. Our EP Deathsnacks just came out on 7-inch through the label, and we’re recording some other bands we like in our home studio. Not My Car is DIY label where I do all of the production and recording in-house. Most immediately we’re doing a lathe cut split with Disleksick aka London’s most dangerous band.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

SPACE COYOTE

Space Coyote (SC) is Ashton Cavanagh (AC), Paddy Greene (PG) and Ryan Dempsey (RD). The indie-rock band, who occasionally incorporate flute and brass, released their debut EP You’re Living in the Past in December 2018. Read on about their love of Midwest Emo, their favourite parts off the new release, and of course their thoughts on Spider-Man.

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/spacecoyoteband/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spacecoyoteband/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/spacecoyoteott

BandCamp: https://spacecoyoteband.bandcamp.com/

Latest Release: You’re Living in the Past (EP, Dec 2018) 

Upcoming Shows: Saturday, April 27 - My Friend PJ & Space Coyote. Queen St. Fare, Ottawa, ON.

SA: How did Space Coyote start as a band? SC: Ryan was fresh out of the pop-punk band “Remember the Arcadians” and was looking for a new project back in late 2016. It just so happened that Ashton was also fresh out of his old emo band “Bankshot”. The two knew each other from occasionally playing shows on the same bill with their old bands so Ryan messaged Ashton with their similar musical interests in mind.

We jammed a few times and honestly it was pretty awkward and not very good, haha. Two or three talented but uninterested bassists later, then high schooler Ryan finally turned to a trumpet player in the school's band that he was in. Fortunately, this trumpet player (Paddy) enjoyed similar music, and played guitar outside of school so Ryan convinced him to learn bass. Months of on and off jamming in between everyone's schooling led to writing and recording the recently released EP “You’re Living in the Past” with Scoreboard Recordings.

SA: Who are your biggest influences, musically or otherwise? SC: We all started off being inspired by Midwest Emo music (e.g. American Football, Cap’n Jazz, Mineral, Sunny Day Real Estate, The Appleseed Cast) and then took more inspiration from the Emo Revival scene (e.g. Foxing, Tiny Moving Parts, Modern Baseball, Snowing). Ryan and Paddy share a love for Jazz and Paddy and Ashton share a love for experimental music. Lyrically, Ashton draws from folk music and singer songwriter with direct metaphorical lines. (e.g. Elliott Smith, Conor Oberst, Nick Drake, Bob Dylan, Mount Eerie, The Microphones)

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? SC: Honestly, we’ve been blown away by the warm reception we’ve received from the music community in Ottawa when playing shows and in general. Playing shows and getting our music out there has enabled us to meet some amazing and like minded people in the music scene, who have helped us along the way. More specifically, our track Homebody has received many compliments so we're very proud of the stuff we've created.

SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you've faced, and how have you dealt with it? SC: We all live far apart from each other so practices and gigs have been hard to organize since day one. We have be very diligent to make sure the band keeps going. Additionally, with everyone in post-secondary and secondary schools, it can be hard to find the time to get together. Ashton’s car is also horrendous bucket of bolts, which makes getting to Stittsville (where we practice) from Merrickville slightly more than a jaunt and a half.

SA: How do you approach the songwriting process? SC: Ashton typically writes a skeleton of a song with a basic structure of rhythm guitar and vocals. He then usually brings it to the jury of Paddy and Ryan for their approval. If it fits our sound enough and actually sounds better as a full band, we then work on fleshing it out more. Ryan tries to find drum parts that complement the music and tie everything together. Paddy then writes bass parts, as well as occasional lead guitar, piano, horns and backing vocals. Ashton writes the majority of the lyrics with occasional creative input from Paddy if the song is about something they both have experienced. All three of us add inputs to the specific structure of the tunes.

(Sidenote: the flute part in Running Red Lights arose when Ashton said “This needs a flute part, something like:” then proceeded to sing a line. Ryan then played that part on flute, and it was finalized.)

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? SC: It's a really great community. We meet unforgettable people at every show, without fail, and always have a great time. It's really easy to enjoy yourself when everyone around you is kind and having a common passion, bringing everyone together.

SA: If you had to choose, what is your favourite moment off of “You’re Living in the Past” and why? AC: I’ve always loved the instrumental with trumpet at end of Homebody. Out of parts I’ve written I’m decently proud of the way the two lead guitar lines mesh on the second verse of January. Lyrically, the second verse of Norman! You’re Out! RD: I really like the way the first verse of Norman portrays a sense of dreary hopelessness, mostly by the timbre of the vocals and by the imperfect movement of the melody. The way the piano ties it all together by the end adding major tonality kind of adds hope and I really enjoy that. The gang vocals at the end of Homebody are also a really fun ending and were really fun to record too. PG: The drum opening of Static is a cool start to the EP and the piano at the end of Norman! You’re Out was really enjoyable to write. Both are quite memorable for me.

