00:00:00:13 [Music]
00:00:03:03 I think that most people are like a lineage
00:00:04:22 as far as what they listen to in music.
00:00:06:20 Like something spark,
00:00:08:23 they are interested in music at young age,
00:00:10:08 and then eventually, there is a point where someone like
00:00:12:22 gets into a type of music that brings in the work that are big.
00:00:17:22 Notes from the front line of a string two culture.
00:00:20:03 This is Strange Notes.
00:00:21:20 [Music]
00:01:04:28 You guys have known each other since you were kids, right?
00:01:07:27 Basically, you guys grew up in the same place.
00:01:10:01 It's Colona, right?
00:01:11:08 Yeah, at Colona, we pretty much all been friends
00:01:13:28 since high school.
00:01:15:24 Didn't go to same schools, but we see each other at gigs
00:01:18:18 on a weekend and stuff, everybody had bands
00:01:20:28 and stood up in Colona when we were teenagers,
00:01:23:01 so we'd always see each other out and about, you know.
00:01:26:28 Were there a lot of places to play in Colona at that time?
00:01:30:23 Just like community halls and stuff.
00:01:31:28 There used to be a little hall that we could rent for...
00:01:34:23 it's like $36, 36 bucks.
00:01:36:23 Yeah.
00:01:37:28 And it was just rented out to 15 of shows.
00:01:40:28 It's pretty fun.
00:01:42:12 What were some of like the records
00:01:44:02 that were kicking around at that point?
00:01:45:29 Silkworm, Sea and Cake, Taurus, [inaudible]
00:01:50:25 [inaudible] and that kind of stuff, Indie rock.
00:01:54:04 Give us a little about the Karachi Vice clubhouse?
00:01:56:09 That was just a name we came up with for our jam space.
00:01:59:12 Okay.
00:02:00:28 -It's from what... what is that from? -Stampede.
00:02:03:00 Calgary Stampede Wrestling which is a wrestling duo.
00:02:06:27 What was the shtick, Mexican?
00:02:09:19 No, I think they were like... their thing was that they were
00:02:12:18 like Arabian or something.
00:02:14:15 They were the Karachi Vice, I don't know.
00:02:16:28 They were like villains on the Calgary Stampede Wrestling.
00:02:19:18 What was the jam space like where?
00:02:20:28 We still have it. It's awesome.
00:02:22:26 The best jam space in Vancouver.
00:02:24:23 Maybe anywhere.
00:02:26:02 Maybe anywhere.
00:02:27:15 And it's the back of like a furniture warehouse,
00:02:29:28 and like high end furniture were nestled in the back,
00:02:33:27 and it's just about a dozen dudes all from Colona
00:02:37:22 to sort of like...
00:02:40:05 There's like three or four bands that share it.
00:02:42:03 Couple of the bands don't actually do anything
00:02:44:03 or perform or...
00:02:45:18 Jam!
00:02:46:28 So it's like...
00:02:48:18 It's like pretty much... yeah.
00:02:50:06 When we were in town there is like only maybe one guy
00:02:52:28 who might be in there,
00:02:54:03 he can pretty much go in that from
00:02:56:20 after 5:00 to like 8:00 in the morning.
00:02:58:20 That is like, yeah, I find that's really important,
00:03:01:12 finding a jam space is,
00:03:02:28 just finding a place where you can do late
00:03:04:28 and it doesn't have like strict cut-off times,
00:03:07:25 like disturbing business and stuff.
00:03:10:09 And a place where you can hang out too.
00:03:12:02 How did the Fight for Anarchy record come about,
00:03:14:06 and specifically on a sticker on the front it says,
00:03:17:18 Various States of Consciousness.
00:03:19:18 Were you guys experimenting with hallucinogens or what was?
00:03:23:24 It was just sort of for fun like
00:03:26:28 we called and he did the recording.
00:03:29:03 He had a free day and just asked if like
00:03:32:14 me and Ryan wanted to go in and record some stuff?
00:03:35:21 So the first song in that EP was just sort of me and him.
00:03:39:16 Didn't we record that as your birthday present
00:03:40:28 it's like Darcy's birthday present.
