Below you can read our interview with the trio and find out how Luke Skywalker got involved, how their music would be classified as X-Files, and what kind of hats they wear in this band and all their other bands.

Then go see them celebrate the release of Crayon Wars on June 1 at Sneaky Dee’s.

Dork Shelf: When and how did the band start, and how did you get to where you are now?

Wendy Leung: The long story is that this band is an evolution of my solo work. When i finished my last record I realized the music I was making wasn’t really in line with what I love to listen to. The musicians I was working with were also turning their focus onto other projects so it was a great opportunity to rethink and bring new collaborators on board. I wanted to create songs that focused on vocals and beats so I decided to experiment with drum machines on top of live drums. We were a 4-piece originally; half the songs on Crayon Wars were written with live drums, and the others were completed after our drummer left the band.

DS: Why did you change the name of the band?

WL: I think the music outgrew the name. I’ve always thought us as a band rather than “me with some musicians helping out.” We played as “Wendy Leung” for a couple of years but it was confusing to explain that the name referred to the entire band and not just me as a singer/songwriter. This record also sounds entirely different from my old stuff so it makes sense that it’s its own thing. We threw names back and forth for a long time before landing on one that stuck, which is why the change didn’t happen sooner. Crayon Wars is actually one that we came up with but it sounded more like an album title than a band name to me so we saved it. There are some others that also stuck but for completely the wrong reasons, so we figure one day we’ll make a line of “rejected band name” t-shirts to sell at our merch table…

DS: Can you explain the story behind Crayon Wars and the process of making it?

Owen Norquay: So there was this giant war between the reds and the blues and the leader of the red was named Luke Skywalker and he was a centipede. He fought with a hundred light sabers against his arch nemesis Baby Blue Bear and his tertiary nemesis Large Small Pox in order to save Crayon City. He was destroyed. By Little Sheep-Bird.

Dean Marino: Oh wait, you mean the record?

WL: Crayon Wars (the album) is a collection of songs I wrote both before and after we formed this band. We began recording in Owen’s house with Cameron Harding engineering and finished at Dean’s (now closed) studio, Chemical Sound. Because we were so close to the project we wanted an outside ear for mixing so we reached out to a childhood friend of Owen’s in NYC, Evan Sutton, who specializes in electronic music and sound design. The entire process took about a year and a half; we took our time and put a lot of thought into every little detail along the way, so we’re extremely happy with how it turned out.

DS: How have you developed your sound? How would you classify it?

DM: I would classify it as top secret.

ON: It’s an X-File.

WL: [hums the X-Files theme song]… It’s funny, my songs have always been described as dark and melancholic but I think this is the lightest collection yet. At least the most danceable, anyway. We’re veering back towards the dark side from a sonic perspective though, so stay tuned for that in the next album.

DS: What’s it like being a musician in Toronto?

WL: It’s pretty awesome. There’s so much going on in this city that you could go out every night of the week for months and see a different local band each night. There’s also a great sense of community – bands are really supportive of each other, and sometimes you end up meeting people to start new things with. I think it’s common for musicians in the city to have more than one project on the go.

DS: What’s it like for all three of you being in multiple bands? How do you prioritize? How do each entity’s sounds influence this band?

WL: We get to wear different hats in each of the bands we’re in.

DM: I wear a fedora in my other band – and I shred.

ON: In this band I wear a toupé.

WL: My hat falls off in the other band because I dance so much. Wendy Versus is kind of my baby – I pour my heart and soul into it but I also spend a lot of time managing the logistics, paperwork, etc. I love playing in Papermaps because it’s pure fun, and because it’s such a different genre from what I’m used to it pushes my creative boundaries.

ON: My roles are different in each band – I’m the primary beat-maker in this one but I’m heavily influenced by working with my brother Chris, who writes the beats for Soi Disant.

DM: It’s nice to play different roles in the various projects I’m involved in. It keeps me “fit” musically. I really like playing in Wendy Versus because it allows me to focus on my guitar playing (rather than carrying the whole performance, like in Papermaps). Musically, it’s exciting because I get to explore more atmospheric textures than the more concrete stuff I do in other bands.

DS: Where do you like to play in Toronto?

WL: I think we can all agree that we feel at home at Rancho Relaxo, not because of the venue necessarily but because Two Way Monologues, which puts on most of their shows, has always been supportive of all of our respective musical projects over the years. After that I have to say I quite like The Cameron House. It’s a smaller space but it’s intimate and great for quieter acts.

DM: We’re lucky to live in a city with so many great venues! I think it really comes down to who’s there more than where we are at any given time.

ON: Any place with a stage and a mic!

DS: What other local acts do you like?

WL: Lovely Killbots, who we’re so happy to have playing our album release party! I also love Ketch Harbour Wolves, and Volcano Playground.

DM: Born Ruffians, The Elwins and lately I’ve been excited about a Guelph-based band called From East to Exit.

ON: Little Foot Long Foot, Meanwood, Rock Plaza Central, Orchards.

DS: What’s on your Dork Shelf (movies, books, music, games)?

WL: X-Files, Fringe, The O.C. DVD sets, the Infernal Affairs trilogy, most of Coupland’s fiction, and my Colecovision console with such excellent games as Frogger, Smurfs, and Q-Bert. In iTunes rotation is a lot of electro-pop but on my shelf are vinyl of The National, Florence + The Machine, Jay-Z.

DM: Blade Runner; it’s like a basic course in existentialism and film noir all at once. Also I’d like to own every Stanley Kubrick film. I’m addicted to buying books, including ones by Don DeLillo, Nicholson, Baker, Nick Hornby.

ON: Star Trek: all of the series and movies except Enterprise. I only read non-fiction books ’cause unlike Dean I LIKE FACTS…

DM: I also have a large collection of non-fiction! And I like Tame Impala.

ON: …and I’ve never owned a video game console. That being said I do relax with Tiger Woods Masters Golf on the Wii from time to time. I also never listen to music.

DS: What’s next for Wendy Versus?

WL: We’re releasing Crayon Wars (vinyl and digital) June 1, throwing a party in its honour at Sneaky Dee’s with Lovely Killbots, Mix Chopin, and Patrick Grant. After that we’ve got a NXNE showcase at The Cameron House on June 16, and then we’ll be gearing up for an August tour with Papermaps.

DS: What else should we know about Wendy Versus?

WL: We’re all left-handed, and I think all wear the same size pants.

ON: It’s weird playing in a band where I’m so much older than everybody else.

DM: Uh…yeah. And, we’re actually nice people so you should stop us on the street if you see us.

WL: It’s true!

ON: Free hugs!

Photo by Rachel Lee

You’re about to read a really enthusiastic Q&A with Toronto’s most charming indie pop band right now, The Elwins. Well, we’ve definitely laid claim to say they’re ours, but truth be told, the charm’s coming straight outta Keswick. But if we’re going to hold hands with any band and give them the warmest of welcomes, it’d be this one. Known for their relentless show schedule around the city, their funky merch, facial hair, cute videos and smile-inducing interactions, The Elwins have blown up around Toronto over the last year. Matthew Sweeney (vocals/guitar), Feurd Moore (keyboards/guitar), Christopher Shannon (bass) and Travis Stokl (drums) recently returned from a tour to and from SXSW after the release of their long-awaited album And I Thank You and now they’ll be playing at Soundscapes to celebrate Record Store Day this Saturday.

In the Q&A with Feurd Moore, you’ll learn about how into crafting they are, Elwins underwear, learning how to play in front of kids and if the magic lies in the moustache.

Click here to view the embedded video.

When and how did the band start, and how did you get to where you are now?

Feurd Moore: The band started from a friendship in high school. It was awesome. We played talent shows and crawled through each others legs! After high school Matthew and Travis started a band as a duo, which became ‘The Elwins.’ Shortly after myself, Feurd, joined slappin’ da bass. We played shows here and there but kept it pretty chill. After a little while, I graduated college and joined the band full time. It was at that point we said ‘LET’S DO THIS!’ and started rocking and rolling for real. Since then we made a full length album, got another member, the one and only Christopher Shannon, and just got busier and busier! It’s been a fun and amazing experience thus far. We got here by playing lots of shows and always having a good time!!

Can you explain the story behind your new album and the recording process?

