Bobbyisms: Birthday Boys leave a lasting impression
I write about random things a lot. I write a lot about random things. I'll have you know I could be watching Craig Ferguson right now, but I'm writing to you instead. Never you mind what time I finished this column.
So the craziest thing happened: instead of getting chewed out for going over my word-limit last week, I got an email from a musician coming to London to play a show with his band - and that's how I came to meet Birthday Boys. Don't worry, I'll totally help you look cool in front of them, because they're returning to play the Out Back Shack on Friday, April 16.
Birthday Boys are Jordan Mack, Matt Paige, Jeremy Boyd, and Graeme Kennedy. Coming from Peterborough, they've made it their focus to establish themselves in the major music scenes — Toronto, Montreal, and New York — and are setting their sights on London. I met them recently before their gig at Moon Over Marin.
Being a band from Peterborough means being a band that does a lot traveling, but not without a sense of home. “You're from Peterborough, you're not just another one of a million bands from Toronto, you know?,” reflected Mack, guitarist and vocalist. “It's a bit of a different identity, which is kind of nice.”
All this travel and travail (see what I did there?) is in support of the group's debut album, Bad Blood, released October 2008. Produced in Chicago by Greg Norman at Electrical Audio, the album was recorded live, in concurrence with the setup in the studio. Why? Because it belongs to Steve Albini, who is famous for his use of the Blumlein Pair technique of recording, by which the band plays live in front of two microphones spread out sideways in a V shape.
“We did the record live, aside from vocals. But all the music is played live,” says Kennedy, guitarist and vocalist. “Which I think is better when it comes across, as opposed to when you cut and paste everything together.”
“If you can't do it live, then it shouldn't be on a record,” agrees Mack. “[Albini's] whole vibe is, ‘if it's good, it'll come across on the record.'”
And how does it sound? Bad Blood is one of those rare rock records that flawlessly blends a homemade, indie quality into a type of honest, energetic, CBGBs type of rock.
“We're all inspired by punk mentality, like Patti Smith, or the Clash, where your music doesn't have to be screaming and fast, it can be a mentality or energy that you can put behind it,” said Mack. “This is do-it-yourself rock and roll.”
The record begins with a heavy-hitter, called Making Room For Grace. This song is cool right out of the gate for its heavy opening chant, and rhythmic thump-thumping of Paige on his kick. It's honestly a sound I haven't heard many places that aren't Spoon records or really, really old Sloan.
After grabbing your attention, the record then takes you off in different directions, embracing upbeat, pop-laced tracks (like Knockoff and Let It Die) and frantic, punk-infused tracks (like Vigorous Friction and The Drug). The best part about this disc is that it doesn't become a boring time, there is no awkward pause or dull moment present, and each song individually stands tall as its own.
Top five songs: Making Room For Grace, Let It Die, To Hell, The Drug, Vigorous Friction.
Twenty per cent that I would cut (two songs): Machine, Barfight.
This album is a must-have for anyone who enjoys Ontario indie or rock so brimming with style and flair. Birthday Boys have long since perfected all the poise, passion, and persona that is all a part of performance on stage.
And in the spirit of the event, I asked all four guys what the last full record they had listened to was: for Kennedy, it's Spoon's Transference; for Mack, it's Leonard Cohen's Live In London; and for drummer Matt Paige, it's the Dead Weather's Horehounds.
But for bassist Jeremy Boyd, the answer was far more unpredictable. “The last record I listened to straight through was the Amadeus soundtrack. It's maybe not indie-cool, but hey, he's still around after 200 years,” Boyd said, anxiously looking around. “Somebody give him an answer he can print.”
“Oh, you can print Amadeus,” Graeme assured me amidst laughter.
All four members are looking very forward to playing Fanshawe at the Out Back Shack on April 16. There's something about seeing Birthday Boys live in which their skills and their songs have evolved into some fine bartenders, something that also provides potential.
If I have one hope for this column, it would be to impress the band upon you in a way that will make you remember April 16 as though it were the fifth of November. Check out their profiles on their own website (birthdayboys.com), or by a number of other means online, from Myspace to Facebook.