00:03:42:28 -Yeah, they came like and then... -Yeah, we've done it.
00:03:46:01 They came, they totally messed up, and were like happy birthday
00:03:48:06 and then I was like it sounds cool.
00:03:49:27 We were just like that would go well like for them
00:03:52:03 just going in for a day or so.
00:03:53:28 And it was like a total experiment because I never tried
00:03:56:08 to really play music on psychotropic drugs.
00:04:01:08 Yeah, you can't hear but there someone should be.
00:04:03:20 Yeah, like you just...
00:04:04:28 Remember when we were like tapping on the piano,
00:04:06:22 close Mike this shit.
00:04:09:16 I was doing some kind of... Yeah, doing something like...
00:04:14:18 Rustles in the bushes, you know, it just weird stuff.
00:04:17:02 Yeah, is it quite... is it like, yeah.
00:04:19:12 So I guess this is fair to say that like psychotropic drugs
00:04:21:28 are equally as like beneficial as they are like,
00:04:25:26 damaging to like the recording process as well.
00:04:27:24 Would you ever...
00:04:28:28 I mean like, would you do it again kind of thing or???
00:04:30:23 We have, yeah.
00:04:33:03 And there were shots as kind of out there in that regard.
00:04:37:18 So just I am like... you get like
00:04:38:28 so much energy or something you go in,
00:04:41:03 you record really intensely for like
00:04:43:18 five minutes and then we would run out into
00:04:45:24 the parking lot basically, roll around in garbage
00:04:47:28 like screaming with laughter for about 20 minutes,
00:04:50:18 we go back and record really seriously.
00:04:53:22 The next record of course was the current record Shots,
00:04:57:23 back to Colona and the White House Night Gallery,
00:05:01:04 tell everybody a bit about what this place was
00:05:02:23 and just go back to Colona.
00:05:05:03 Money, it was like cheap tour,
00:05:08:12 like we needed people who had it,
00:05:10:00 basically the land had been donated to the society of hope.
00:05:13:01 We just like couldn't find space in Vancouver,
00:05:15:17 didn't want to do it at the studio and we couldn't actually.
00:05:18:27 And the idea of recording in any spaces better than a studio,
00:05:22:18 -You know? -Yeah.
00:05:24:16 All were retired, abandoned farm-house, it's like a gutter,
00:05:27:26 like wood floors, wood walls, just... it sounded really cool
00:05:31:20 just like walking around and talking in the room,
00:05:34:07 super-creaky.
00:05:35:08 One of the rooms was completely square like perfect cube...
00:05:39:27 ...floor. Wall to wall. Wood.
00:05:42:21 We end up using that room as sort of like a river tank,
00:05:45:28 I guess were like... just leave your mic in there
00:05:49:09 and like blocking off the door with
00:05:51:15 like a piece of wood and then like just kind of using...
00:05:53:18 It was just like a hole above the door.
00:05:55:12 Yeah.
00:05:56:22 So the whole album is kind of just served in that room.
00:05:59:15 Yeah.
00:06:02:05 It sounds woody I think, but it doesn't sound like...
00:06:05:07 to me, it doesn't like a warm,
00:06:06:28 it kind of sounds like, I don't know,
00:06:09:20 sounds woody, but still kind of cool and spooky.
00:06:11:20 It's cool that you can like pick a place
00:06:12:28 and so much of that place kind of goes into the actual songs.
00:06:17:00 Yeah.
00:06:18:17 [Music]
00:06:20:18 Stay tuned for more tales of the Bizarre.



00:00:00:14 [Music]
00:00:02:08 I am George Pettit, and this is Strange Notes.
00:00:04:14 ♪ [Music]
00:00:34:03 This [inaudible] fictional DV about the recording,
00:00:35:28 is that coming out anytime soon or is that like...
00:00:38:28 It's not in our hands, like the people who made it,
00:00:41:26 we just kind of signed off, like that's your thing,
00:00:44:05 the album is our thing.
00:00:45:21 Okay.
00:00:47:01 The trailer looks awesome.
00:00:48:18 I haven't seen it,
00:00:49:28 I watched it once.
00:00:51:08 I didn't get through it, but...