FM: We had an amazing time making this record. We decided to really step it up from the previous EP. It started with a recording/writing experiment where we wrote and recorded a song every week for quite a while. Most of the material came from that project. We had over 40 songs to begin with and cut it down to 14 to record. Then we set off to Philadelphia! There we did pre-production and demos with Bill Moriarty (Dr. Dog, Man Man). He helped us arrange the songs and tighten everything up. It was our first time playing a whole bunch of the songs as a band. After that we flew over to Seattle where we recorded the songs with Ryan Hadlock (Blonde Redhead, Stephen Malkmus) at the BEAUTIFUL Bear Creek studio! This place is an old horse barn converted into a studio. We bunked up there for 25 days of recording. We had sandwiches, played with dogs and had many a latte from Cafe Lorraine. Most recommended! We finished up in Toronto mixing with L. Stu Young (Prince, Sum 41) and mastering with Joao Carvalho. All in all it was a dream come true!!

You guys like to make a lot of videos and make unique merch – what got you into doing that?

FM: We have always been interested in making silly videos and crafts. It all started in high school, we would make weird videos and put music to them in garageband. We had a computer music class where we were really allowed to do whatever! That morphed into the videos we make now. It seemed like a cool way to reach people through a different medium. Also we’ve always been into sewing and crafting, so making homemade merch was a nice way to have fun and have something unique at shows. We get a lot of help from our wonderful friends and family making homemade goods. Since then we started getting other items like the mugs and sunglasses that we just thought were cool.

What’s your favourite kind of merch to sell?

FM: For a while we had Elwins homemade underwear. That was always my favorite. It is a pretty extensive process to make them and we haven’t had it for a while. But it was awesome!!

How did you develop your stage shows?

FM: Our show came from a mix of different things. One thing that had a big effect on it was a tour we did of summer camps last year. Playing for kids is amazing. You really have to change your whole attitude towards playing music. If you just sat there and played a song they don’t really know what to do. But if you tell them to dance and freak out, and also set the example, they will go crazier than anybody!! I think we learned a lot from playing those shows and learning how to get people into it. Also we learn from the greats!! We have seen and played with so many great bands who have amazing live shows. Some that come to mind are Arkells, Sweet Thing, Zeus, Tokyo Police Club, Maylee Todd and there are so many others. We always try to see what other people are doing that really works to reach an audience.

Do you think having a more unique and creative extra side to bands helps boost their audience or appeal?

FM: I think that using different mediums and experimenting with putting yourself out there can help reach a wider audience. Different things appeal to different people, so the more ways you try, the more people you can reach!

Does the Elwins magic lie in the moustache? What do you think about all of your facial hair and style attention?

FM: I think the magic of the moustache(s) lies in the beholder. If someone think there’s magic there, I wouldn’t tell them otherwise!! It’s fun for bands to have an image. It’s cool that we like having beards and other people can get with that as well. It’s another thing that we can have fun with and experiment. Matt just shaved his off!! Sometimes I do think that ‘Feurd’ is my moustache and is remotely controlling everything I say and do from my upper lip. I may never know!

How was your trip to and from SXSW? What were some of your favourite parts?

FM: The trip was so fantastic. We were on tour with two amazing bands, Jukebox The Ghost and SPEAK. Amazing music and amazing dudes! SXSW was awesome as well. Austin is such an amazing city. We ran around and played some really fun shows. Definitely one of the highlights was going to The Salt Lick BBQ outside of Austin. All you can eat real Texas BBQ! We also played a lot of lawn bowling and made a human triangle.

What’s it like being a musician in Toronto?

FM: Toronto is awesome. It’s full of opportunity and there’s a lot of cool stuff happening all the time. I feel like it’s a really great place to be.

You’re often considered as a Toronto band, but you technically reside in Keswick, do you feel much of your time is spent driving back and forth? Is that a hassle or completely worth it?

FM: We do spend a lot of time driving to and from the city, but it’s not really a hassle for us. We have a wicked set up in Keswick right now and it is a great place for us to focus and work full time on the band.

Do you play activities or certain kinds of music while driving?

FM: Travis and Chris are kings of music in the van. They have the most extensive taste in music, and are both into really different stuff. One time we attempted to make it all the way through Chris’ iPod on shuffle. Many, many thousands of songs. Somewhere in the middle it was sabotaged and we never made it through. We also often call Travis the ‘Playlist Prince’ for his ability to make amazing mixes for the car, or any occasion! We have also experimented with various games and philosophical discussions about guitar chords.

Where do you like to play in Toronto?

FM: I remember the first time we played at Sneaky Dee’s was really cool. It’s an awesome venue. There are sooooo many places to play in Toronto and they all have awesome things to offer. We are playing at The Phoenix on June 9th with Zeus which I am stoked about! I really love that room.

What other local acts do you like?

FM: Some of my favorite local bands are Zeus, The Pinecones, The Bicycles, Arkells, Tokyo Police Club, Doctor Ew, T H O M A S, and so many more! Toronto is so full of amazing talented people and we can’t imagine having better friends!

What’s on your Dork Shelf (movies, books, music, games)?

FM: Travis just got a book called ‘Bubblegum Music Is The Naked Truth’ all about the history of pop music. Looks really amazing! I was just about to watch the movie ‘The Amazing Mr. Bickford’ which is a movie Frank Zappa made about a claymation artist he worked with, Bruce Bickford. It’s all Bruce’s claymation and Frank Zappa’s music. Also we were all really nerding out on the ‘Draw Something’ game on our phones. Fun!

What’s next for The Elwins?

FM: There is a lot coming in the next while! We are doing an Ontario tour at the end of May/beginning of June, leading up to the Toronto show at the Phoenix with Zeus! Also we are working towards a cross canada tour in the Fall, and in the process of developing a Monkee’s style web series that we are super excited about. It’s going to be called ‘Meet The Elwins’!!!

What else should we know about the Elwins?

FM: We tweet, we’re neat and we think you’re sweet!

Record Store Day is a holy day. There are worship places throughout our city, but imagine if we weren’t so lucky. Imagine that there’s only one place to go to express your religion in an entire part of a country.

That’s what record store Sound it Out is to the Teesside area of North East England, as the only one left (“we don’t really count HMV.”) But not just on Record Store Day. People show up almost every day to get their satisfaction and pray (that it won’t close). They can easily talk with their leaders who stand to the obvious but nicer High Fidelity character comparison, Tom and David, about anything. Sound it Out is the place to be. (Unless you like Dubstep, which they cleared out, seemingly the only music Tom really can’t understand throughout the doc.)

Director Jeanie Finlay, who grew up a few miles away from the shop, obviously saw this when she decided to make a documentary on the place and its characters. We’re welcomed inside not just the store but also their homes right from the start. There’s nothing to hide or doubt about this religion, in fact, this is something to show off. We see how collectors are dedicated and emotionally attached to their craft and the fascinating mental capacity of those who run stores such as this and are devoted to knowing everything that is inside of it. It’s incredibly impressive, but it’s hard to deny that the documentary shows that these qualities come from a somewhat sad and lonely place. Each man here – and yes, it’s a film made by women with an underlying aspect of how record collecting is a man’s sport – has something that brings them to music, whether it be health issues, mental issues or simply the fact that they can’t leave their poor, industrial town of Stockton.

From the battle jackets to the DJ booths in sheds, Stockton is shown that it’s full of shy, curious and creative people who turn to music and a local worship place when there’s nothing else. “I don’t smoke, I don’t drink and I don’t have a woman,” quipped customer and Status Quo superfan Shane when he explained why he loves collecting records and memorabilia.

It’s a good film for any music or record store enthusiast to see. It doesn’t offer anything mind-blowing to the table, but its simplicity is enjoyable and there are plenty of heartwarming and quirky moments. You feel like a fly on the wall just watching people filter in and out and listen to the conversations they have.

If you’re the kind of person who would light a candle for a record store and feel soothed to breathe in the store’s dusty aroma, you’ll feel right at home watching this while celebrating your holiday and hoping nobody ever takes it away from you.

All throughout Toronto, musicians, music fans and journalists are gearing up for Canadian Music Week. Starting on Wednesday, we’ll pretend like our schedules are as gruelling as they were for those who went to South by Southwest last week. (Hint: they are not.) But enjoying live music for the better part of a week is the dream for most who go to these things. It takes some work going through the schedule to figure out what’s worth your time, so let me do it for you. Here are my picks for this year’s Canadian Music Week.