SA: Do you guys love Spider-man genuinely, or jokingly? What is it about Spider-Man that inspires you so much? SC: 99% genuinely, 1% jokingly. RD: For me, I just love Spider-Man because he's the most down to earth superhero. He's got grades to worry about, a job, a love life, his aunt May to worry to about, and all the usual yet considerable struggles of an average kid. With all this on his shoulders, he still chooses to use his powers for good and add more to his plate because it's the right thing. There can honestly be something learned from his sense of responsibility. On the other hand, he screws up like anyone else--he's not perfect, and he knows it. There's something great about the genuineness of it. The Sam Raimi trilogy captured this pretty well (except for the third) and honestly their cheesiness is part of the charm. His powers are also, simply put, fun. (The meme videos are great too). AC: Yeah, what he said. Also, those Sam Raimi movies were my entire childhood and I’ll fight anyone who takes a shit on my childhood by saying the Andrew Garfield ones are better. I love em completely unironically (except 3 I probably do love that ironically).  PG: Little of both, they're fun stories but can be a bit cheesy at times.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

CHRISTINE JAKEL

Christine Jakel (CJ) has a busy spring planned, with gigs lined up in Montreal, Brockville, Kingston, Toronto, and Ottawa. She has seamlessly transitioned between the classical training of a formal music degree to her own unique song-writing style. Give her latest number, Storm Clouds, a spin and check her out when she plays your town.

VITALS

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/christinejakelmusic/

Bandcamp: https://christinejakel.bandcamp.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/christinejakelmusic

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdqtTm41pI8vz6gNg1E6Erw

Latest Release: Storm Clouds (Single, April 2019) 

Upcoming shows: April 16 - Christine Jakel, Heather Ragnars and Gerry Galipeau. Barfly, Montreal QC. April 20 - Christine Jakel and DRFTR. Spitfire Cafe, Brockville, ON. April 25 - Christine Jakel, Sapph Decaf and Erika Lamon. The Mansion, Kingston, ON. April 27 - Ottawa Grassroots Festival. Ottawa, ON. May 9 - Canadian Music Week Showcase. Toronto, ON.

SA: How did you first get your start in music? CJ: I've been doing music my whole life. I started piano at age 5 which was followed by 17 years of classical training. I also sang in choirs and took voice lessons at my high school (De La Salle) and then went to university for classical voice. I’m self taught at guitar since I was fourteen and would play folk/pop songs in my spare time. I didn't start writing and playing my own songs until I founded the band Grace Note with my best friend Charlotte Esme Frank in 2017. It really helped to build my confidence as a songwriter. I have since developed my own solo act and have been performing around Ontario and the East Coast for the past two years.

SA: What bands or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? CJ:  First and foremost Joni Mitchell. Big Yellow Taxi is the reason  I learned how to play guitar. I was also exposed to a lot of jazz growing up (my dad was a big fan). Brandi Carlile is who really inspired me to start writing. Her music just spoke to me and I don't think there's a single song in her entire discography that I don't like. I currently listen to a lot of Feist, Hozier and Florence and the Machine, which are all artists I look up to as well.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? CJ: I would say my biggest accomplishment so far has been organizing my Space Cadet Tour in April 2019. It's my first fime completely organizing a tour for myself and I got really creative with it and worked really hard for it and I'm pretty proud of that! It's to promote the release of my new single Storm Clouds and will be followed by a showcase at Canadian Music Week.

SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? CJ: When I first started as an emerging solo artist, I found it very challenging to navigate a  male-dominated industry. I experienced unprofessional and disrespectful behaviours that I should not have had to experience and I didn't know how to handle it at the time. My way of dealing with this was to work with other women in the industry and to learn from their experiences. They have been a huge inspiration to me and I have since gained the confidence to stand up to these kinds of behaviors.

SA: How do you approach the song-writing process? CJ: My approaches to songwriting vary. I used to always start with lyrics. But I've since opened myself more to starting with the music and letting that inspire me. So I switch between both approaches. I've also recently started rewriting which I didn't do before. Working with Tara Shannon and Debbie Zavitson at The Syndicut really helped me realize how much more in depth I can go with the writing process, and I am still learning to express myself through song more clearly and eloquently. Developing my craft is a continuous process.

