July
Wavelog
Rock\\'n\\'Roll Cooking Show
By wavelength ~ Posted Wednesday, July 13th 2005Radical Roots' Dina Al-Damiri has a killer Banana-Poppyseed Muffin for all you bakers, novice or otherwise.
This month we turn the Rock'n'Roll Cooking Show over to Star DT, Wavelength's trusty and adorable Reviews Editor and member of Ninja High School, as she tells us the secret to Radical Roots' fantastic vegan muffins.
There is astounding contradiction within the realm of my employability. While I am truly a skilled, dedicated and just plain hard worker, and though I've got high qualifications and many life experiences under my belt, there is one glaring problem with hiring Star DT that presents itself to employers after a few months: I absolutely hate practically all jobs and work. That's why I wasn't surprised when the new fancy-pants manager at Massey Hall fired me from my shitty usher job on the first day he met me. Enter my saving grace: a same-day phone call from my current employers, the lovely cafe and charmingly disorganized collective of tireless workers at Radical Roots. The cafe (that some of you may know by it's former name, The Vegetarium) is tucked away in a corner of the International Students Centre on the University of Toronto campus, just north of College St. on St. George. If you're familiar with Food Not Bombs, picture that gone semi-professional. If you're not, well let me tell you. Radical Roots is a not-for-profit worker-run collective kitchen and cafe that aims to make delicious, vegan, often organic and healthy meals as inexpensively as possible. You can grab a perfectly balanced (and gigantic) meal for $5, or a sandwich, or a smoothie, or you can treat yourself to a muffin, cookie or brownie, that's probably been baked by Dina.
'œBaking? Wow. It's like my passion,'? she tells me while she prepares the muffin batter. 'œBaking vegan guarantees that the most people can eat it '“ you're including everyone and that's the good thing about vegan baked goods. Even hardcore meat eaters won't have a hard time accepting them. It doesn't have eggs and butter and all that shit, but they won't even notice.'?
Dina is making me a batch of one of her simplest and most favourite muffins '“ banana-poppyseed. The recipe goes like this:
2 and a ½ cups spelt flour (you could use pretty much whatever flour though)
1 and 1/3 cups organic sugar (or whatever sugar)
2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup soymilk
1 tbsp sunflower oil
½ cup poppyseeds
Yeah, poppyseeds. 'œInstead of poppyseeds you could add raisins, walnuts, other nuts, whatever you like!'? she explains.
'œEven chocolate chips?'?
'œOh yeah, totally. Coconut, anything. Whatever your imagination allows you to!'?
But how to make exactly?
'œFirst, mush the bananas. Then you mix all the dry ingredients together and all the wet ingredients together [respectively]. Slowly pour wet into dry and mix. At the same time, turn on the oven to 350. Oil the muffin tins and scoop mix into them. Bake for 20 minutes or more (until the top is hard). Take them out and let them cool.'? For novice bakers, it's worth noting that this procedure is pretty common to all baking.
The best thing about this recipe, besides it's obvious delectable product, is it's fool-proof nature. 'œThe texture is perfect for a muffin. There's no chance to screw up. I use the same recipe for mango muffins. It just holds together so well, I love it,'? Dina explains.
While the muffins rise in the oven, Dina gives me the scoop on her feelings about Radical Roots. 'œIt's a space that's basically made to recognize different people, animal rights and environmental issues, community issues, social and political issues. We try to support these issues through the food we make. Whether it's with fair trade coffee, holding free meals, catering or talks. It's not only a food place, it's a conscious place.'?
Even if you're convinced on the politics, and the vegan ingredients (which shouldn't be hard to get along with after you've tried our vegan brownies, seriously), what about the cost of baking organic? 'œBaking organic is a social, political and health issue. It's not that expensive. It's not so much of a difference [from conventional ingredients] financially, but health-wise it's a big, big difference. The benefits outweigh the costs.'?
Radical Roots is located at 33. St. George St., inside the International Students' Centre. We're open for breakfast and lunch Monday through Friday, at 9:30am and 11:30, until 3ish (or whenever we run out of food).
by Star DT
Top 4-T
By wavelength ~ Posted Tuesday, July 5th 2005OWEN PALLETT
1 MY AIR-CONDITIONED OFFICE
2 WHERE MY COMPUTER TALKS
3 AND ALL MY FRIENDS
4 ARE PAPERCLIPS
STAR DT
1 Skate punk
2 Extremely long songs like 'œLet's Call It Love'? and 'œThe Decline'?
3 Sleeping in wet sheets
4 Undercuts and 'œThe Undercut-ening of Adam Todd'?
KEVIN HAINEY
1 Sleater-Kinney - The Woods
2 Xiu Xiu - La Foret
3 Hermann Hesse - Magister Ludi
4 John Cassavetes - The Killing of a Chinese Bookie
STEVEN HIMMELFARB
1 New Smog
2 New Chet
3 New K'naan
4 New Cuff
MARINKO JAREB
Top 4 types of bikes
1 tandem
2 folding
3 cruisers
4 free (or at least dirt cheap)