Here’s the full schedule.

WEDNESDAY

Vancouver’s sweet pop rock dudes Redgy Blackout will bring the energy to Mitzi’s Sister at 10:30 PM.

At the Hard Luck Bar, Samantha Savage Smith (11 PM) and Sun Wizard (12 AM) will get all lovely and sunshiny even though it will be the earliest of morning by the time their sets are over.

Montreal’s electro mad scientist Armen at the Bazaar (12 AM) will bring his lively one-man performance to Rancho Relaxo.

THURSDAY

Young Rival (8:15 PM) and Jenn Grant (9 PM) will get your feet tapping and body swaying at the (refusing to call it Virgin Mobile) Mod Club.

Or if you’re looking for more ruckus, Montreal’s Reversing Falls (8 PM) and Toronto’s Topanga (12 AM) and Sandman Viper Command (2AM) will be pelting high fives everywhere.

Adam and the Amethysts (8 PM) open up a nice, full night at the El Mocambo before Ariane Moffatt (9 PM) Half Moon Run (10 PM), Galaxie (11 PM), Martha Wainwright (12 AM) and The Dears (1 AM). If you want to get into this show, you’ll have to get there early.

Another stellar lineup will be at Parts & Labour with one of Dork Shelf’s former Band of the Month – Army Girls (10:30 PM) and Brian Borcherdt’s (of Holy Fuck) new band Dusted (11 PM), Rituals (12 AM) and Little Girls (1 AM).

Groovy Winnipeggers Royal Canoe will hit up the Drake at 9 PM performing before These Electric Lives (10 PM).

Lake Forest, the soothing solo project of The Wilderness of Manitoba’s front man Will Whitwham, will headline the Cameron House’s back room at 1 AM.

FRIDAY

Half Moon Run definitely will give us enough chances to see them this weekend, and one should be taken. If you don’t catch them Thursday, another shot’s on Friday at the Drake at 10 PM.

Great Bloomers (8:30 PM) and Dinosaur Bones (9:30), new label mates, will rock out at the El Mocambo.

Parlovr is back for another Toronto festival, and if you’re like me and have missed them the last few times after North by Northeast 2009, you’re going to want to see them again upstairs at the El Mocambo at midnight.

Or if you’re not a Parlovr fan, perhaps American buzz band Cloud Nothings will tickle your fancy at midnight at Lee’s.

Arts & Crafts has a pretty swell lineup at the Horsehoe, with Snowblink (9 PM), Gold & Youth (10 PM), Eight & a Half (11 PM), The Darcys (12 AM), Zeus (1AM) and a secret guest (2AM).

Up Spadina, you can get nostalgic with Patti Cake (9 PM) and The Pow Wows (10 PM) at the Silver Dollar.

And pre-Sheezer’s usual Sneaky Dee’s craziness (3 AM), catch Paradise Animals at 11 PM.

SATURDAY

If you can get into the Indies at the Royal York, you’ll be able to catch short sets by the Pack A.D. (8 PM), Young Empires (8:20 PM), Treble Charger (8:40 PM), Dan Mangan (9:05 PM), The Sheepdogs (9:45 PM), Rich Aucoin (10:25 PM) and even Passion Pit (11:15 PM).

If you haven’t caught Adam and the Amethysts (11 PM) or Reversing Falls (12 AM) by this point, you can catch them both at the Drake after Toronto’s warmth of The Weather Station’s opening set at 8 PM.

Royal Canoe also plays again at 9 PM at the Hard Luck, opening for Toronto pop rockers Papermaps (10 PM) and Vancouver anthemic rockers Rococode (11 PM).

The Horseshoe will be rammed for Bravestation (8:30 PM), Two Hours Traffic (11:20 PM), Wintersleep (12:40 AM) and Poor Young Things (2 AM) so get there early.

If you’re in the mood to dance by this point, it would be wise to head to the Garrison for the glittery The Balconies (10 PM) and Allie Hughes’ new band, ALX (11 PM). Then scoot on over to Wrongbar for Nightbox at 12 AM and Grahmzilla at 1 AM.

SUNDAY

If you’re not dead by this point, you might as well really get your party on with two of Toronto’s most charming boy rock bands The Elwins (11 PM) and Topanga (12 AM) at Rancho Relaxo.

Helpful Hints for CMW:

If you’re in a bind and want to find new bands, hear if they’re any good before you trek across town or make a playlist of who you’re seeing, check out Toronto’s new listenable concert listings site, Show Gopher.

Always take into account TTC time. It will usually not be as good to you as you’d hope. So plan your schedule accordingly.

There are a ton of Toronto bands playing that are tempting to see, but if there’s someone in from out of town playing at the same time you’re curious about, that might be more adventurous to go to if you don’t know when they’ll be back next.

There are also some daytime shows happening such as Young Lions Club’s week-full of bands at the Toronto Institute for the Enjoyment of Music.

One thing to know about The Fires Of is that the people in this band are some of the friendliest you’ll meet in the scene. They’re eager, but completely genuine, and that’s refreshing these days. (And now they can never try and cross me since I wrote that sentence!) It seeps into their music effortlessly, that they’re just five people having fun and getting their creativity out into the world. By so many of their melodies you’ll be promptly carried out the door by shooting stars, escorted along by the delicate pop-rock they’ve woven.

This week, the Toronto five-piece releases The Noise Around the Mean EP, their second piece of work since last year’s self-titled full-length. It’s wholesome, warm and a nice step-up in their music. Their rock has a blissful touch thanks to the violin, and the dueling vocals of Graeme Donnelly and Lisa Di Diodato complement one another well. From the sweet and catchy Lisa-led “I Can’t Sleep” to the poppy “One Decent Thing” that has Chris Hayward singing “every time I forget music means anything, remind me of how it saved your life in high school,” to “Somebody Tell Me I’m Dreaming,” that has the band exploring their sound, there’s enough on the five song-long EP to keep a listener satisfied and entertained.

In this interview with guitarist Steve Canning, he explains all the growth the band has gone through to get to where they are now musically (and personally, I bet they’d take a challenge of an ultimate frisbee game) and the recording process. He highlights what it’s like in the indie scene here and how to make the most of it, and we find out that they have a pretty impressive general collection of whats on their Dork Shelves.

The Fires Of will celebrate The Noise Around the Mean‘s release on Saturday at Lee’s Palace with The Ruby Spirit and Wendy Versus.

Dork Shelf: How and when did the band start and how did you come to be who you are now?

Steve Canning: Graeme’s very official answer: “We had our first jams and practices in February 2008, and it was really just a group of ultimate Frisbee players getting together with the hope of one day putting on a giant show for our friends. Chris and I had a bunch of songs we wanted to perform and Lisa was immediately brought in to add her wonderful voice and sense of harmony. Peyton and I had played together a lot around campfires, and the violin added a slightly “different” element to the band. The band needed a lead guitarist and Steve had been itching to get back to playing music. He was used to playing much heavier music, but once he turned down the distortion, he brought a brilliant sense of lyrical melody to his lead lines. Larry was a much-needed keyboardist and brought a fourth voice to the harmonies. Finally, Greg cemented it all together with his experience and genuine musicianship.  Since then, Larry has parted ways with the band to make his millions (fingers crossed) and Chris is tackling a solo project (to be released this year?). Now, the smaller five-some has a tighter sound, but still manages to hit the noisy chaos of the larger band when appropriate.”

DS: What was the recording like for this EP?

SC: Unlike the first album, which was recorded in small sessions over about 14 months in the producer’s basement, the majority of the EP was recorded over a hectic five days in a wonderful converted barn recording studio in Acton, Ontario. Over the first two days, we bashed out the bed tracks for 11 songs, and for the last three days, it was a rush to get the final versions of the five as heard on this EP. This forced us to economize our sound a bit, and to spend a lot of time constructing the few parts we’d be able to record.  There was a wonderful camaraderie because we were all stuck in a barn together for five days and I think that sense of community comes through on the EP.

The Noise Around the Mean by The Fires Of

DS: What did you take away from it?