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? CJ: It's my home and I love it. The scene is really lucky to have some hard-working and dedicated humans involved in it.  Matias Muñoz at Ottawa Showbox and Bad Form Artist Services, Jumpin Joel Flash and Trish Bolechewsky at The Brew on CKCU, Jon and Lawrence Evenchick at Live on Elgin, Julie Corrigan, host of Girls to the Front, everyone at Girls Rock Ottawa helping women make careers in music, to name just a few. Every one of them has supported me on my journey and it has been magical.

SA: If you had to choose your favourite moment off your latest release, Storm Clouds, what would it be, and why? CJ: My favourite moment would have to be during recording when Cam pushed me to belt out the last chorus and I discovered that I was actually able to do it! I felt invincible for a sec.

SA: With respect to your lyrics, what serves as lyrical inspiration? CJ: Some of my songs are love songs, some healing songs and some “f*ck you songs”, I just hope to connect with people through writing about human experiences, mostly my own. Stylistically I've drawn inspiration from Joni Mitchell, Bruce Cockburn and Hozier, who I all consider masters of lyrics.

SA: If you had to choose your favourite concert, that you’ve attended as an audience-member, what would it be and why? CJ: I'd have to say my favourite was the first time I saw Brandi Carlile at Bluesfest. I had just loved her music for so long and was ecstatic to find out that she was coming to Ottawa. Plus she had canceled the year before because of family issues so it was just that much more anticipated. I got to sing and dance along to my favourite songs, cry a bit, cheer louder than I've ever cheered before and just be an all-out fangirl. And she gave a great performance. It was the best day ever!

SA: What do you hope for musically in 2019? Our best wishes for your continued success! CJ: To continue to grow by working with (and learn from) a variety of different people and to be able to follow through with all the things I said I'd do.

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

OBSIDIAN WILL

We caught up with the members of Obsidian Will (OW: Liam, Lloyd, and Justin) to discuss successes, challenges, favourite tracks of their own, and their most influential records. Check them out at one of their upcoming shows and witness their artwork for yourself! (Photo: Natalie Jeffery)

VITALS

Facebook: www.facebook.com/obsidianwill 

Web:  www.obsidianwill.com  

Instagram: www.instagram.com/owmelammu

Upcoming shows:  May 25 - Drone Day, Ottawa, ON June 20 - L'Ordre de l'Infiniment Nada, Obsidian Will, Transmit vs. Intangerines, Bar Robo, Ottawa, ON.

SA: How did Obsidian Will first start playing music together? OW: OW started in 2013 in the office of the Carleton University archives and rare book room, where Liam used to work and Lloyd still does. We were both in other bands, Liam’s was ending as his band mates moved out of town, and Lloyd’s was still going but winding down. We discovered a mutual appreciation for classic heavy metal and various metal sub-genres: black metal, folk metal, witch house, etc. and both came across funeral doom while poking around bandcamp and itunes. It was also around this time that Lloyd started experimenting with making soundscapes on garageband and integrating lyrics. Liam also went to see Merdaratha, which incorporated pre-recorded ambient loop tracks that could be played over by a live band. Liam thought it would be cool to layer some guitar over the soundscapes Lloyd was making, and Lloyd could provide the rhythm. That’s sort of, but not quite, what we ended up doing.

We decided to jam together and booked some time at the rehearsal space under Irene’s called Noise Annoys. The room was great but the shortest amount of time you could book was four hours. Four. Hours. It ended up being a lot of time but allowed us to work for long periods and figure out what our version of funeral doom would be. Originally, all of our songs were between 12 and 20 minutes long. The tightened-up versions of the songs we wrote at this time - like Ghost Acres and Marked Hands - are still part of our sets and are notably slower tempo and sparse-sounding. Eventually, we would move away from trying to fit into the funeral doom genre.

We got lucky somehow and booked a few gigs as a duo, including opening for Topon Das, Greylights, Black Oak Decline and Empty Vessels. We also did our first out-of-town gig at a nudist colony in Vankleek Hill. After we had played our original set list a few times, we decided our sound was a bit too sparse and thought twice about always having a pre-recorded backing track to break-up the silence. Luckily, Lloyd met Justin in an esoteric/occult reading group he started. Their conversation quickly turned to music and Lloyd invited Justin to join with the band to play violin and be the “live loop track” that would replace the pre-recorded one. A few weeks after Justin came on board, we had our first gig with him. We didn’t really have time to prepare, so we just told him to improvise as we played through our set list. Justin eventually purchased an electric violin and now an electric cello, and is integrated more fully into the songs and overall sound of Obsidian Will.

SA: What bands or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? OW: At the beginning it was certainly Doom bands like Skepticism and Nortt, as well as folk metal bands like Wardruna. Merdaratha was a huge initial local influence as well, as was Gates from Toronto. We are individually and collectively influenced by many different bands and styles of music and sound art, and as we have continued to work together more of our influences outside of the metal genre have crept in like The Mars Volta, Laibach, Lustmord, and many of the artists on the Cryo Chamber label.