KEVIN SHUTTERBUG
1 The 'œsmell stacks'? at JD's new pad
2 Fringe Theatre Festival
3 Ontario fruit and vegetables
4 Ideal's coffee ice cubes
MATT FUCKING COLLINS
1 Mississipi: The Album (Screwed and Chopped)
2 Iron Maiden Lawn Seats Party
3 Iron Bitchface DVD
4 No annullment in sight! I'm MARRIED!
STEVEN VENN
1 Steve Lamacq on BBC 6
2 Rediscovering Coast To Coast AM (1-5am AM 640)
3 Black Mountain - s/t
4 Cherry Bomb Coffee (67 Roncesvalles)
MATT BLAIR
1 Herbie: Fully Loaded
2 Makes me want to sterilize myself
3 And make everyone else do the same
4 Until there are no more children
KATE CARRAWAY
1 You
2 Are Not
3 The Cultural
4 Elite
ERIC WARNER
1 Swimming in lakes north of Toronto
2 The Inbreds
3 Ice cream
4 The Andrews Sisters/Abbott & Costello
MARIA FUZZY
1 Catching bike thieves
2 Scratching mosquito bites
3 Prescription sunglasses
4 Noel's Fantastic Trip
FRANK MAIDENS
1 Ryan McClaren
2 Ryan McClaren
3 Brick of Hash
4 Ryan McClaren
ANDREW WILSON
1 BA
2 TT
3 LE
4 S
Reviews
By wavelength ~ Posted Tuesday, July 5th 2005SOURFLYv3.Ktor Final (Independent / CD-R, sourfly@hotmail.com)
Shawn Hadley aka Sourfly is well known in Toronto's underground party world. Sourfly's complex and expressive music proved that you didn't need the fanciest equipment to make good music, just some inspiration and little energy and a ton of time to dedicate to the craft. His newest album continues his explorations of drum and bass. All the songs were created by Hadley, and then mixed into one another so that the album sounds like a continuous DJ mix. While most d&b artists are either reproducing the latest formulas and sounds or getting so abstract that their music is considered more experimental than danceable, Sourfly finds a balance between the two worlds, creating digital jungle music that flirts with the computer realm. Dirty breaks from dusty old records are sliced and diced into impossible combinations, sitting atop resonant digi bass with the shiny sparks of electro chimes. This is a really fun and enjoyable listen. '“ MARINKO JAREB
File Next To: Toronto Drum and Bass. You heard us.
VARIOUS
Art of Disco (Yellow Productions www.yellowproductions.fr)
Disco was and still is a misunderstood art form. While most people have a very narrow view of the genre based on a handful of records that remain overplayed to this day, the sound is as multifaceted as any style of music. When one digs deeper into the genre, all the overlooked underground gems are unearthed and it becomes evident that some of the world's best session musicians can be heard improvising freely over chunky jazz grooves coupled with powerful and soulful voices singing beautiful songs. Disco actually never went away, it just kept giving birth to more and more types of music. So when house, techno and electro artists look into the past and discover disco, it is usually with respect and reverence (and maybe a touch of parody) that they look to interpret the sound. Yellow Productions out of Paris, France are a DJ-oriented boutique label behind projects like the stunning Africanism records. Yellow Productions is the type of label that you can trust to release stunning dance music and Art of Disco is a top notch look at a sound that remains relevant a quarter century after the fact. Art of Disco is a collection of the cream of the crop of contemporary musicians influenced by the night life of the late '70s. Vocal diva Carolyn Harding's 'œStrength'? mixed by Freeform 5, kicks the album off in style, with a dozen session musicians from The London Telefilmonic Orchestra adding layers and layers of luscious strings to the mix just like back in the golden days. Shortly thereafter, the sound takes a digital dive as funky Finns, Putsch '79, reinterpret Martino's 'œ4am in the Morning'? with their molten plastic synthesizers. It is hard to believe that Alexander Robotnick's 'œDance Boy Dance'? was originally released in the early '80s because it still sounds just as futuristic in 2005 as it did way back when. Bob Sinclar's 'œWho Needs Sleep Tonight'? dips deeper into Italo-disco territory while Vince's 'œSuperworld'? is bizarre yet catchy Europop. There are a couple of acid house inspired numbers, N&W's 'œAnalogue Acid'? and 'œRandomizer'? although my favourite songs on this compilation are Bob Sinclar's breezy and cinematic synth cut, 'œJeuness Doree,'? as well as Blackjoy's hysterical 'œMoustache'?. The Tiefschwarz remix of DJTAL's 'œDigital World'? is pretty dope as well. Art of Disco is exactly what it claims to be. '“ MARINKO JAREB
File Next To: Electrodisco, Glamour and Style.