Birthday Boys are going to find their audience here in London; we'd be best to embrace them here, Fanshawe, and be just ahead of something great. I'm out of words.
So the craziest thing happened: instead of getting chewed out for going over my word-limit last week, I got an email from a musician coming to London to play a show with his band - and that's how I came to meet Birthday Boys. Don't worry, I'll totally help you look cool in front of them, because they're returning to play the Out Back Shack on Friday, April 16.
Birthday Boys are Jordan Mack, Matt Paige, Jeremy Boyd, and Graeme Kennedy. Coming from Peterborough, they've made it their focus to establish themselves in the major music scenes — Toronto, Montreal, and New York — and are setting their sights on London. I met them recently before their gig at Moon Over Marin.
Being a band from Peterborough means being a band that does a lot traveling, but not without a sense of home. “You're from Peterborough, you're not just another one of a million bands from Toronto, you know?,” reflected Mack, guitarist and vocalist. “It's a bit of a different identity, which is kind of nice.”
All this travel and travail (see what I did there?) is in support of the group's debut album, Bad Blood, released October 2008. Produced in Chicago by Greg Norman at Electrical Audio, the album was recorded live, in concurrence with the setup in the studio. Why? Because it belongs to Steve Albini, who is famous for his use of the Blumlein Pair technique of recording, by which the band plays live in front of two microphones spread out sideways in a V shape.
“We did the record live, aside from vocals. But all the music is played live,” says Kennedy, guitarist and vocalist. “Which I think is better when it comes across, as opposed to when you cut and paste everything together.”
“If you can't do it live, then it shouldn't be on a record,” agrees Mack. “[Albini's] whole vibe is, ‘if it's good, it'll come across on the record.'”
And how does it sound? Bad Blood is one of those rare rock records that flawlessly blends a homemade, indie quality into a type of honest, energetic, CBGBs type of rock.
“We're all inspired by punk mentality, like Patti Smith, or the Clash, where your music doesn't have to be screaming and fast, it can be a mentality or energy that you can put behind it,” said Mack. “This is do-it-yourself rock and roll.”
The record begins with a heavy-hitter, called Making Room For Grace. This song is cool right out of the gate for its heavy opening chant, and rhythmic thump-thumping of Paige on his kick. It's honestly a sound I haven't heard many places that aren't Spoon records or really, really old Sloan.
After grabbing your attention, the record then takes you off in different directions, embracing upbeat, pop-laced tracks (like Knockoff and Let It Die) and frantic, punk-infused tracks (like Vigorous Friction and The Drug). The best part about this disc is that it doesn't become a boring time, there is no awkward pause or dull moment present, and each song individually stands tall as its own.
Top five songs: Making Room For Grace, Let It Die, To Hell, The Drug, Vigorous Friction.
Twenty per cent that I would cut (two songs): Machine, Barfight.
This album is a must-have for anyone who enjoys Ontario indie or rock so brimming with style and flair. Birthday Boys have long since perfected all the poise, passion, and persona that is all a part of performance on stage.
And in the spirit of the event, I asked all four guys what the last full record they had listened to was: for Kennedy, it's Spoon's Transference; for Mack, it's Leonard Cohen's Live In London; and for drummer Matt Paige, it's the Dead Weather's Horehounds.
But for bassist Jeremy Boyd, the answer was far more unpredictable. “The last record I listened to straight through was the Amadeus soundtrack. It's maybe not indie-cool, but hey, he's still around after 200 years,” Boyd said, anxiously looking around. “Somebody give him an answer he can print.”
“Oh, you can print Amadeus,” Graeme assured me amidst laughter.
All four members are looking very forward to playing Fanshawe at the Out Back Shack on April 16. There's something about seeing Birthday Boys live in which their skills and their songs have evolved into some fine bartenders, something that also provides potential.
If I have one hope for this column, it would be to impress the band upon you in a way that will make you remember April 16 as though it were the fifth of November. Check out their profiles on their own website (birthdayboys.com), or by a number of other means online, from Myspace to Facebook.
Birthday Boys are going to find their audience here in London; we'd be best to embrace them here, Fanshawe, and be just ahead of something great. I'm out of words.