SA: Thus far in your career, what has been the band’s biggest success? OW: It’s all a success. Every time we get to play a show is an extreme privilege and it’s wild to us that we get to share the stage with some of the most exciting bands we know. It’s still a total novelty that we can contact bands that we like, or, even crazier, get contacted by rad bands out of nowhere, and have them agree to/want to play a show with us.

Picking out a few specific examples though, doing an Ottawa-Montreal show swap with Le Pélican Noir is a definite highlight. We are super glad to have met Sylvain and Maxime and are excited to collaborate with them in the future. Being asked to play the Ottawa Experimental Music 5 year anniversary show is also huge for us, and it’s kind of unbelievable that we got to be on the same bill as amazing local bands we admire like Novusolis, Clavius, Deathsticks, RAAS, and Forgotten in the Woods Again. Also, having an album and EP recorded by Topon Das at Apartment 2 Studios is like a dream come true, and, thanks to his production skills, having them turn out wayyy better than we thought possible was an added bonus.

SA: Conversely, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? OW: Obsidian Will doesn’t really fit into any one genre, or at least one of the genres you can pick from a scroll-down list on bandcamp/soundcloud/spotify etc. Our sets can range from quiet drone/ambient to a crushing doom-infused wall of noise. A blend of those two extremes isn’t always an easy sell. This might make us a bit more challenging to put on a bill, because we’re not really a fun high-energy band that would get booked for your usual bar or festival gigs - we have a tendency to bring the mood down. That said, we’ve managed to find a core group of local bands and artists we are similar to and that we work well with. We are still working to build our audience and find other artists to collaborate with. Having the ability to disseminate our music online helps when your project is more niche, like ours.

SA: How do you guys approach the song-writing process? OW: We’re still working on figuring this one out. Our older approach, when we were a two-piece of drums and guitar was to kind of work independently and rely on visual cues from on-another, mostly nods and looks. Essentially, it was the law of the jungle, but we made it work.

Once Justin joined the band, and now that Lloyd is incorporating synth, we realized we would need to work on coordinating. Right now, we’re working on a new song that will require a lot more structure and coordination between the three of us. We’re currently building a structure based on a few variations on the central theme.

Usually one of us has a concept or an idea we want to explore with the band. We sit and talk about it and then see if we can translate that narrative into sound. Occasionally we will also bring a riff or soundscape forward and work with that.

Also, we usually write lyrics first and try to build a song structure around them, or, for less structured and more ambient songs, pre-record the lyrics and play them over what we’re playing. For these less-structured songs, we end up doing our own thing to a great extent, recording it off the floor, and listening back to it to make sure everything we’re doing fits together. The tricky part is remembering what you were playing!

SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? OW: There are positives and negatives. We recognize that we are a niche project and our music/performances don’t appeal to everyone; that’s totally fine. As a result of this, though, we had a hard time finding shows at first and are still working on building a local audience. Maybe this is commonplace and not exclusively an Ottawa thing, but it seems like crowds tends to follow specific promoters, and promoters tend to focus on specific genres, which totally makes sense. This can just make it a bit difficult to do something different and still play locally. That’s probably more on us than on “the scene” though.

That said, we’ve been super lucky to get support from other bands and locals. One of our earliest supporters was Topon Das. Not only did he record, mix, and master our self-titled album and the Night Sky EP at Apartment 2 Studios, he headlined our first show and also got us on early bills with bands we were amazed to play with like Black Oak Decline and Empty Vessels. We are super appreciative of all the help he’s given us and feel privileged that he’s been involved in the band’s development.

Another huge help to us is Adriana Ciccone (AKA Baba Ganoush). Finding the Ottawa Experimental Music facebook page was extremely helpful for promotion and finding shows. Adriana has been very supportive of OW, plus she’s a super talented musician herself that is contributing a lot to the Ottawa music scene as a performer, community radio host, writer, organizer, and show promoter. We consider her a very positive force in the Ottawa music scene and are extremely grateful to have met her and to have shared a stage with her. Check out all her stuff if you haven’t already! Forgotten in the Woods Again, Constellation 425, Ottawa Experimental Music, Hexon Bogon on CKCU. She does so much that is no doubt an incomplete list.

Ottawa Drone Day has also been a big help as well (full disclosure: Liam has helped organize Drone Day for the past 3 years). It’s always encouraging to see that there are so many local performers doing very different styles of music than you would normally see at shows, and it is great to be a part of that. Overall, though our niche is specific we are very encouraged that we’ve been able to find local bands to play on the same bill with and that like our music, and likewise, we like theirs.