AIDAN BAKER
Songs of Flowers & Skin (Zunior, www.zunior.com)
This dude's been payin' his guitar drone dues all over this city for frikkin' years now, and his stellar productivity just keeps growing and growing. Besides spending his time recording and releasing a steady string of self-released seven-inches and albums, he's also part of experimental collective ARC, ambient/doom metal duo Nadja and space-rock improv trio Mnemosyne. I first heard his thang a few years back on the guitar-textured space-ambient album Letters, which is pure Fripp & Eno No Pussyfooting goodness wrapped in blood-soaked emotion (and cover art in letters penned by Jack the fucking Ripper!) Since then he's released roughly 5000 albums exploring like every sound you've ever heard in your life, even this one of spacey, shoegazery pop noir, which is pretty nice if you ask me. And I guess you are, since you're reading this, so I'll tell you a bit about it: the songs drift into each other in that late-period Slowdive kinda way '” too experimental to become straight-up pop, but too beautiful and structured to be considered too experimental. Flowers & Skin has lots of loops, warm textures, soothing vocals, and thankfully there's not a scent of cheese to be found. Chances are Mr. Baker's not gonna start hammering out these poppy albums by the dozen, so grab this while you can and ease that shoegazer fanatic floating deep down within the oceans of your soul. '“ KEVIN HAINEY
File next to: Slowdive's Pygmalion, Mazzy Star, tissues with dried tears.
REAL LIVE TIGERS
Sadness is a Gentleman (Independent, www.reallivetigers.com)
It always makes my heart pump overtime to see someone chasing dreams, doing things just for the sake of doing them, y'know, for the love of it. The best art either holds a mirror up to the outside world as they see it, in a non-judgmental way (like the best objective art) or straight up opposite, with the mirror directed straight at their heart and soul (like subjective beauty). Real Live Tigers, which is primarily constituted of indie acoustic strummer and singer Tony Presley (no relation to that Elvis pig), fall into the latter category, more subjective than objective, concerned with feeling more than defining. Their music is slightly dark and disturbed, spiced with occasional drums, bass, cello, banjo and other such rustic implements of expression. This is an obviously self-released affair'”I first thought it was a mix CD, with its magazine-cut-out cover, until I popped the case open and saw the little track listing print-out inside. It's a numbered CD-R, but since CD-Rs are the future of indie music, that's okay with me. So, the songs '”'œTalk about the songs'? '” they're sparse, serious, heart-felt, intimate'¦ Sometimes when the music stops and Tony keeps singing it can get kinda uncomfortable in that intense way you gotta admire, and sometimes the music lets loose and goes off rocking and reeling, like on 'œWeight in Nails.'? There's definitely a slight Steve Malkmus feel to Presley's voice and songs, but it's not overbearing or forced. And, hey, they cover Cat Power's 'œColors and the Kids'?. So what's stopping you from checking this Austin, Texas group out when they get all the way up to Toronto on September 3? I know, it's tough to wanna go out sometimes, but if this is the kinda thing you go for, I think you should just get out there and go for it. '“ KEVIN HAINEY
File next to: Pavement's 'œRange Life'? unplugged even more, indie folk without all the psych.
SPARROW
The Early Years (Absolutely Kosher; www.inflightmusic.com)
Last year I was one of the many who went completely bonkers over A.C. Newman's The Slow Wonder. I haven't gotten around to checking out Zumpano, Newman's old band, but I'm sure it's pretty alright. After they split and Newman went on to New Pornographers success, Jason Zumpano formed Sparrow. I haven't heard their first album, but critics (those heartless bastards!) constantly refer to it as being 'œflat'? and 'œboring.'? The Early Years, actually Sparrow's proper second album, is far from that. Bouncy, poppy, flourishing with inspiration, Zumpano must have fallen for The Slow Wonder as hard as I did, thought of course this doesn't sound much like A.C.'s bag '” it's less rock and more sparse pop. Not really ass-blowing stuff, but an energetic pile of pretty nice tunes that some indie purist type people will definitely go ape over. More power to them! '“ KEVIN HAINEY
File next to: That album that isn't A.C. Newman's The Slow Wonder, because this guy's probably sick of being compared to his old band mate, Sloan's One Chord to Another.
SUMMER OF '05 AS OF TUESDAY JUNE 28It's Way Too Fucking Hot I Can't Take It
Well, it seems as though the sun has become everyone's new best friend! But for me, it's the enemy. I mean, its one of those 'œfriends'? that is always around, and you have to be nice too, or it'/they will 'œburn'? you. I honestly dread the smell of fresh pools, the sound of air conditioners, and the feeling of heat! If I could have it my way, it would be fall all year, and maybe a little snow for fun. And how could anyone disagree? Exhibit A: 'œHey Jas, let's go for a stroll?'? 'œNo thanks, it's too hot!'? This is the response one should expect from me in this weather; if I do go out, I must get my accompaniment to sign a contract insuring that they will allow me to have a minimum of five-minute intervals in stores with air conditioning. Otherwise there could be a fainting spell come over me. And never try and play a fast one on me, and take me to some place with 'œfans,'? because you know what the stands for: FAKE AIR'S NEVER SATISFYING! Don't get me wrong, a little warm weather is okay, but it's the mere fact that my body simply hates the heat that makes it worse. Blame it on the body, not the brain! This shall be my new motto in life, or shall I say in weather, because if I could handle the heat, I'd handle it. But I can't, so if you're ever looking for me, look for the coolest home, car, or store, because that's where you'll find me. '“ JASMYN BURKE
File Next to: An air conditioner
Fembots
By wavelength ~ Posted Tuesday, July 5th 2005Dave MacKinnon of the Fembots was apparently not amused nor stimulated by Kate Carraway's delightful yet probing hard-news questions. Kate Carraway feels that it might be time for a less experimental journalism/alienating interviewing tactic. However, his band is still a tight, revered and evolving outfit involving bits and pieces of the Creeping Nobodies, Royal City and Lowest of the Low. This version of the Fembots has a new album called 'œThe City'? coming out in August on Paper Bag Records. Come out and clap along.