00:00:53:06 It's just hard to watch yourself.
00:00:54:28 Yeah, I know people ask about it all the time,
00:00:56:14 and I have no idea really if it's...
00:00:58:20 if anything is going to happen.
00:00:59:28 I think they should just put it out on...
00:01:01:29 or like put it online or something.
00:01:03:28 Yeah, they want to...
00:01:05:07 For the five people that are interested in seeing.
00:01:06:29 Yeah, they wanted to pitch it to festivals and stuff, but I mean
00:01:12:28 ...any interest, start making it, and it's kind of a bummer
00:01:15:24 because it's like not really going to... no one carry off.
00:01:21:02 But it's, you know, it's there and it looks,
00:01:23:07 I don't know, for like, you know,
00:01:25:20 if you're a fan, like I am super interested to see it.
00:01:27:28 There is brief cameo of Jon-Rae in there,
00:01:29:28 you're slapping him in the face, I'm like, well...
00:01:33:20 The promoter called Jon-Rae's the next day.
00:01:39:00 It's like Jon-Rae was too drunk to play at that show.
00:01:41:06 Have you seen Jon-Rae since he is like come out?
00:01:43:26 Oh yeah, he was there.
00:01:45:03 I saw him play when he...
00:01:47:28 he came through Hamilton a while ago
00:01:49:28 with like a different band...
00:01:51:28 Yeah, it was great, did a bunch of Annie Lennox covers.
00:01:55:00 -Yeah, random. -We just...
00:01:56:16 I just recorded an album with him and Catherine from
00:01:58:18 The New Pornographers & Immaculate Machine
00:02:01:02 a couple of other people in September.
00:02:02:20 Wow!
00:02:03:28 3 hours, 10 songs.
00:02:05:22 3 hours, 10 songs.
00:02:08:10 -It sounds really good. -It sounds really good, actually.
00:02:09:18 -When is that coming out? -It's a hotshot, trombone.
00:02:11:23 Doesn't have a label or anything.
00:02:14:04 Well, there you go.
00:02:16:06 If anybody...
00:02:19:24 If anybody out there owns a record label,
00:02:22:27 there is a fantastic record,
00:02:24:28 it's just in limbo, that's incredible.
00:02:26:28 Jon-Rae has a band,
00:02:28:06 and I think it comes up like around you guys,
00:02:30:04 again, like bands like The Constantines,
00:02:31:28 name like some of these more important bands
00:02:33:18 that have been in your life in the last few years?
00:02:35:18 Magnolia Electric Co., Canadian Record.
00:02:38:18 Secretly Canadian Records.
00:02:40:10 Honorary.
00:02:41:27 But definitely like Black Mountain
00:02:43:16 and Attack in Black and the Cons
00:02:45:24 have been the funnest to tour with for sure,
00:02:49:08 because we all get along really well, and they have fans.
00:02:56:12 I get the feeling that there is,
00:02:57:28 yeah, a very, very similar, like kind of kindred spirit vibe
00:03:00:18 between you guys and Attack in Black,
00:03:02:18 there is like something about these hardworking like
00:03:05:08 Canadian bands, this like-minded groups of like pirates.
00:03:08:06 They're kind of trying to live out this like pure wacky end,
00:03:11:11 like I don't know, everybody is drinking and just appreciating
00:03:14:14 where they're at, kind of thing.
00:03:16:19 Yeah, it's great.
00:03:17:28 And Canada is the funnest to tour.
00:03:19:23 I mean, the drives are long for half of the country,
00:03:24:05 but it's just like, I don't know,
00:03:25:23 it just seems like there is a real sort of
00:03:27:18 spirit of the road with Canadian bands,
00:03:29:28 because everybody has done that, 14 hour drives between like
00:03:34:08 Sudbury and Winnipeg or whatever.
00:03:37:23 Well, I guess it's probably longer than 14 hours.
00:03:41:19 22 hours or something.
00:03:43:11 And how does that differ from some of your European ventures
00:03:46:09 and stuff like that, how is it like,
00:03:48:00 some more memorable moments from your tours in Europe?
00:03:51:01 Well, we've only toured there once.
00:03:56:26 But it was great.