SA: From Tamtu in November 2016, all the way to Night Sky, in November 2018, what kind of progression has there been in your music? Or, has it rather stayed constant over time, in terms of theme and expression? OW: Over time, we have played with the idea of structuring our shows and recordings as ritual spaces. As the ones creating the experience, we are guides bringing the listener on a sonic journey. We have structured our sets and albums to do this, trying to be conscious of what’s being communicated overall and being sure to open and close the ritual space of the performance before and after. This idea developed early on and has been a through-line throughout our performances and recordings... most of the time.

Similarly, we consider our songs, with and without lyrics, as meditations. We are often trying to explore things that inspire awe through their ineffability or by the contradictions they embody. Sometimes we borrow from classical mythology to do this, like in The Mother of Eleven and Marked Hands, and sometimes we look to the present like in Teratogenesis or Salvage. We are often writing songs about forces beyond our control and the feeling of powerlessness.

As far as recordings go, we’ve alternated between more structured songs and more improvised, noisy, and experimental “songs” (calling them songs would be kind of a stretch). Tamtu, Hollow Witch, and Night Sky are all less structured experimental pieces we recorded for Noisevember. For these, we try to tell a story through sound and sometimes incorporate pre-recorded lyrics. For Hollow Witch, we stayed at a friend’s house deep in Lanark County and recorded the songs in various parts of the house as well as one outside. We ritualized the session overall as well as each recording, and in the end, the album ended up being an ode to the house itself. Our self-titled album and Melammu are recordings of some of our more structured songs and is a bit less consciously organized overall. The elements are still there, but the songs are more able to stand alone.

Also, in the time we’ve been playing together we’ve all grown as musicians. We’ve also grown in terms of gear. We started with drums and electric guitar and now we have drums, baritone guitar, electric violin, electric cello, 3 or 4 synthesizers, and collectively we probably have 20 pedals. This allows each of us to shape our sound to better reflect the stories that we set out to tell with our music. As we grow as musicians our sonic vocabulary grows along with the amount of gear we have to load-in.

SA: Thus far in the band’s repertoire, what is your favourite track, and why? Liam: My favourite tracks are some of our earliest: Marked Hands and The Gestation of Homunculi. They are very simple but I never get sick of playing them when we are going through the set list. They are probably the most emotive songs in our repertoire.

Lloyd: My favorite track to play is Teratogenesis basically because it’s fun to smash through the song. My favorite song to listen to is The Mother of Eleven. For me the song is an invocation of the dark reaches of mystery. Each time we play it I treat it as a personal ritual.

Justin: The Gestation of Homunculi is awesome! This was the first song I wanted to learn and play when I joined and I still love playing it.

SA: If you had to choose, what three records would you cite as most impactful on your sound in this group? Lloyd: Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath

Liam: Skepticism - Stormcrowfleet

Justin: Type-O-Negative - October Rust

SA: What comes next for you guys in 2019? Good luck this coming year! OW: We are working on a couple new songs and will most likely be playing Drone Day on May 25th. After that, we are playing June 20th with L’Ordre de l’Infiniment NADA and Transmit vs. Intangerines at Bar Robo - this show is so new there isn’t even an event to link to yet! We’ll probably also do another crazy noise recording for Noisevember and other stuff, stay tuned! 

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

SURRENDER

Surrender is a duo of Dave Williams (DW) and Scott, veterans of the Ottawa music scene. They are set to release their debut album soon; in the meantime, give their first single, Hold On, a spin, and read on about their vast experiences in music, top albums, and thoughts on the Ottawa music scene. (Photo: Rémi Thériault)

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/surrendersounds

Bandcamp: https://surrendersounds.bandcamp.com/releases 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/surrendersounds/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/davemonomania (Dave)

Upcoming shows:  Stay tuned!