YOUR SECOND FULL LENGTH ALBUM WAS CALLED SMALL TOWN MURDER SCENE AND THE ONE SET TO GO IN AUGUST IS CALLED THE CITY... DUDES! EVIDENTLY YOU SUBSCRIBE TO A MELVILLE-IAN PERSPECTIVE ON THE IMPORT OF THE URBAN ENVIRONMENT IN NARRATIVE ART -- THOUGH HE WAS MORE INTO WRITING INSUFFERABLE, PLODDING TOMES THAN MUCH-APPRECIATED ROCK MUSIC. YES? NO?
In as much as I understand the question - yes. We relate to places more then people.
HOW WOULD YOU CHARACTERIZE TORONTO, SPECIFICALLY, IN TERMS OF INFLUENCE, IF IT IS ONE AT ALL?
It's a love hate/thing. Part of me loves the city, part of me hates what's happening to it. Toronto is going through some major growing pains at the moment. I'm pretty sure that it will only get better as it gets bigger (and more dense) but at the same time it's hard to watch your neighborhood being torn down and replaced with condos and not have a sadness for what's being lost. Also, we don't tend to put much value on our civic history. Not many people know that there was a massive race riot in Christie Pitts in the 1930's or that hospital row on University Ave. was once the site of a poor, mostly immigrant neighborhood called The Ward (the city bulldozed it at the turn of the last century). The only history that seems to survive in this city relates to big business and wealth.
YOUR WEBSITE TELLS ME THAT FEMBOTS LEFT CANADA FOR CALIFORNIA IN THE DEAD OF WINTER THIS YEAR. I DID THAT TOO -- AND FELT PRETTY SMUG ABOUT IT, BUT ALSO WEIRDED OUT, LIKE MY INTERNAL CLOCK WAS FUCKED UP. HOW STRESSFUL AND SURREAL DO YOU FIND TOURING?
It was very strange coming home to winter without being here for the fall. It's a little jarring to say the least.
Touring is great and horrible all at the same time. You feel like crap all the time but after a while your body adjusts to it, and feeling like crap becomes the new feeling good. The upside is that you get to meet all kinds of interesting people and go to all kinds of great places. The downside is that you only ever see the highway and the two blocks around the club.
DO YOU LIKE BEING IN THE US? ARE YOU AWARE OF YOUR CANADIAN-NESS WHEN YOU'RE THERE, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING HOW TONS OF YOUNG FOLKS ARE SO IN AWE OF CANADA RIGHT NOW?
We spent the last 2 months of 2004 touring the USA with the Weakerthans. Touring is always stressful/surreal but touring the USA is like entering bizzaro world. On the surface it seems like Canada, but under the surface it's completely different. To make matters worse, we started one leg of the tour the day of the US presidential election. There was a real sense that young people in the US have no say in what's happening to their country. We met lots of folks who were talking about moving to Canada.
WHY ARE THERE SO MANY SORT-OF-SUPERGROUPS LATELY? CAN'T PEOPLE JUST COMMIT TO ONE PROJECT INSTEAD OF BAND-HOPPING LIKE LITTLE, INDIVIDUAL LICES?
I think the era of the band as a self contained unit is over. It's way better to have one or two people at the core of the group and a large cast of players who can be called on when they're needed or available. Good musicians are very busy people. If you want to play with good musicians you have to be able to accommodate their schedules. Also, musicians become better by playing all kinds of different music in all kinds of different bands.
WHAT ARE YOUR TOP 7 DREAM JEOPARDY CATEGORIES?
The day I dream about Jeopardy is the day it's all over.
By Kate Carraway
The Hylozoists
By wavelength ~ Posted Tuesday, July 5th 2005The Hylozoists take me to magically and mysterious caverns of the mind without excess drug use or good old-fashioned mental craziness. A huge group of talented noisemakers, The Hylozoists started by Paul Aucoin (The Sadies, Bodega, Living Water Assembly) light my ear hairs on fire with their lush, full, pert and upright compositions. The band is thick and dripping with talented musicians and the mood that these folks create could stop any Parkdale '˜sketch' in their tracks and put them into a deep trance. After consuming several pints of Jesus juice, Matt Thomas stared at a large pink elephant that identified himself as Paul Aucoin and began to pick his brain.
IF YOU WERE BANISHED TO AN ISLAND AND COULD ONLY LISTEN TO ONE SONG, WHICH TRACK WOULD YOU CHOOSE TO LAST YOU FOREVER?
