Music

Q & A: a warm chat with Cold Specks

Posted on November 15, 2012 by Celeste in interviews | Leave a comment

cold specks

Al Spx, the centerpiece of the Canadian “doom soul” outfit Cold Specks, made waves in the music world this past summer when she released her debut album “I Predict a Graceful Expulsion.” The singer songwriter has a moody, achingly beautiful, sweeping sound that has garnered overwhelmingly positive reviews from music critics. Spx’s songs, while being intensely personal, also touch on ideas of universal scope – isolation, faith, sadness – themes to which her listeners everywhere can relate. Spx was nice enough to sit down and respond to some questions I emailed her way. She’s on tour right now through Canada, the US and Europe. Go see her if you have the chance and you’ll understand what all the fuss is about – and if you live in Copenhagen you’d better buy your ticket early.

You’ve spoken in previous interviews about how you take inspiration from musicians from the American South – which ones in particular? Do you think your music tends to be similar to theirs in style?

I think my music is inspired by a great deal of things. Musicians from the American South seems to be one of the bigger ones. I think it’s because I discovered music from that region around the same I started singing. I adore James Carr and when I was younger I studied him obsessively. I could have easily made a straight up soul record. But I wasn’t interested in that. I wanted a collection of songs that would reflect what I was feeling at the time. I think the result is probably something greatly influenced by music from the past. But I’d like to think I am doing something different.

Do you have a favorite track off your debut album? Or are they like your children in that you’re not allowed to play favorites?

At first, they were all my babies. Currently, I am more than willing to put some of them down. My favourite song on the record has always been ‘Hector’. Sonically, it is a wild one.

What has been your favorite place to perform live? Any cities that had particularly good crowds?

DENMARK! The Danes seem to have really attached themselves to Cold Specks. We recently played to over 1000 people in Copenhagen. That doesn’t happen very often for us. In fact, that was the first time we headlined a show with that many people in the audience. It was COOL.

What’s your creative process for writing your songs? Do you write the music at the same time you write the lyrics? Does it vary from song to song?

To be completely honest with you, it’s different every time. Sometimes the music comes first. Sometimes it’s the words. Sometimes there’s a melody and everything is based around it.

Your music is self-described as “doom soul,” which seems entirely fitting for the bleak but soaring music you create. You’ve spoken about how the songs on “I Predict a Graceful Expulsion” were written at a different point in your life and that they don’t necessarily reflect on your life now. Do you see yourself creating more music in the doom soul genre, or do you think you’ll move in a new direction?

I’ve been writing more. It seems the songs are driven more by rhythm. The nylon acoustic has been put to rest but the songs, and the voice are never overwhelmed. I am a firm believer that the human voice is the most beautiful instrument in the world. I think my songs will always focus on that aspect. I’m not sure what DOOM SOUL is. Maybe, we’ll fully realise it with the next record. Rob Ellis has been drumming with us on tour recently and my producer Jim Anderson has been on bass. We’ve been experimenting with combining operatic vocal drones with off-kilter rhythms. It’s been interesting. I never want to get stuck doing the same thing. I think it’s only natural to keep experimenting. Besides, new directions are always exciting.

Remaining Cold Specks tour dates
11/17 – Harold M. Williams Auditorium at the Getty Museum – Los Angeles, CA
11/18 – Bottom of The Hill – San Francisco, CA
11/20 – Doug Fir Lounge – Portland, OR
11/21 – St James Hall – Vancouver, BC
11/23 – Festival Hall – Calgary, AB
11/24 – Festival Hall – Calgary, AB
11/26 – Park Theatre – Winnipeg, MB
11/28 – Cedar Cultural Center – Minneapolis, MN
11/29 – Schubas – Chicago, IL

In defense of Reptar: an album review of Body Faucet

Posted on November 7, 2012 by Celeste in Albums | Leave a comment

reptar

Something must have been in the water in 2012 – it was a year of magical events. Not only did Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson patch things up (to a collective sigh of relief from humanity, their faith in true love restored) but, even more importantly, two phenomenal albums were dropped in 2012; one to great acclaim, and one to not such great acclaim.

Django Django and Reptar both dropped their debut albums in 2012. Django Django’s self titled album was released in January to rave reviews – Reptar’s body faucet was dropped in May to less than rave reviews – to give a general idea, Django Django recived a 7.2 from Pitchfork. Reptar? A 3.0.

So why the 4.2 point difference in their marks? Reptar sampled too liberally from contemporaries – Animal Collective, Passion Pit, Vampire Weekend. They had too much enthusiasm and not enough focus. Boiled down to it, Reptar was deemed to be too much sugar for your diet without the necessary fiber to make it worth consumption – kind of like chewy granola bars.

And I don’t declaim the first two points – Reptar samples liberally from other artists on their album, yes, and their enthusiasm is nothing if not unbridled. But depending on how you spin it, couldn’t those also be points of praise?

From the moment the beat drops on Sebastian to the last meandering a capella chorus of City of Habits, Reptar has crafted themselves, what I would argue to be, an eclectic and adventurous first album filled with, true, sugary-sweet afro-beats and synth that unabashedly points to its audience and says, “you! Get up and dance!” but also with thoughtful lyrics and a detailed eye for rhythm and instrumentation that belies their reputation as nothing more than a good time live.