SC: I think we learned that we’re a real band.  We spent more time considering the sounds and tones of our instruments and voices and the emotions we wanted to convey to try to achieve what we heard for the songs in our minds. I’m not sure we had that kind of vision when we did our debut self-titled full-length.

DS: What is the EP about?

SC: Unintentionally, the songs on the EP all kind of stem from a very introspective place whether it’s about losing someone, regretting something, pondering your impact on the world or coming to grips with what reality has presented to you. These are the events and emotions that end up shaping you as a person and showing you who you really are and what the world really means to you. From that we get The Noise Around The Mean. Life has a certain normalcy to it but it’s those oscillations and fluctuations that really make you LIVE. It’s also our contention that from those places come a lot of great pieces of art. On a more serious note, we almost called the EP “The Sleep EP” but threw out that idea because Greg pointed out it might be received as “The Sleepy Pee.”

DS: How is it different from your album?

SC: The self-titled album was a learning experience for a lot of the band, who hadn’t recorded before.  As we were recording those songs, we would discover we needed to write a guitar “part” here or a keyboard “part” there, and it was all a bit on-the-fly.  Since then, we’ve all put more thought into our different instrument components and how they fit together on the recorded track, versus what we can play live. We have also played together live much more than we had prior to recording the first album, and with this EP we were trying to achieve a better representation of our live sound. I feel like that’s something a lot of bands end up chasing in their careers, and I can see why.

The Fires Of: Wood & Wires Session from Adrian Vieni (Wood & Wires) on Vimeo.

DS: What’s next for The Fires Of?

SC: Those six bed tracks from the prior session are burning a hole in our hard drives, along with four or five new songs we’re itching to get down, so we’re hoping to continue recording after this. It’s an amazing craft to learn and something we have a lot of fun doing. Also, if we can get our act together, we’d love to do a tour to support the two recordings we’ve let loose into the world.

DS: What’s your favourite venue to play at?

SC: While we love the intimacy of The Silver Dollar, nothing can really compare to playing Lee’s Palace. We are excited to be playing there for our fourth time (!) this Saturday.

DS: What’s it like being a musician in Toronto?

SC: Being a musician in an indie scene feels like going to a party you where you don’t know anyone. You’re an insecure teenager. You can’t help but think everyone else is cooler than you and that they all know what an imposter you are.  It’s funny because in the scene no one really knows what your day job is, how you got there, etc. We’re all treating our music as art and as a career when we’re spending time on it. It’s like a superhero convention where no one wants to reveal their alter egos. Aside from all of that posturing, the best thing about being a musician in Toronto is the other musicians. Connecting with other people who aren’t getting responses to their emails, who just can’t land a gig at the Horseshoe or who are also in-fighting about set lengths and how much the cover should be really helps to keep you keeping on.

DS: What other local music do you like?

SC: Our two favourite local acts are The Ruby Spirit and Graydon James & The Young Novelists. Two bands we love as bands and people. You can’t get much better than these two bands in my humble opinion. Great song writing. Great people. I should also put The Fast Romantics on this list. They give me a new appreciation for Elvis Costello and Blur.

DS: What’s on your Dork Shelf (music, books, movies, games)?

SC: We’re a pretty dorky band. Our Dork Shelves are ever expanding and impossible to catalogue. Right now Graeme is reading The Children of the Sky by Vernor Vinge and Blindsight by Peter Watt. He is also a movie junkie and is enjoying shiny new Blu-rays of the Short Films of Buster Keaton and Krzysztof Kieslowski’s Three Colours Trilogy. Steve is a fantasy nerd and has multiple versions of The Lord of the Rings (both the books and the movies) and is making his way through George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire and Steven Erikson’s Malazan: Book of the Fallen. Lisa was gracious enough to be honest about the fact that Christmas Eve on Sesame Street is on permanent display on her Dork Shelf. Greg has been consumed by the live version of Radiohead’s The King of Limbs for weeks now and it’s all we can talk about at band practice. Peyton is also about to release a children’s book with his brother Hilary called The Pirate Girl’s Treasure  – it’s an origami adventure!

DS: What else should we know about The Fires Of?

SC: We’re just a bunch of normal people trying to play some music for you. That’s the thing you realize when you go out there and try and do this. Everyone’s human. Everyone’s just trying to do what they love doing.

You can hear more from The Fires Of on their official SoundCloud page here.

Julie Doiron has been a familiar name within the Canadian indie folk-rock scenes for decades. Since forming Eric’s Trip in 1990 in Moncton, her modest and cute demeanor paired with her songwriting talents have been captivating her audiences for years, especially after nine solo albums and plenty of collaborations.

Though she’s clearly left her mark in New Brunswick (and even in Saskatchewan where the town of Bruno has declared Julie Doiron day for June 7), Doiron moved to Toronto about a year ago, and it has quickly become a positive scene for her musically. She doesn’t play often, but when she does, they are bigger shows at the Horseshoe. So when she decided to do a residency every Thursday night this month at newly liquor licensed Saving Gigi, it sent a bit of a jolt through her Toronto fan base. With only 25 seats and tickets available Friday mornings from the venue, Doiron’s shows have become so in-demand and fun that she’s decided to extend the residency to once or twice a month for the future. It’s a nice treat for music lovers in Toronto, and it even pays the artist back, as Doiron has picked up shifts working there.

In this interview with Doiron the afternoon before her second show, we discuss her residency, living in Toronto, working on her next album and connecting with her audience.

Dork Shelf: How has the residency been so far?

Julie Doiron: So far it’s been great. Last week was with Daniel Romano, and it was really fun. It was really low-key and pretty relaxed. I know Dan pretty well. I think at the end, when people asked me how it was, it was great, but it’s kind of a whirlwind for me too because I had never really planned anything like this before or realistically hosted people like that with this idea and setting. Tamara of The Weather Station, who is my guest tonight, we rehearsed all day yesterday and today so I think it’s going to be really good. She’s wonderful, a beautiful singer and songwriter so it’s going to be nice.

DS: It’s kind of a routine you’ve got to get yourself into, right?

JD: Totally! It’s interesting because it’s one thing to do your thing and know your songs but then to do a set together is out of your comfort zone, you have to come up with something good and accompany someone and it’s a good test for me for sure.

DS: Do you have planned who is going to be joining you in the future?

JD: Yeah but we’re not announcing any of the guests until the tickets go on sale. For this month it’s every week and after, I’m going to do it like once or twice a month. So either every other week or once a month, I’m not sure.

DS: What made you want to do it at Saving Gigi?

JD: I had been hanging out there quite a bit when they were still a café and then they started brainstorming because they were on the verge of getting their liquor license, which they had been trying to get for a long time. So we brainstormed the idea of me doing the residency there. It’s a celebration of their new hours, them being open later in the night and having their liquor license so I just thought it could be something I could do to help get the word out. I love them, they’re really great to me. I go there a lot.

DS: So is it like your hangout spot in the city now?

JD: Yeah, I just live nearby so it’s a place I go to quite a bit.

DS: What’s it like being a musician in Toronto now?

JD: I really love it here. Of course it’s really hectic because I don’t have a job so I haven’t been playing enough shows. Obviously the living expenses were more than I was used to but I’m getting it together. Oddly enough, Saving Gigi just hired me to work a few nights a week. I love it here, I really do. As a musician, so many friends of mine who are musicians live here, so it’s really cool in that way too. It’s really easy to be able to get together with people.

DS: Where are your favourite places to go and play?

JD: I haven’t really been playing that much here. I play at the Horseshoe a lot but those are bigger shows. I just recently started going to an open mic night at the Tranzac on Mondays. I teach yoga literally around the corner so now I just pop over there and do two songs. That’s fun. I haven’t been out in a while, but I have been known to go to Ronnie’s, which is in the Market. I don’t go out that often, actually. Up until recently, anyways. And lately I’ve been hanging out at Saving Gigi because it’s very comfortable there.

DS: You’re very affable with your audience. Does being in this small café/bar make it a lot easier for you to connect with people?

JD: I guess so. It’s a really small room, so we can only sell 25 tickets. So the shows are all really small, so yes it’s quite intimate but sometimes those shows are more terrifying than the big ones because there’s still a lot of pressure. Everyone’s really listening. Which is great, that’s a dream for a lot of people, to have an audience that’s just listening. So you can connect with them for sure because when you make a joke you can hear everybody laugh and no one’s talking, but it is intimidating a little bit, which is also good to put yourself in that situation.