Interesting question. I would have to cheat and take a classical piece seeing that it could only be one song and that being said would be Mozart's Requiem. If required to pick a formal song though I would take the Beach Boys "God Only Knows" or perhaps The Zombies "A Rose For Emily".
IN A WORLD FULL OF LAZY JOURNALISTIC COMPARISONS, WHO HAS BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE, LEAST FAVOURITE AND FUNNIEST "THEY ARE LIKE ______ ".
I like hearing the Ennio Morricone, Nino Rota, Bernard Herrmann references, hate anything that in anyway calls us a jam or jazz band and I do not think I have encountered funny one yet. And yes the world is very full of lazy journalistic comparisons but that is what happens when you don't expect writers to know hardly anything about music itself, just a world of tastes.
WHAT THE HELL ARE HYLOZOISTS?
Musically, a group of wonderful musicians that I am lucky to have around and playing with me. Historically, Greeks who thought that matter was alive and although they did not make any discoveries, realized that nature was far more complex then they were being led on to believe.
WHO THE HELL ARE THE HYLOZOISTS AND WHAT DO EACH OF YOU DO?
Paul Aucoin- I play Vibraphone&Bells.
Jason Tait- Vibraphone&Bells
Patrick Conan- Vibraphones, Bells&Drums.
Jason Ball- Organ
Paul Loman- Bass
Wayne Petti- Piano
Nathan Lawr has given way for Rob Gordon on drums.
Julie Penner- Violin
Jeremy Strachan- Guitar
Bryden Baird appears sometimes and plays his horn parts.
WHERE DO YOU WISH YOUR MUSIC WOULD GET PLAYED, AND COULD YOU MAKE LOVE WHILE IT'S ON?
The loudspeakers of Stanley Cup 2006. And No.
WITH BELLS, THEREMINS, SYNTH, MARIMBAS, VIBRAPHONES, WOODWINDS... AND BEARS OH MY... WHAT DO YOU LONG TO ADD TO YOUR MUSICOLOGICAL PHIL SPECTOR LIKE WALL OF SOUNDS?
I cannot think of an answer but my roommate believes that the answer should be the gong. I think Jason and Patrick would vote gong as well.
THE GLOBE AND MAIL ONCE SAID ABOUT THE HYLOZOISTS, "SOMETIMES THE MUSIC FEELS LIKE A RAPIDLY OXIDIZING SURFACE THAT TRANSFERS A FINE, SILVERY DUST AT THE LEAST TOUCH. IT ADVERTISES ITS OWN IMPERMANENCE." WHAT DO Y'ALL THINK ABOUT PEOPLE TRYING TO EXPLAIN WHAT YOU DO AND HOW WOULD YOU EXPLAIN IT BETTER?
Trying to explain music is like dancing about art. I feel bad for people that have to try to describe music in print.
HOW HAS THE MYSTERIOUS AND FOLKLORE FILLED LAND OF NOVA SCOTIA INFLUENCED THE HYLOZOISTS?
Well it's a beautiful place to live and that has helped me write music. Halifax is also a great city to grow up in because of all its school music programs, hence why I play the vibraphone.
LISTENING TO YOUR MUSIC MAKES ME FEEL LIKE SITTING. I'M SITTING IN THE KORDOVA MILK BAR TOTALLY STONED AND JUST SMILING AND THE SUN'S OUT AND MY PANTS ARE FUCKING TIGHT AND I'M GETTING ALL KINDS OF HOT LOOKS. IS THIS
AT ALL SIMILAR TO YOUR LIVE SHOW OR IS THERE MORE? I MUST KNOW!
I do hope that our live show is like that for you. There are enough musicians on stage that I hope anyone ends up in some sort of splendor.
WHAT DRIVES Y'ALL TO MAKE MUSIC AND WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR THE HYLOZOISTS?
I will always write music and I hope that it keeps coming out as The Hylozoists with this group of musicians. We are looking forward to releasing a record in the fall. It is all done and called La Fin Du Monde. We are
looking for it's home right now and playing live shows through the fall.
WHAT IS NO ONE LISTENING TO THAT MAKES THEM ALL IDIOTS FOR MISSING OUT?
That would have to be Colin Blunstone's One Year and Mark Wirtz Teenage
Opera. These records are old and available so no one has any excuse not to
know them.
By Matt Thomas
AIDS Wolf
By wavelength ~ Posted Tuesday, July 5th 2005
Watching an AIDS Wolf show is like getting beaten up by your girlfriend in front of a large crowd. It's full of malice and unhinged aggression. And afterwards you're left completely brutalized and vulnerable, but also kind of relieved. In addition to running the wildly creative poster house Seripop, Montreal's AIDS Wolf is set to terrorize the world with their distinct brand of noise rock. Mike Perreault caught up with them via email as they plan for a 'œFreedom Summer'?, as they call it.
IS IT EASY TO FIND A HEALTHY BALANCE BETWEEN YOUR TIME SPENT WORKING WITH AIDS WOLF AND WORKING ON SERIPOP?