SA: How did Surrender come to be as a band? DW: Scott (Surrender vocalist) and I had been playing in the band Crusades for the past ten years, and in early 2018 we all quite amicably realized that the band had run its course. We did a final tour in the UK/Europe, one hometown show, and played our final two sets at The Fest in Florida. Toward the end of all that, with things winding to their conclusion, Scott and I began discussing working on something new together - something outside of the punk/hardcore scene that we’d been deeply involved in for the previous twenty-plus years. We’re both hugely into pop music, and of the synth-driven variety specifically. I had inherited a Roland Juno 106 when my best friend’s father passed away a few years earlier - it was a fixture in the home studio that I initially learned how to record in - and I sorta longed to make something with it. So, I started writing some songs on it at home, sent them to Scott, he sent some vocal ideas, and we were off. SA: What bands or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? DW: Whew. I’ll do my best to keep this as brief as possible. There are some obvious touchstones: Kate Bush, Peter Gabriel, Tears for Fears, all of Vince Clarke’s 80s output - Erasure’s The Innocents is a big one, Eurythmics, OMD, Cyndi Lauper, The Cure... essentially the more ‘serious’ side of 80s synth-driven pop music. Later 80s/early 90s stuff like Björk/Sugarcubes, New Order and the ‘Madchester’ scene, Jesus Jones, Ned’s Atomic Dustbin and the other Grebo bands. I probably can’t overstate the impact of the quintessential 80s soundtracks: The Lost Boys, Footloose - Kenny Loggins’ “I’m Free” might be my favourite pop song of the decade. I’m a sucker for some of the big producers of that era too. Desmond Child was unstoppable for a while - Cher’s Heart of Stone is another BIG one. As for more modern stuff, I’m pretty obsessed with a lot of the Norwegian pop scene. Cold Mailman is a HUGE influence, as is Hanne Kolstø, Pyke, the new Misty Coast record, there’s a ton of amazing stuff coming out of that country. Some straight-up dance stuff too: Toulouse, Robyn, Pet Shop Boys, ABBA obviously. And of course, the still relatively-new Synthwave scene has some amazing artists: Kristine, FM-84, Michael Oakley, the whole culture of nostalgia surrounding the NewRetroWave world - music, movies, fashion - certainly runs parallel to what we’re doing, and I really dig a lot of it. SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? DW: Hm. It’s safe to say that there are MANY variations on how one might measure artistic ‘success’. Coming up in a community where monetary success was never the goal (or at all likely), I’d say that getting to travel all over the map multiple times with my closest friends, meet and befriend people we’d have otherwise never crossed paths with, and see things most folks don’t get to see - all because we wrote some pretty cool songs - is probably my greatest personal success.   SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? DW: I think, for me anyway, the biggest challenge has been balancing my creative life with my personal one. I’m married with three small kids - 7, 4 and 2 - and that can obviously present a different set of priorities than simply hitting the road for most of the year and really pushing a project to its fullest potential. Admittedly I’ve been envious of friends and peers who just throw their gear and clothes in the van and make it happen ‘the old-fashioned way’. But that’s just not the life that I set up for myself, nor is it for Scott or the other folks we’ve played with - and I’m far from resentful of that - it just means we need to take a different approach. Amassing a substantial following or getting the attention of a bigger label isn’t terribly easy when you can’t be doing the literal legwork that other bands can. But I do my best to stay close to the people I’ve worked with all along, to show my gratitude and appreciation, and I work endlessly (to some peoples’ chagrin) on the music we make.   SA: How do you guys approach the song-writing process? DW: Since it’s just the two of us, it’s pretty easy to just bounce things back and forth before we actually get together in a room. Basically, I’ll come up with some chord progressions, leads, arpeggios, whatever on my Juno or my wide array of Arturia soft synths, then I’ll record the rhythm section tracks, typically writing most, if not all, of an instrumental song. I’ll send that to Scott and he’ll come up with vocal melodies and record a demo to send back to me. Then I’ll kind of edit the parts around his vocal ideas until we’re happy with the dynamics and how the song sorta lives and breathes. Then we’ll get together at Scott’s with a selection of wine and beer and a pizza, usually with extensive notes on harmonies and how to punch-up the existing vocal parts. We’ll track that stuff, I might do a few more edits at home, and then we send it to the wildly talented Alex Gamble at The Hive in Toronto for mixing, producing, extra instrumental layers, added drum machine stuff, whatever he hears. That’s pretty much how this first LP has gone, and it’s been an absolute pleasure.   SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? DW: I imagine like anyone who’s spent twenty-plus years in a community, subculture, what have you, I’ve got a lot of thoughts and feelings about the Ottawa music scene. My personal involvement tends to ebb and flow as new waves of participants arrive and others exit - years will go by where it feels like home and then there might be a few where I’m not quite as active - but it’s always very near and dear to me. There’s certainly never a lack of quality artists in this sleepy city. I started going to punk shows when I was thirteen - Punchbuggy (featuring a young Jim Bryson) at the Greely Legion was my first show ever - and twenty-five years later there are still a ton of the same faces mixed in with a ton of different ones. That’s a pretty special thing.   SA: As I understand it, you guys have been active in other bands of quite different genres in the past. Why SURRENDER, and why now? DW: As I mentioned, Crusades finished our ten-year run this past October. Black Tower, the sorta traditional heavy metal band I play drums in - with Scott on bass and his partner Erin on guitar and vocals - also decided to take it easy for a while, and although I still kinda ‘moonlight’ with The Steve Adamyk Band, that wasn’t happening at the time. Scott had also just wrapped up the “album cycle” with his band The Creeps and didn’t have much on the horizon there. I briefly played in a hardcore band called Power of Fear that did a few shows, but the current hardcore scene is very... let’s say... ‘youthful’, and it became apparent pretty quickly that it wasn’t something I wanted to stick with. Mostly I just wanted to make music with Scott, and based on our mutual love for 80s/90s pop music (and Scott’s equally toned down schedule), we decided to take a crack at doing something closer to the music we listen to the most. And honestly, I’d been writing and playing fast and/or aggressive music for so long, I really just wanted to make something upbeat and positive that people could dance to.   SA: A question for fun: your three desert island albums. What would they be and why? DW: Alright, this isn’t gonna be easy. Or brief. Note: these aren’t necessarily my favourite albums of all time (certainly they’re in the Top Ten), but if I’m gonna be listening to these on whatever hi-fi system this hypothetical island has until I wither away, here’s what I’d hope washed ashore with me (also, I’m gonna cheat using a nostalgia loophole):