DS: You let people request songs a lot. What are some of the most frequently requested?

JD: There are specific ones. I get a lot for “Me and My Friend” and “Sweeter.” A lot of times “Snowfalls in November” gets requested. There are a few hits!

DS: What do you play the most at these shows?

JD: I’m playing a lot of new songs because I’m in the middle of recording a new album so I play those quite a bit and I sort of touch on all the records, I do a little bit of each.

DS: What’s the plan with the new album?

JD: I’m not sure when it’s coming out, but I started recording it just before Christmas, and right now that I’m doing this, I’m taking a bit of a break, but I’m going back to doing it in February. So I’ll hopefully be able to get it finished then.

DS: What’s it about?

JD: It’s about my life. And I think it’s going to be really good! I think the songs are really good.

DS: That’s a good way to sell it. Are the people that you’re bringing on for the residency all Toronto musicians?

JD: Pretty much. So far, everyone’s based in Toronto or just near Toronto. It’s hard to get people in from out of town.

DS: Who are some of your favourite local musicians?

JD: I think Tamara is really great, I think Jennifer Castle’s really great. There are a lot of great people here. There are a lot of obvious choices. $100 are really good, there are all kinds of great bands and musicians here in Toronto. I obviously love The Sadies.

DS: What’s on your Dork Shelf? What kinds of books or music are you into these days?

JD: The book I’m reading right now is actually Three Day Road by Joseph Boyden. I’ve been listening to a lot of Daniel Romano, almost non-stop, his last record Sleep Beneath the Willow is amazing, I listen to it at least once every day. I also have just been listening to a lot of Neil Young and Willie Nelson and things like that. Shotgun Jimmie. The Weather Station. I don’t have a lot of records here right now.

DS: What else should we know about Julie?

JD: Not a whole lot. I’m feeling really good, I’m feeling really happy. Pretty motivated right now. Working really hard. Teaching yoga now a couple times a week. Basically just writing, recording and trying to work hard. Trying to be a better person.

Heartbeat Hotel and its cohorts are no strangers to Dork Shelf. We’ve listened to their sound grow over the last year from the late-night basement ponderings of Fetus Dreams to the hazy glow of waking realizations found on their latest piece of work, a six song-long album titled Intae Woe, which was released at the end of November. By doing such, this Toronto four-piece has led 2011 into a blissfully sweet ending.

Intae Woe is for the person who likes to keep their feet on the ground but spends a heck of a lot of time wondering what it would be like to fly. From the easy-going auras that radiate from “Danglin in the Aether” and “Fresh Fruit” to the spying the sun rays through the curtain in the morning chill-feel of “Downhill” to the calm anthem “Horsemen,” Intae Woe shows off Heartbeat Hotel’s casual euphoric bearings and wistfulness, as well as matured song writing and performance chops.

Get to know this Toronto band a bit better, as Chris Lyons and Andy Smith (also of previously featured Army Girls) discuss recording at a cottage, what it’s like being a musician in Toronto, and who has a tattoo of a cult-classic TV show character.

Dork Shelf: How/when did the band start and how did you come to be who you are now?

Chris Lyons: Heartbeat Hotel started as an agit-prop project, out of the ashes of a few previous bands we had played in. It had been six months since our last show and everything in our lives felt a bit… odd. There was this one weekend in August 2008 where Andy and I had amassed a somewhat ludicrous amount of alcohol and we decided that come hell or high water we were going to finish a tape by the time Monday came around. There was no particular aim, we just built it as we went. We’d finish one track and go “well that deserves to be followed by this sort of thing” and then once that little sequence had been created we’d go, “What next? How bout some blast-beats? And yeah, go get that reed organ…” These sessions became “Transbastardized Orphan Under a Harvest Moon” – it was a very spontaneous endeavour. And we had a lot of fun doing it. We played a few dozen shows with this repertoire, enlisting a bass player to fill out the sound, and generally it got a great response. To be honest though, once reality got a bit less frenzied, it became harder and harder to play that music so things chilled out.

Then came “Fetus Dreams” – another home-made endeavour which pulled in some nice press, and by the time we were taking those songs on the road we had decided that proper song writing might not be such a bad thing to return to. That sort of brings us to our latest release, “Intae Woe” which is much more ‘conventionally’ written than anything else we’ve done under this umbrella. Everything on this record is a lot less frantic than what we’ve done in the past, it sort of breathes more. It also took us back to our roots, featuring the same four-piece line-up that had originally come to the city as a band. Change happens. Usually it comes as a good thing.

DS: Where do you see Heartbeat Hotel going in the future?

CL: Jail, if all of these scary anti-terrorism laws actually come into play.

DS: You went away to a cottage to record Intae Woe. Why?

CL: It sort of felt right. Despite it being the best option on the table, all of these songs that we just put down were of a sort of “dreamy” nature… We thought escaping the hubbub of the city would be good for our collective headspace. Matt suggested it and we all thought it was a great idea.

DS: What do you think it did for the album?

Andy Smith: It allowed us to focus on the recording of the record mostly 24/7 the whole week we were up there. I suppose that’s a good thing.

CL: Definitely.

DS: What was it like recording away from home?

CL: Personally I know that cottage pretty well, so it almost felt like we were home. I don’t know, maybe Andy has a different answer to this question.

AS: I usually have a hard time being away from home for an extended period of time. I find it pretty easy to miss the comforts of Toronto. But in this case, it was a great experience. We are all close friends, the four of us… and we all used to live together. So it sort of felt like home actually.

DS: What is Intae Woe about?

CL: Everything and Nothing, in the words of Matt Mitchell. The cover art features a shot of the sun poking through the trees, and I think that’s a good metaphor for the feeling of drifting through life with your chin up. Sort of like a leaf in the wind that doesn’t want to touch the ground. Seeing as much as you can, and being grateful that you’re free to do so.

DS: What’s it like to be a musician in Toronto?

CL: I don’t really have any other point of reference, but it’s fantastic being able to live in such a vibrant arts community. I remember moving to this city five years ago and being like “Wow, city hall is so behind the arts…” – obviously that’s changed a bit, but at its core it seems like Toronto will forever be ripe with arts and music. And that’s a great thing for everybody: it helps make everyday life less grey.

DS: What other local acts are you into?

AS: Owen Pallett, Austra, Foxes In Fiction, Ostrich Tuning, Doldrums, Donlands & Mortimer, Blood Rexdale & the Walls are Blonde. Lots more, too.

CL: I just caught The Effens playing downtown recently, they were pretty alright for a young band. But another ‘E’ band really stole my heart this summer, the Elwins…and right now I’m putting the finishing touches on the new Alphabot! record with Jake, so watch for that in the months to come.

DS: Do you have a favourite venue to play at?

CL: They’ve all got their ups and downs…

AS: The Drake Underground has always been a great experience. But its just good to play. Sometimes anywhere is just fine.

DS: How would you describe your live dynamic?

CL: Ever-changing. Sheepish. Generally sort of not what people expect when they go out.

DS: What other kinds of music, games, movies, books or TV shows you guys are into right now?

CL: I just finished re-watching all of Chappelle’s show, and I guess musically I’ve been into a lot of dreary ambient stuff lately. Grouper in particular, but also stuff like Eno and Kiln and Stars of the Lid. And when I feel like shaking my head around I pull out The Drums or the first couple of McCartney records, which are way underrated. Oh, and a friend just made me listen to Rounds by Four Tet. Beautiful record. The only other thing I’ve been into lately is all this Eurozone/Occupy/NDAA 2012 stuff that seems to be getting heavier and heavier. I’m not so sure it’s good for my mental health, but it’s fascinating as damn. Oh, and Scandinavian design. Perhaps Scandinavian life in general. Also very fascinating.

AS: I just got a Twin Peaks tattoo. Log Lady for life.

DS: What else should we know about Heartbeat Hotel?

CL: Now that we’ve been banned from the stage for the next three months by the Minister of the Interior, we plan on recording new material for a possible release in the spring. Perhaps he’ll reconsider and let us play by then. Life throws you curveballs sometimes…but as long as we can continue playing around on our bedroom floors with our recording gear…we’ll be happy.