The four of us all seek to find health, peace and creativity in the various aspects of our lives. We find that exercise, lasciviousness, group chants, fasting, drum sessions, and group feasts are all very effective ways of dealing with the psychic fallout of a super-creative lifestyle.
WHAT'S YOUR OPINION ON THE STATE OF "ART" IN MUSIC TODAY? DO YOU FEEL THAT MOST BANDS ARE TRULY EXPRESSING THEMSELVES ARTISTICALLY, OR IS THERE A CERTAIN LACK?
There is a duality. What many lack, many more have in surplus. We tend to gravitate towards other bands that put art at the forefront of their endeavors. We respect sound/visual/spiritual/ethereal aesthetics and the energies that they create. Creating on all levels is what Freedom Summer is all about. Creating and sex.
ARE YOU FEELING ANY PRESSURE FROM BEING BASED OUT OF MONTREAL, WHAT WITH ALL THE CITY'S RECENT HYPE?
Montreal has always been a wonderful city to live a life of freedom and creativity. Here, it is easy to get by, so energies can be spent on food/sex/art/growing things rather than struggling to survive. It's about time the world at large takes note, but Montrealers will always be as such regardless of the media's sometimes invasive and inaccurate eyes.
ARE YOU GUYS SICK OF ALL THE COMMENTS ABOUT THE 'WOLF' NAME? DID YOU EXPECT THERE TO BE THIS HUGE EXPLOSION OF FELLOW 'WOLF'-NAMED BANDS WHEN YOU NAMED THE GROUP?
Our name was given to us by our spirit brothers/sisters in arms. We encountered it on a summer day in Columbus, Ohio while surrounded by our best friends. They christened us with this name - it was not our choice - in July '˜02 and we held onto it until it was time to recruit in the early springtime of '˜03. It was broadcast as a universal message in front of our eyes and was a combination of our spirit peers AN ALBATROSS (animal) and THE SICKLIPSTICK (R.I.P.) (illness). It's a message that us as humans must take care for our animal siblings as their health is a barometer of our own survival.
WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO INCORPORATE ACTUAL LIVE WOLVES INTO YOUR SET? THAT'D BE FREAKIN' SWEET.
Wolves are not bashful or shy but very free. We hope to follow in their example this Freedom Summer and present ourselves as powerful team /individuals.
AIDS WOLF HAS A VERY DOMINATING AND INTIMIDATING PRESENCE ON STAGE. HOW HAVE THE CROWD REACTIONS BEEN FROM CITIES LIKE MONTREAL AND OTTAWA TO LARGER CENTRES LIKE TORONTO?
We enjoy very much to be on equal footing in the performer/audience divide so nothing makes us as happy as hand clapping, singing, foot stomping, dancing, smiling. If our audience would join us in chanting/percussion at the beginning of our set we would be overjoyed. We are, however, adverse to shoving.
WHAT ARE AIDS WOLF'S PLANS FOR THE NEXT FEW MONTHS? LOOKS LIKE THIS SUMMER IS SHAPING UP TO BE AN AWESOME ONE FOR THE AW TROUPE...
Right now we have just recorded an EP and several split 7"s with our brother Arlen Thompson (Wolf Parade) at the console. These days we are mixing the tracks for release (domestic and abroad), writing new songs for our full-length record, and spending time together to become closer as a band. We are going on a tour in August and in the interim playing a few festivals and some strings of shows with our friends. Our trip to Toronto for Wavelength sees us on a string of six shows with our friends/muses Athletic Automaton. We are very excited to be playing and collaborating with this band as we feel they are next level in terms of excitement, freshness and THE HEAVY. We are very lucky to have such friends to partake in FREEDOM SUMMER '˜05 with.
By Mike Perreault
Athletic Automaton
By wavelength ~ Posted Tuesday, July 5th 2005Athletic Automaton are two guys who dress up in gym shorts and sweat bands before pulverizing the crowd with their pulsing noise rock. It's amazing and INTENSE. They wear those clothes not as a gimmick, but out of practicality. The sweat just pours off of these guys during their show. Ryan McLaren, after listening in awe to some blistering MP3's from the band's website, sent off some questions to the guitarist Stephen Mattos (ex-Arab on Radar) and waited humbly for his reply.
STEPHEN, THIS IS THE FIRST PROJECT YOU GOT INVOLVED IN AFTER ARAB ON RADER SPLIT, CORRECT?
What is it that you're doing now that you couldn't get done in Arab on Radar? Yes, this is the first project since AOR. There are a couple of things that I can accomplish now that I couldn't when I was in AOR. First, since AA is a two peice, the creative output is concentrated on just the two of us, which opens up more opportunities for my own ideas. Secondly, we do mostly instrumentals, which I have always wanted to do. I like how instrumentals give the musician more freedom compositionally. And lastly, on the other end, we do vocals as well, which I have never attempted before until now and I am enjoying.
THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF INTERESTING DUOS LATELY, LIKE LIGHTNING BOLT AND DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979. WHAT'S YOUR TAKE ON DUOS?
How limiting and how freeing is it? Well, you know, ever since Hall and Oates, Loggins and Messina, and Ashford and Simpson, there have been extremely creative duos. We feel that we are also contributing to that tradition. As for the second question, duos are only limited by the musicians themselves.