The foundation of the record rests on Water Runs, an unconventional ode to relationships, some newly beginning and others falling apart at the seams, Sebastian, a wink to the saint who became a gay icon, and office origami which tips its hat to themes of dreams, nightmares and creativity. Without these three staples the album might not hold up under the sugary sweet goodness of sweet sipping soda and houseboat babies. But these two fine spun confections are necessary counterparts to the more experimental and bizarre Natural Bridge. While some have argued that this album is a hodge-podge mess of dance beats and enthusiasm, I would argue it’s actually a very well balanced and organized creation that takes into consideration not only the recorded listening experience but also the live one. Not an easy task.

I began by comparing Reptar to Django Django not only because their albums dropped in the same year and I’ve had them both on repeat for the past two months, but also because I see parallels between the two albums. When I listen to Django Django I hear a modern twist on Simon and Garfunkel and the Beach Boys, with maybe even a wink to Daft Punk at the end of Waveforms. Both bands sample from their ancestors and contemporaries, but with enough of their own spin that I would argue that they’re both still “advancing their field.”

Does Reptar take itself too seriously? Absolutely not. Reptar is a silly band name. They put a lot of emphasis on having fun. Their live show might or might not have included a disco ball. Does that mean that they don’t take their craft seriously? Absolutely not.

Remix of the Day: Calvin Harris – Feel So Close (Nero Remix)

Posted on November 6, 2012 by halley in Remixes | Leave a comment

calvin harris feels so close

As any good resident of the political scene in Washington, DC I love throwing around acronyms like I know what they mean (DHS? FBI? EOP? Got it on lock down). Hence, perhaps, why I’m getting into Nero, a British band who is quickly becoming the face of EDM (electronic dance music). The group puts together amazing beats that rely heavily on drum and bass – needless to say the results are heart-thumping and super energizing. I like almost all the songs on their 2011 album “Welcome Reality” but my favorite track they have put out is probably the collaboration with Calvin Harris, “Feel So Close.”

You should probably check it out ASAP or NLT COB. They’re seriously APPOC (animal print pants outta control).

A Fireside Chat with Dry The River

Posted on September 24, 2012 by Ricky in interviews, Music | Leave a comment

Dry the River interview

A warm imaginary fireplace and the virtual e-mail presence of one of my favorite new bands of 2012 was enough for me to engage in a first ever conversation with a band. The band of course, is Dry the River, a band that wikipedia claimed was from East London, but as we will soon discover, was probably not the case. We talked about many things – abortion, gay rights, nazi propaganda, the grainy nude pictures of Kate Middleton and of course, stem cell research. However, that was all off the record, so instead, we will provide you the talks that were on the record.

Having played the likes of Reading, Frequency, Lollapalooza, Roskilde and T in the Park, it seems that you guys have definitely had your share of musical festival shows this summer.Which festival were your favorite and why? Conversely, which festival did not meet your expectations (was most disappointing)?

We had an amazing summer. there weren’t any bad festivals, I think they all exceeded our expectations. my favourites as an attendee were pukkelpop and roskilde, because the music there was so great. I think we’d say our favourite show was at Reading. it was our biggest crowd of the summer, and it felt , after touring the States and Europe, like a bit of a homecoming. We all had a great show and playing there holds a lot of sentimental value because we grew up going to Reading every year.

How do you guys feel about comparisions with Mumford & Sons (or do you just think it’s just a lazy comparision)? Did you ever consider filming a trailer for your debut album as well?

We don’t necessarily mind it but it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to me. we have a drummer for one thing! it is kind of lazy i guess but it doesn’t bother us, if it means more people listen to us then people can say what they like! We have some footage of us recording the album. I’m not sure if it will ever see the light of day though! some of it is in the videos that you get when you buy the itunes deluxe version of the record.

I read somewhere that some of the songs off Shallow Bed are almost four years old. Now that you have achieved success, there must be pressure to put out another release sometime soon. With the extensive touring you have done in the past twelve months, I imagine the time you have for songwriting is fairly compressed. So the question is,
a) do you guys feel any pressure to put out another record soon? and
b) are you worried you won’t have enough time to write the songs and let them progress, if you do feel pressure to release a followup?

We can’t wait to get started on a new record. its hard to find the time to work on it with the heavy schedule as you say. We don’t feel pressure from anyone but ourselves with it, really. we’re not trying to meet anyone’s demands but because the songs are so old, we want to make another record, for us!! The time constraint is a funny thing. I think it might benefit us to work quickly, so that we don’t overthink anything. we’ve become better at self-editing too.. so I think we’ll be ok!

Did you get a chance to explore Toronto the last time you played here? If so, any highlights?

We did not get to explore when we were last in town , no! hopefully we’ll have more time on this trip.

You guys are from East London, a previously non touristy area that seems to be gaining a ton of momentum in the past half decade (probably more now with articles like this). How do you feel about that? Was East London an inspiration for your music?

To be honest we are not particularly precious about East London. we’ve been there just a few years, and in those few years, we’ve been away on tour 90% of the time. I don’t think it really influenced us as a band. a lot of places there are quite pretentious, and I personally try and avoid it when I’m home! That said, we have noticed the upturn in its popularity, and I’m not crazy about it! i went on a night out there recently and you couldn’t even get in anywhere! our house is like a little haven from it in a way. once you’re inside you could be anywhere..

Dry The River plays the Garrison tomorrow, September 25.

« Previous   1 2 ... 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 ... 34 35   Next »