For more info visit HeartbeatHotel.ca.

When the air gets crisp, when the leaves turn colours and start to fall, the atmosphere noticeably changes. Generally around this time, I find people like to make a bit of a switch in the kind of music they listen to. Gone are the poppy summer hits and in come the warm and majestic folk-rock tunes. If you find that you’re one of these people, then Toronto’s Parks & Rec will snuggle right in.

Parks & Rec released Seeds Grown Here, their second EP, at the end of September. Since then, I’ve let it linger in the air around me, but I was in love with it as soon as I played it for the first time. The seven tracks each have a calmness that settles in but are exhilarating in discoveries. The comforting feeling you feel when listening to them is something that this band should be proud of. Parks & Rec lost a member, Cristina Taborda, in December 2010 when she passed away in her sleep from a seizure. Seeds Grown Here is dedicated in her memory, and as lead singer and guitarist Charles Tilden says in this interview, they can still hear her harmonies. The pain the band had to go through together has ultimately brought them together.

Seeds Grown Here will plant itself in you and evolve into a weighty image or memory of something you’ll relate to this season. From the upbeat and reflective “All These Lives Collide” to the folky rolling wave of “Light Up the Night” to the softer moments throughout; everything is tender, vulnerable but ready to be seen and heard. Parks & Rec are aware, stronger than ever and comfortable in their atmosphere.

Dork Shelf: How did the band start and how did you come to be who you are now?

Charles Tilden: Parks & Rec has gone through a few incarnations. The band started from a number of friendships that all came together. Pierre and I have been making music since we were 12 or 13. We moved to Ottawa with our at-the-time drummer, our friend Jake. So a few years later, I met Eric, the guitarist. We had started writing songs together and feeling a connection and as though a critical mass of material was coming together. We started jamming with Jake and fleshed out a lot of that material and for a while played gigs without a name. Essentially it was Parks & Rec, but we had no idea what it was called, it was just playing gigs in little pubs. Finally the name emerged and soon we were a five-piece for a while with a buddy Scott playing bass and Pierre playing keys and other various instruments. Then along came the lovely Cristina Taborda and we were a six piece for a short time and then a five piece again as Scotty took off and Pierre took the reigns on the bass. And that was Parks & Rec for the first time a band that felt like it was solid, where everyone felt like they knew what was going on and wanted to drive in one direction together. That’s when we put together our first EP, and that’s when we started hitting the road a little bit and playing a lot more gigs. It’s been a slow, progressive evolution.

DS: And now you have your second EP out. So musically, how are you different now from when you started?

CT: I think when we started, we didn’t really know what we wanted to sound like and recording forced us to think a lot more about what that sound was. I think the transition from the first EP to the second really shows how the sound has evolved because the first is five songs that at the time we felt were the most ready to record. They were just what we thought were our best songs that we had played enough that they were tight enough and didn’t really matter so much whether they were cohesive, we just wanted to get something out and that’s what the first EP was. But by the time the second came around, we had a whole slew of other songs to pick from. We picked the songs for the EP trying to cull together something that was a bit more cohesive, had a flow that felt like a record. It’s not a full-length, but we were hoping from start to finish that you could listen to it and feel like it is one piece, like it’s meant to be. Beyond that, it’s really hard to describe what the hell that is. It’s rock music with a lot of folk influences.

DS: Is it a sound that you want to work more towards in the future?

CT: Well now is an exciting time because now we’ve got those two records behind us and it’s time to start again with new material and soon a new drummer. We have a lot of ideas floating around and I can’t say specifically what it’s going to sound like. Way too early.

DS: Your house and neighbourhood seem to be a big part of you. For instance, you recorded in your home studio, what was that like?

CT: It was terrific because it was comfortable, it is a space we know really well and it allowed us all the time in the world to just make sure we got it right. There are downsides to that as well, because when you have all the time in the world you can take all the time in the world. It was many months in the making, but when we pressed play on the mixing sessions for the last time, it was with full confidence.

DS: It’s very tough what you guys went through with losing Cristina. How are you guys doing?

CT: We’ve heard from friends and people who have listened to our music for a long time, and it’s strange that they come to us with this, because we hear it as well. We hear Cristina’s harmonies all the time on a lot of the songs, which is a bit spooky, but I kind of welcome it. It’s a part of her that still exists. We miss her really dearly. Her leaving us was a really surprising experience in that at first it was a very difficult time and was one that put the band in question. But it actually didn’t take long for us to realize that there’s nothing else that we should do except make music. It brought us closer together.

DS: I’m sure she would appreciate that. It’s good to hear you’re doing well. In terms of the new EP, I know it’s dedicated to her, but does it have a certain theme for what it’s about?

CT: There are a number of themes that run through it. Part of it is about sometimes a seemingly hopeless mission of being a musician but deciding that together it’s something that’s worth it. There are some themes that are a bit more abstract and mean a lot of different things. Obviously there’s the theme of planting seeds and growing them. There are the themes of light and darkness.

DS: What’s it like to be a musician in Toronto?

CT: My comparison is that the Ottawa scene is virtually nonexistent unless you’re a hardcore kid in a punk or metal band. And then there’s a very strong underground movement. But otherwise it felt very lonely making music in Ottawa and coming to Toronto was an amazing experience. Whether you make reggae or electronica or jazz or rock and roll, there’s going to be plenty of people you can connect with. It means collaborating is a lot easier, it means bouncing ideas off each other is a lot easier and having a network. The life of a musician can be harsh at times and just hanging out with others can be nice.

DS: Did you move here for the band?

CT: I moved here to go to Ryerson but also knowing in the back of my mind that this was absolutely the place to be. I remember that being confirmed for me the first time I heard You Forgot it in People. “What? That record is from that city and I’m going to that city!” Jake did the same thing. Pierre came a bit later. Eric moved from London a few years later.

DS: Do you have a favourite venue to play at?

CT: I like the Piston a lot, it’s a great size. They’ve done an awesome job at turning that backroom into a great space. We played Magpie recently, which I think under the right circumstances is a terrific venue as well. Again, small. Really eclectic feel. I generally really prefer a smaller venue. We’ve had great times playing at the El Mocambo and the Horseshoe and there’s a certain excitement to playing those stages knowing the things that have happened there in the past, but ultimately I feel like we can connect better with people when they’re right in front of us.

DS: What other kinds of music, games, movies, books or TV shows you guys are into right now?

Books – I’m reading a graphic novel called The Blue Pill. It’s really depressing so don’t read it if you’re depressed right now. It’s about a man who falls in love with a woman only to find out after that she’s HIV positive and so is her kid. The illustrations are phenomenal.

TV – I’m obsessed with Bored to Death, an amazing show. Watch it if you’ve never watched it. Ted Danson, Jason Schwartzman and Zack Galifianakis are a phenomenal trio and bounce off each other really well.

Movies – I’ve only been re-watching stuff lately that I’ve watched a million times before. But I love Micmacs, it’s a French film about a man who makes it his life-long mission to destroy the weapons industry.

Games – We play board games with our housemates upstairs. We usually go with Scattergories.

DS: Anything else you’d like to say?

CT: I’m working on a new project that’s going to be blues and electro music. I have a couple favourites on the electro side I always go back to, like for a long time I’ve been obsessed with Radiohead. I love Caribou and Four Tet big time. On the blues side, I’m digging as far back into the crate as possible. I like Blind Lemon Jefferson, Robert Johnson, Big Mamma Thorton and I’m just trying to re-grasp the essence of the blues and then see what happens when you mash it with electro music.

Parks & Rec are playing Don’t Touch That Dial at El Mocambo on Saturday, December 3.

You can find more of Parks & Rec’s Seeds Grown Here on their BandCamp page here.

The Darcys (Photo by Ryan Edward Miller)

When discussing indie rock bands in Toronto and which ones have been waiting real hard for their dues, the name The Darcys probably comes up pretty often. For years, the band has been saying that their next album was forthcoming, but we can finally say that on October 25 that product of labour and love will be in our hands and ears and in front of our eyes. Their self-titled second album, The Darcys, will be released later this month by Canadian indie powerhouse label Arts & Crafts.