1. Alice Cooper - Love It to Death / Killer (my Dad’s old dubbed cassette version) These two albums, both released in 1971, were my first love. They were on a single cassette in my Dad’s collection and really still exist as a single entity to me. I always cite my discovery of these two albums, probably at 4-5 years old, as the foundation for my entire musical life to come. Not only were they mysterious and rather frightening, but there was an eclecticism in this batch of songs that made everything I fell in love with afterward - metal, punk, prog, pop, garage, etc. - seem somehow part of the same cloth. Alice and that original band showed me very early on that there’s no need to limit oneself to the confines of a style, sound, genre, whatever. Most important records that ever happened to me.

2. Misfits - Walk Among Us / Earth A.D. / Legacy of Brutality (also a homemade cassette version c/o my friend Judd’s older sister, fully decorated with black Sharpie and White-Out) If early Alice Cooper set me on the weirdo path as a youngster, it was a single afternoon taping CDs in my friend Judd’s bedroom that locked me into the punk rock subculture forever. We’d been Guns N Roses turned Pantera turned Sepultura fans like many a shitty kid of the 80s/90s, and Danzig’s ‘Mother’ was in heavy rotation everywhere at the time, so we were no stranger to that beautiful beast’s howl. When Judd’s sister borrowed a stack of Misfits CDs from a pal at school and explained to us that this was Glenn Danzig’s old band (of course we recognized the name and logo from Rockabilia ads and Cliff Burton photos), we dove in assuming we knew what was coming. We most certainly did not. The Misfits became my favourite band that day and have been for every day since.

3. Peter Gabriel - So Every time I listen to this incredible record, I discover new things I love about it. A perpetual go-to and a true monument to the possibilities within pop music (shout out to Daniel Lanois there too). I was going to choose his Shaking the Tree compilation because it contains my favourite PG track - the piano version of “Here Comes the Flood” - but I figure I’d cheated enough with the first two answers. ...also Kate Bush’s Hounds of Love, The Hellacopters’ High Visibility, Cold Mailman’s Everything Aflutter, Cave In’s Jupiter, and The Lemonheads’ It’s A Shame About Ray. This is an unfair question.   SA: Finally, what comes next for Surrender moving into 2019 and beyond? Best of luck! DW: First on the agenda is to find an ideal home for the LP. We’d kinda like to step out from beneath the umbrella of labels we’ve worked with in the past, but there are no specific plans thus far. Just release the second single, hope the feedback is good and see if anyone wants to partner up for the long haul. As far as any live performances go, that’s a big question mark. It’s been so great doing this with just the two of us, it’s hard to imagine inviting anyone else into the fold. That said, it’s even harder to picture just the two of us on stage like Yazoo on “Top of The Pops,” so who knows? Thanks so much!

[sometimesalwaysmusic]

EMPTY NESTERS

We caught up with Eric Liao, alias Empty Nesters, for a quick catch-up about the origins of his project, his favourite Ottawa haunts, and a new recording project he has on the way. Read on to learn about upcoming local festivals he’s looking forward to, and more music releases to come in 2019.

VITALS

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EmptyNestersBand

Bandcamp: https://emptynesters.bandcamp.com/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emptynestersband/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ericxliao

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/ericliao

YouTube: https://youtu.be/VlzA30VIzrE

SA: How did you first get your start in this style of music? EL: I started Empty Nesters in 2016 as a creative outlet for myself and it began as an ambient project. Then it grew into a Garage rock project. After spending most of my money for more recording gear, it eventually grew to whatever it is now. I don’t really know haha, my mind is all over the place when it comes to defining a genre for this project. I’ll make whatever I feel like making.