YOU GUYS USE A LAP-STEEL GUITAR AND DRUMS. WHAT THE FUCK?
We will use any instrumentation that will allow us to create the music that we want to make.
HOW DO YOU KEEP YOUR SONGS FROM DROWNING IN TREBLE? OR DO YOU? DO YOU MISS THE BASS?
We feel that we have nice balance of treble and bass.
I HEAR YOU GUYS ARE HUGE IN TURKEY. IS THAT TRUE?
No, we heard we were huge in Canada???
WHAT'S YOUR FAVOURITE SPORT? TO WATCH OR TO PLAY.
Pat loves to watch football. Steve likes to play basketball.
LET'S SAY THAT, ON YOUR WAY INTO CANADA, THERE'S SOME HUGE MIX UP AND YOU GET STOPPED AT THE BORDER. DURING THAT MIX UP, YOU'RE SOMEHOW CONFUSED WITH A MASS MURDERER FROM TEXAS AND YOU'RE SENT TO DEATH ROW. WHAT WOULD YOUR LAST MEAL BE?
We didn't kill ANYONE... I don't care what those Canadians say.
DO YOU GUYS WEAR THE SAME SWEATY GYM CLOTHES FOR EVERY SHOW?
The sweatbands are the worst part...
HAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT OF AUCTIONING OFF THOSE SWEATY AA CLOTHES ON eBAY?
Yeah, Pat was going to auction off his jock-strap.
LAST QUESTION: WHAT'S THE MEANING OF LIFE?
We're just jocks, this is way to heavy for us.
All Purpose Voltage Heroes
By wavelength ~ Posted Tuesday, July 5th 2005Hey, remember when you were nine and it was your birthday and you ripped apart the wrapping on the biggest present with feverishly trembling fingers, only to discover that it was just a shitty Casio keyboard from your parents? You would eventually absent-mindedly toywith it for an hour or two over the next weekend, but it would invariably end up buried under Turtles action figures and tackily designed skipping ropes at the bottom of your toy pile.
Three years later, when your mom cleaned out the closet, she would sigh, shake her head, and promptly deposit the forgotten present in the Goodwill pile. Well, that neglected keyboard is now most probably in the capable hands of Edmonton's All Purpose Voltage Heroes. Armed with just a drum kit and a variety of ghetto second-hand keyboards '“ look, ma, no guitars - APVH have already put out two full-length LP's chock full of spooky, queasy, synth-infected punk songs with no attention spans. This summer, the march goes on for our heroes as Connor Mayer, Kevin Cherney and brothers Dan and Zack Poole will be releasing a brand spanking new EP, Already Haunted, to be distributed through Maplemusic. Pras Rajagopalan contacted vocalist Dan Poole and keyboardist Kevin Cherney through email to further investigate this strange collective.
WHAT IS THE ONE ALBERTAN PRODUCT THAT YOU ARE THE MOST PROUD OF?
Crude oil.
MOST PUNK TEENAGERS KICK OUT THE JAMS BY STRAPPING ON THEIR GUITARS AND THRASHING THEIR WAY TO POWER CHORD HEAVEN. WHAT MADE YOU GUYS TINKER WITH KEYBOARDS INSTEAD?
Even at a second hand shop, crappy guitars are still more money than crappy keyboards. I would go into one and come out with three or four really dinky keyboards for like, twenty bucks. Keyboards are also the only instruments you can play if you don't know how to play any instruments. Thirdly, guitars are for British buzz bands and death metal groups with really destructive sounding names.
WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE NEW EP?
It took the same amount of time to record these five songs as it did to record our last full length, so everyone should expect that big hit making studio sound. Also, if you divide the number of songs by the retail cost of the EP, each individual song is more expensive then our last album.
IF THE MP3'S ON YOUR WEBSITE ARE ANY INDICATION, MOST OF YOUR SONGS HAVE PRETTY UNUSUAL SONG STRUCTURES - THERE DOESN'T SEEM TO BE A DISTINCTIVE VERSE/CHORUS/BRIDGE PATTERN. SO WHAT'S THE SONGWRITING PROCESS LIKE?
When we started writing music we had no idea what we we're doing, so we were making up the process as we went along. For the first little while we'd just get into a room, tickle each other a little, and jam on a song until we we're happy. Now we've hired an expensive team of songwriters to create the songs, which leaves us with more time to get into a room and tickle each other.
I'VE NOTICED ON YOUR WEBSITE THERE'S AN EMPTY "OTHER PROJECTS" SECTION. WHAT ARE THE APVH'S OTHER PROJECTS?
Zack and me are composing an 8-bit video game soundtrack, I have a rap side project, Connor was in a sweet rock band called "The Social Wire", and Kevin sends out his toenail clippings to a very exclusive mailing list.
WHAT ARE YOU PLANS FOR THE NEAR FUTURE?