Trials and tribulations hit the band from every direction, as they found themselves deserted by their vocalist, publicist and friends. Most would stay down, but they kept at it and got back up. This is really just the beginning for the Toronto band, especially knowing that they’ve already got two more albums in the work, with the proper backing.

The Darcys is not their debut, but it’ll be the first thing that most of us will know them by, and it seems they were aware of that in the creation and recording. There’s a lot of power in this Canadian indie rock, between the beats, laced in the fast-paced, nervy guitars and in Jason Couse’s voice, which ranges in rock and soul. The Darcys has an air of familiar mystery that you want to figure out. Their sound is like a memory; nostalgia and hazy territory seem to factor in with emotion and eyes focusing between what’s right in front of them and what’s ahead.

The Darcys – Shaking Down The Old Bones by Arts & Crafts

You can pick up The Darcys on October 25. But before then, read Dork Shelf’s interview with drummer Wes Marskell about the past, present and future.

Dork Shelf: How and when did you start The Darcys?

Wes Marskell: The way I see it, The Darcys started on stage at CMW 2010. That mindset and line-up is everything our band stands for now. I remember playing the first song of that set and thinking: this is how it always should have been. It was the first time I felt we were worth listening to.

DS: Can you describe how The Darcys are different now from when you started?

WM: The only similarity is our name. This next set of releases will be more defining than the past five years could have ever been.

DS: Getting your next release out has been a tumultuous experience for you, and now you’re here, signed to Canada’s largest indie label with a deal for three albums. Can you explain how you got to this point and some things that happened along the way?

WM: For a long time people told us to quit. The record was broken, maybe irreparable, and we had lost a band member. For most people this combination of factors marked the end of the band. In retrospect, this was a very realistic point of view as the next few months were extremely hard on us. The record went through a number of failed mixes and masters and at times I had no idea how or if we would ever see the other side of the storm.

It sounds a bit cliché, but we learned who our friends were very quickly when we were at our lowest. Everyone dropped off and we found ourselves looking for management, publicity, an agent and more. All we could do was keep our heads down and push through. When we rebuilt the band, we also focused on the team of people around us, and it was those people who were instrumental in the signing to Arts & Crafts and to any future success this band may see.

Arts & Crafts has blown some new wind into our sails, but the record has yet to come out and I have no handle on how it might be received. To me, signing this deal means we have to start working twice as hard and everything we do has to be that much better.

DS: What’s it like for you now, after going through so much for the band? Did you ever think about giving it up?

WM: We never talked about giving up. Looking back on all of this, it seems the only thing we talked about was new ideas to move forward with. We had very little time to reconfigure the set before CMW and most of our focus turned towards getting the live show ready. In the back of my mind, I thought we would figure it out after CMW, and then it was after the next show and then the show after that. The feeling inside our camp was more productive and creative than it had been in a very long time. When we were a five piece, the band always felt like it was on the verge of slipping away from us and the new line-up made us feel like we had a real chance to make this work.

Also, the pressure of having to prove something only fueled our momentum forward. There were weak moments when we talked about renaming the band and starting over, but we wanted to release this record when the time was right and tour these songs. There were people who had stuck with us for a long time and we wanted to give them this record. We didn’t have it in us to quit.

DS: You’ve been talking about the next release coming out for quite some time, but you announced all this big news mere weeks before it will happen. Did it happen that quickly?

WM: In a sense it happened very quickly. However, everything happened as part of a greater process of this record and project. After the first two mixes the record still wasn’t ready for release and every attempt to push the record forward was met with resistance, which in turn started to feel like warning. I think for a long time we were hearing the album as we wanted to hear it instead of how it actually sounded.

The spring of 2011 is when everything fell into place. The real catalyst was the new mix by Dave Schiffman. Though the record had sounded good at times, he brought the right energy to the recordings and we could hear it the moment we pressed play. From final master to our release date will be about 6 months, but in actuality this record has been trying to come out for four years.

DS: What was it like recording these new releases?

WM: I am not sure we are quite ready to open up about the releases beyond the self-titled just yet, but I can tell you there has been a major shift in our process. Recording The Darcys was about agenda. We walked into the studio with songs that were 95 per cent of what they have become recorded. The studio was less of a creative site and more of an apparatus to achieve the sonic space we were after. What we really wanted to create were noise layers that simulated emotions or places that we had experienced in the time leading up to recording. At times it became arduous because the act of writing songs had long passed and we were instead focused on a delay setting on the second pedal in a chain of four. Stress levels ran high when certain sounds wouldn’t translate properly. We really wanted something specific.

DS: Tell us about the October 25^th release of The Darcys. What is it about?

WM: It is about moving forward. I stand by this release, but it is merely our jumping off point for us. This record marks our entrance but what follows will be paramount. A lot of people left us for dead and the 25^th will be our way of proving that we are still alive and kicking.

DS: What will you do differently in the future? Where else will The Darcys go?

WM: We have been listing to a lot of soul records and trying to clean out our sound so that not every song is 60 tracks of noise. We have rigged up some drum machines and are toying with really heavy bass tones. For a while we talked about eliminating guitar entirely and working with this interlocked and battling keyboard sound pared with a really fat kick drum. We are being pulled in a few directions and I am interested to see how we work out the new records.

DS: What’s it like to be a musician in Toronto? How do you draw from the scene?

WM: This city never lacks a good show and the amount of talent coming out of Toronto is almost discouraging. Trying to set your band apart from the others seems impossible and the moment you feel like you have gotten somewhere it feels like someone else is doing it better than you. Play a bad show and people move on. It doesn’t feel like people are waiting and willing to give you two or three chances to turn it around. That said, I would rather be in a competitive place with an abundance of talent because I think it sharpens your focus.

DS: What venues or areas do you like to play in and why?

WM: Toronto is home and there is nothing better than playing a packed show to your home crowd.

DS: What are some of The Darcys favourite books, movies and music right now?

WM: Musically, I know Jason has been eating up a lot of the records the Soulquarians collective have put out. For me, I have read most of Cormac McCarthy’s published works and that has had quite an impact on the lyrics and overall tone of the new recordings.

DS: Is there anything else we should know?

WM: There is so much the next few months to tell you. We have been working on a lot of ideas and projects over the past year and many of them are going to see the light of day very shortly.

The Darcys perform on Late Night in the Bedroom

With Carmen on guitar and vocals and Andy on drums, the pair pack a whopping punch. Carmen’s vocals make her sound like she’s been transported through time to an era of old movies, but she’s got the confidence to take her to another level. Her electric guitar playing is raw and exposed, while Andy’s drumming is quick, flexible and light. Close to the Bone is an introduction to this duo we won’t forget, from the melodies, the wails, the changing pace and so much rich energy in tracks such as “The Power,” “Cold & Alcohol” and “Always.”

Seeing Army Girls live is a big part of their dynamic. You can catch them this weekend (Saturday, the 10^th) at the Arts & Crafts TIFF showcase at the Drake Hotel with The Darcys, Rival Boys and Samantha Savage Smith. They go on at 8.

Now, get to know Army Girls with our Q&A:

How and when did you start the band?

We started playing together February 2010 under a different name. The first year we started playing together we only did a handful of shows. In the winter of 2011, we recorded our first album and came up with a name and have been performing that way ever since.

Tell us about Close to the Bone. What is it about? What does it mean to you?

Close to the Bone is a collection of songs written in the aftermath of a lot of change. Primarily, I wrote it in response to a deeply awful couple of years. As it happens, it turned out to be less therapeutic and more hopeful for me. I won’t speak for Andy, but for myself, writing this EP has been about coming to grips with bad situations and turning them into raw energy.

What was it like making your first Army Girls EP?

It was really fun. We came at it with a pretty ad hoc approach. We cold called Ben Cook (who is fantastically talented in many, many respects) and set a time and place, showed up and made a rough n’ rushed album in 4 hours. It was a new experience for me. Until this EP was recorded, every recording process I had been a part of took days or weeks or months. This fell together so quickly and turned out pretty much exactly how it should have.

What struck you as a really good idea?

The best idea we had was contacting Ben. It’s rare to find someone who can exactly transfer a sound you envision into hard copy. It’s like asking a stranger to tell you what to wear, they don’t know your taste, your style, your wardrobe… how are they supposed to guess? We were so pleased it worked out so well.

What are you thinking about for future recordings, whether it’s to change something or what you’d like to explore?