 SA: What bands or musicians would you cite as the biggest influences on your sound? EL:  There are too many to name, so to narrow it all down, I guess my biggest influences would have to be: My Bloody Valentine, Joy Division, NEU!, Duster, Modest Mouse and Unwound.

 SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? EL: Honestly, just getting the opportunity to play live shows because I didn’t think that I would. I started going to local live shows by myself frequently since 2014 discovering festivals such as: SOTO Fest, Ottawa Explosion (RIP) and Megaphono. It’s just surreal to me as a showgoer that we’ve played Ottawa Explosion twice and this year’s Megaphono festival. Additionally, we’ve played alongside with amazing bands such as Mauno for our first ever venue show, Chastity, Camp Cope, Tough Age and many more. I am just grateful that we’re playing more shows to this day and I would like to thank Ottawa Showbox, Debaser, Ottawa Explosion, PRISM, First Crush Promotion, Local Ottawa Live, Megaphono, Not For Function Network, Spectrasonic and my good friend Christopher Gray for involving us.

 SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? EL: The biggest challenges that I’ve faced was finding a suitable space to record my tracks and scheduling a time to rehearse with my bandmates as we all work full time. Luckily now, we all live nearby to each other and within an area that’s closer to the venues that we play frequently in. Before that, we would rehearse/record at Capital Rehearsal Studios and all of my gear was in a storage unit across from the building.

 SA: How do you approach the song-writing process? EL: Typically on a random day, a melody or an idea pops up in my head. I try to figure out the notes by playing my guitar/midi keyboard as I do not know any chords whatsoever. I eventually start recording the instrumentals, once that’s done, lyrics and vocals are last.

 SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene, particularly regarding the style of music you play? EL: It’s small, but it’s diverse, slowly growing and a very inclusive scene. Many of the acts/bands in Ottawa such as Deathsticks, Mark ii, Curl, Doxx, Ultra Love, Ruth Grader, Organ Eyes, etc. are not only great but filled with so much talent. They inspire me to write and record more music.

 SA: If you had to choose your favourite moment off your latest release, Tired and Bored, what would it be, and why? EL: I guess my favourite moment off the EP was completing ‘Give up’ within 2 days and ‘I’m so Bored at Home’ in a day. Both tracks were written from scratch in the beginning stages and the recording/mixing process went a lot quicker than I expected as it was mostly improvised by overdubbing a track to another. I liked the way how the two tracks turned out in the end. I didn’t sleep during its process, but I think it was worth it.

 SA: With respect to your lyrics, what serves as lyrical inspiration, and do you find yourself coming back to similar emotions or stories that resonate with you? EL: As mentioned before, I record music as a creative outlet for myself. I can express the way with how I am feeling on some days through my recordings and it’s therapeutic to me. I’m pretty introverted, pessimistic and generally keep most things to myself. My lyrics are usually straight forward but sometimes, peculiar with the way I word things together. My lyrics follow a general theme of self-loathing. But to answer your question, nihilism would probably serve as a lyrical inspiration for me. I don’t think I can ever write a song about happiness or romance. Although, I am a fan of it as a listener, it just doesn’t appeal to me in the creative process.

 SA: A question for fun, for the locals: do you have a particularly favourite venue to play in Ottawa, and if so, why? EL: I usually prefer playing house shows (Ex: Off Peak Green Barn, Ask-a-Punk) or DIY venues, but in terms of Ottawa venues, that’s a tough one. Phil (Bassist), Robbie (Drummer) and I typically have fun at most of the Ottawa venues we play in, but if I had to pick, it would have to be Black Squirrel Books. The people there are very kind, many selections of books to browse through before doors open, great venue environment and a consistent lineup of awesome shows. Shout out to Anthony Cardozo for killing it with the upcoming shows this year. Speaking of upcoming shows, everyone should attend the SIDE BY SIDE Weekend Fundraiser on Mar. 29. The new SIDE BY SIDE Fest (July 25-28 2019) venues hosted by House of Targ and Black Squirrel is going to be sweet!

 SA: What do you hope for musically in 2019? Our best wishes for your continued successes! EL: Release more music as much as possible, experiment with more genres that I haven’t touched, collaborations with other artists and maybe tour if that’s a possibility. I’m currently working on a new recording project under the name China Steps. The album should come out later this year. It might have some R&B influences and it will be a lot mellower than Empty Nesters. As for Empty Nesters, I hope to release all of the Bag of Suck compilations, two or three EPs and possibly an album by the end of 2019.