We plan to spend the next four and a half years and tour the country about six more times, lose a member of the group in a bitter fight which will later be described on our website as "amicable", get a three sentence long write up in the "Next Big Thing" section of an unpopular but very glossy music magazine, have a mildly successful string of European shows, and release three or four more albums to slight critical praise. All the while slowly gaining popularity, but never enough to consider ourselves a success. We also have big plans to become one of those bands that people who work at independent record stores will consider "totally underrated" and then sell our limited, tour only seven inches over E-bay for thirty three dollars not including postage.
By Pras Rajagopalan
Doc Pickles
By wavelength ~ Posted Tuesday, July 5th 2005Given the sheer volume frenetic and varied tirades, poems, songs and... tirades you've witnessed spilling from the lips of Doc Pickles as Wavelength's MC, it's no surprise that he's managed to put together a full-length album of quirky and challenging music. On "No Fire Day", the Doc offers earnest advice on everything from shitty jobs to teaching your pets to smoke. Bunk Bedouin and Doc Pickles got together decided to play Scrabble during the interview. Each turn was either a question or an answer, and the word laid down had to be used. The irony of using such rigid stipulations for an exercise in randomness is not lost on anyone, smarty-pants. Doc Pickles appears at Wavelength on July 17th to launch No Fire Day.
WHAT BEHAVIOUR OR ACTIONS, IF ANY, ARE YOU HOPING YOUR MUSIC WILL ENTICE(16) YOUR LISTENERS INTO EXHIBITING?
I used to go out to every NECK(16) show before started putting music to my poetry. I had a zine called "Fluff" that was a free lit. zine - only ran 7, 8 issues. It was my main outlet until I saw NECK. I hope my music ENTICEs listeners to get out there and make their own record, and stop playing that shell game of waiting to be entertained. I actually met Dave Newfeld'”who produced a track on the album'”through Neck. He was producing one of their records'”the one Hydrofield Of Myth was on, I think, but I can't remember the album name.
YOUR MUSIC, AND FOR THAT MATTER, YOUR GENERAL PERSONA COMES ACROSS AS VERY SINCERE, AND WITHOUT PRETENSE. DO YOU EVER WORRY THAT BARING THIS MUCH OF YOURSELF WILL MEET WITH SNEERS(7) FROM AN UNCARING AUDIENCE?
People can take it however they want. GUIDE(14)d By Voices put out 5 confessional albums in a row to a listenership of ten, and that was their most creative period. When people aren't paying attention to you, it frees you up to be more open to yourself about yourself, because nobody is listening to your songs but you. In the decade it's taken to go through the stages of completing this album, I've had a lot of honest people around me to inspire and GUIDE me through the songwriting process. I've never actually moved beyond my circle of confidence.
NOW THAT YOU'VE GOT YOUR FIX(26) AS FAR AS GETTING AN ALBUM OUT, IS THAT IT? WAS THIS A ONE-TIME EVENT?
I never recorded anything with any of my other projects. Maybe it was never meant to be. In all these years, I've had all these talented people around me, to inspire and help me HONE(14) my modest musical skills. My dream is to bill myself as "The Ultimate Opening Act". I'm portable, and I don't drink anymore. I opened for Wesley Willis once, and we got along famously. The long and short of it is that I now know how to finish an album. I'd like to release an album a year and keep playing as long as I can.
POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC TIRADES FIGURE HEAVILY IN THE SONGS ON NO FIRE DAY. ARE YOU JUST WAXING THE POLE, ARE YOU WAXIN' POLEMIC, OR ARE YOU TRYING TO INCITE RIOT(5)S?
I have a real TAO(4)ist approach to writing lyrics, and try my best to simply write sincerely about what I'm thinking about at that time. If I happen to be thinking anti-corporate thoughts at the time, I write them down. I'm definitely not trying to start a RIOT. Politically, I'm pretty naive. My songs don't pack the wallop of someone more educated in those matters. I'm just a guy who reads the newspaper. Oooh... I took the everyman escape on that question.
FOR A GOY(15), YOU'VE MANAGED TO CAPTURE A VERY KLEZMER-ESQUE SOUND ON SOME OF THESE TRACKS. WHAT GIVES, GENTILE?
OY(5) vey! That's a tough one. I've always felt an affinity for Jewish culture. I think it's because there are Jewish communities throughout the world, and have been for all of recorded time. When you have the soil of the whole world to HOE(5), you have a broad point of view, and can see the forest for the trees. When you live in Toronto, you're bombarded by all sorts of music from around the world, and that might have shaped my music in some way. I've never listened to much Klezemer music, however. Hey, write this down: Maybe I Mother Earth will cover one of my songs and make it more accessible. I wouldn't consider that being co-opted.
POPEYE'S CORN COB(13) IS UHM.. A BIG PART OF HIS IDENTITY. YEAH! IS THE QUIRKINESS OF YOUR MUSIC AND LYRICS MERELY A STAGE PROP, OR A CORE PART OF YOUR IDENTITY THAT JUST HAPPENS TO MAKE FOR AN INTERESTING SHOW?
I think the quirkiness of the lyrics are so engrained in my creative process that I'll be writing the wry and dry songs into my GRAVE(18).
Final Score:
Bunk Beduin - 82
Doc Pickles - 76
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