Next we would love to do a full length. Unfortunately, for new bands it isn’t always easy coming up with enough money or material to make a first album a full length. We are hoping to go to New York to record the next one; to get lost in a bigger city, maybe and see where we find ourselves.

Do you feel that the music you make in this band is similar to what you make with other projects, or are you going for a certain style?

I think Army Girls is unique to Army Girls. The way we’ve worked until now is not very similar to the other bands we play in, or have played in.

How would you describe your live dynamic?

I think our live shows have a lot of energy. We never play a show without sweating buckets, we always get off the stage feeling winded. We have been described as raw – I like that description a lot because it really neatly sums up how much effort we put into propelling each song.

What venues or areas do you like to play in and why?

Almost anywhere in Toronto is an amazing experience to play. Anything from the Horseshoe to someone’s small grungy basement. Toronto has an amazing selection of alternative spaces which can make that special occasion that much more special.

What’s it like to be a musician in Toronto? How do you draw from the scene?

Being a musician in Toronto is amazing. There are so many good bands in this city to feed off of and play shows with. Starting a new band here after playing for many years in other bands made it easy to get shows and build from there.

You named your band after a random girl you saw walking down the street. Does city imagery or attitude often affect your work?

Definitely. We are both very visual people. Always looking. Noticing the smaller details.

Where do you want to take this band? Carmen, you’ve said how you’ve taken yourself into new territory as a musician by getting louder, so what else would you like to do?

I would like to take this band as far as possible. I want to refine the songs and write many more. I would like lots of people to hear this music and I’d like to play shows with other fantastic musicians. I see possibilities in this band like a mechanic does in the rusted shell of a restorable car; I can see us polishing and adjusting it until it runs beautifully.

Is there anything else we should know about Army Girls?

We will be putting together a new photo blog next month with our new camera from Lomography in Toronto. We are very excited for that!

Follow Army Girls on their official site here.

Octoberman

August is clearly trying to make sure summer ends on a hot note. Toronto’s so jam-packed with concerts and music-type events that there’s got to be something in this heap of sweat for everyone. Here are some choice methods to get hot before September.

This Thursday (11 August) , take a ride to this year’s Bicycle Film Festival. Kicking off the festivities will be a concert featuring The Meligrove Band, Octoberman, and Christien Summers at the  Horseshoe. If cycling’s not your style, try something more structured, like Housebuilding Thursdays, a residency by collective band Architects running through August and September, at Somewhere There. And if you’re itching for a bit more angst and electronic experimentation Heartbeat Hotel,  Armen at the Bazaar, GAY and Still Life Still will be rocking the Silver Dollar.

This weekend is just as packed. On Friday, The Untold City presents a free show at The  Garrison with local upstart shit-disturbers Topanga, plus Uncle Bad Touch, Young Rival and Montreal’s jagged rockers Parlovr. If you’re feeling for something equally sweaty but a bit more on the experimental pop side, check out Hooded Fang, Moon King, Doldrums and more at The Garage. Then, come Saturday and Sunday, Wavelength presents another great lineup for this year’s ALL CAPS Island Festival, featuring the soothing and goosebump-y sounds of Evening Hymns, Julie Doiron, Jennifer Castle on Saturday and the country rock of The Wooden Sky and the party palace that is Rich Aucoin on Saturday. (Plus, there will be camping overnight, film screenings, BBQ, bonfires and more.)

The Meligrove Band - photo by Mat Dunlap

All this isn’t meant for you to forget the SummerWorks festival that’s been blazing all over the city since last week. This weekend features performances by Bruce Peninsula , Miracle Fortress, and Green Go.

Okay! Deep breath. Stay with me, that is all in just the span of three days!

The rest of August is mighty fine, too. Dwayne Gretzky extended their July residency at the Dakota Tavern doing classic rock covers, Allie Hughes will be testing out new material at a free show at the Drake, The Fires Of and Dilly Dally will light up the Silver Dollar and get this: bands and bloggers (quite possibly including this here blogger) will be uniting in a dodgeball match against one another, free for anyone to watch the horror (I mean awesomeness).

But let’s not forget the hungry touring musicians from outside Toronto who are getting everyone buzzing. Hawthorne Heights (they’re still around?!) visit the Rockpile on the 21st, Against Me takes over the Mod Club the 22nd, The War on Drugs soothe the Drake on the 24th and Colin Stetson will get everyone’s new saxophone love in a twixt at the Drake on the 26th.

So now that your calendar is jam-packed, or you at least have a brand new batch of bands to check out, who are you going to see?

As always, you can read more of my thoughts and exclamations on music at RoundLetters.

For fans, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two has been a moment we’ve been both waiting for and dreading simultaneously. To see the end of something that, for those of my age group and level of dedication, has lasted for over a decade is obviously bittersweet. That’s a long time to have really loved and been invested in something.

I was first introduced to Harry when I was in Grade 6 or 7. I’ll admit I became obsessed over the next couple of years, but even once that initial spark subsided, I was left with years of that warm fuzzy feelings whenever I thought of the story, the craft and those who were involved with it. Harry Potter seems to be something you have to defend your love of though, or at least that’s how it’s gone on to be in my age group. When I was in high school, I thought about how I’d be this 20-something when Harry Potter’s saga ended, and here we are. Time moves quickly. Now we have all these years to appreciate something that’s been great to us personally and to people worldwide. It quickly became an important book that encouraged young kids to discover reading, and even now kids are still picking it up for the first time, experiencing what we did over a decade ago. So when it came time to sit down and see this movie the other day, I was a bit overwhelmed.

If you haven’t read the book that this movie derives from or seen the first part of the split, you’ll likely be confused right from the beginning. The movie jumps straight to where Part One left off, with not much intention of spending time explaining what is going on. While Part One was slow in a lonely, confused and wandering kind of way, Part Two is fast-paced with no time for funny business (and any laughs are the awkward goofy kind). Since Harry, Ron and Hermione already know what they must find in order to defeat Lord Voldemort and save the wizarding world, most of the movie is just one big epic battle; there’s not much time devoted to back stories or even a real moment to catch a breath. This is the same for the halves of the book, but of course as a movie it will feel even more exciting.

The main trio definitely get the most camera time as they race against the clock, trying to find the remaining Horcruxes (pieces of Voldemort’s soul put in objects) in order destroy the villain. And all of it is done fairly easily: the group is good at finding clues and knowsall the right people who can help, so that speeds up the process. First they have to break into the wizarding bank Gringotts with the help of a backstabbing goblin (and here’s a question: why are there cops in a wizarding bank?), in search of something. Harry then learns that he must return to Hogwarts, the school he had to abandon, in order to find the last object. It then turns into a race as Voldemort heads there too, with legions of evil doers determined to make this fight count. But Harry and his friends and family are smart and quick enough to defend themselves this time.

Part Two is, to put it simply, a very sad movie. Not just because this is the end, but because of what happens in battle, how it is portrayed and who is affected. Some of the saddest parts are glossed over a bit ( though still gut-wrenching), but there’s definitely one death scene that was far more brutal and heartbreaking than expected – Here’s something to lighten spirits: picture a movie theatre full of people wearing Harry Potter shaped 3D glasses… crying! The scenes are dark and grim, but defiant and tireless, a lot of secondary characters get to shine and one-liners abound. The fast pace will keep you going right until the end, punching the air when someone is victorious (or was that just me?).

I loved Part Two for all of these reasons, but I must say that I enjoyed Part One more. This movie might need more time to sink in, though. The main problem I had with Part Two were the visual effects; which felt like they had regressed back to what they looked like a few films ago. Maybe it was because the entire movie was in 3D (something I’m not really a fan of, although the depth of field was a nice touch) or that it felt a bit rushed, but some moments could have been a lot more impressive. Plus, they pull that obvious 3D card of a rollercoaster-type scenario in the Gringotts scene. I’m also not entirely sold on changing up the way some things happen or leaving out certain back stories, but in this film it’s not too noticeable.

Harry Potter’s saga might be over now, but us fans can look back on this epic amount of time that we were able to enjoy it and know that it’s gone out on a strong note. If you’ve read the book, then you’ll likely get pretty much what you’ve expected out of this movie. Oh, and there is even that 19 years later epilogue!

So… Now what?