00:03:58:09 I mean, we played in the Netherlands and Belgium
00:04:01:28 and stuff, and places I've never been before,
00:04:04:27 and it was just really cool to actually meet people over there
00:04:08:02 that had somehow heard of us, and...
00:04:10:28 I mean, there wasn't tons of people at the shows, but...
00:04:13:20 But it was better than America.
00:04:15:07 Yeah, better than America, we've toured there like eight times.
00:04:19:05 Well, America is a tough... is a fucking harsh mistress.
00:04:22:24 Yeah.
00:04:24:08 It's difficult down there,
00:04:25:28 and it's very caddy and they're spoiled people.
00:04:29:18 There's just so many more bands there, I think that it's just...
00:04:34:26 Like even in the cities like
00:04:36:10 I never heard of until like touring, it was like
00:04:39:18 Rad bands play in those cities every night of the week,
00:04:42:28 and it's like,
00:04:44:06 why would anyone care about some Canadian band passing through.
00:04:46:22 Exactly
00:04:48:22 It's difficult, and the attention span is just like,
00:04:53:03 it's like 30 seconds.
00:04:54:22 These people are just like into what's cool,
00:04:56:18 and then like three weeks later, they're over it,
00:04:59:06 because there is something new, you know.
00:05:01:03 The UK is like that too.
00:05:02:13 But it's different because they actually search it out.
00:05:05:10 I find in the States they just sort of like
00:05:07:28 take what's kind of handed to them,
00:05:11:05 I think they're not like so much searching for good music.
00:05:15:27 Yeah, if anything, I would say that the UK,
00:05:17:28 like with the amount of like press there is over there,
00:05:20:18 and just like how much like...
00:05:21:28 like you get NME at the grocery store,
00:05:24:17 it's like an impulse purchase
00:05:25:28 on the way out of the grocery store,
00:05:27:28 and there is nothing like that here or...
00:05:29:08 -That's like a tabloid. -Yeah, exactly, exactly.
00:05:31:21 It's weird.
00:05:32:28 Yeah, I mean it's like tabloid culture, everyone is like
00:05:34:28 constantly focusing on the bands, and like
00:05:37:28 some of those bands like come up like instantly, right?
00:05:40:05 Yeah, they get like a record contract after the first show
00:05:43:05 or something like that.
00:05:45:18 They record an album and its massive,
00:05:47:28 and then they're gone forever or something, it's weird.
00:05:52:18 [Music]
00:05:54:02 From the ashes of the old, I am George Pettit,
00:05:55:28 and this is Strange Notes.



00:00:00:14 [Music]
00:00:05:10 ♪ [Music]
00:00:27:08 How did you guys get in touch with Jagjaguwar?
00:00:31:19 And like, obviously, are there benefits or hindrances
00:00:35:08 being on American record label?
00:00:37:08 We just sort of sent our record to them,
00:00:39:11 because we're friends with Black Mountain,
00:00:40:20 we're like, oh, they're on that label,
00:00:41:28 maybe they will like us too.
00:00:44:02 And we played some shows with
00:00:46:04 Jason Molina and Magnolia Electric Co.,
00:00:48:10 and he sort of put in a good word for us too.
00:00:51:19 But yeah, I think it's definitely like
00:00:53:21 different to be on American label.
00:00:56:18 Even a label like that, which is like kind of a bigger,
00:00:58:18 sort of Indie label, you know,
00:01:03:04 they've got like certain artists that are really big and
00:01:07:13 successful for them, and then they have like bands like us,
00:01:10:19 and it's easy to sort of feel like you're lost in the shuffle,
00:01:13:25 you know, like you're not like a super high priority.
00:01:17:00 And it's also like, having a Canadian label is great,
00:01:18:28 because then you can sort of get some government funding too,
00:01:21:28 another great thing that exists in Canada.
00:01:24:15 Yeah, we haven't been able to like get
00:01:28:07 any of that sweet fruit yet.
00:01:30:07 Oh yeah, it's a tasty fruit.
00:01:33:27 It's like a nice ripe peach, you know.
00:01:36:15 I've asked you about this before, off camera obviously,
00:01:39:04 but in the new record, [inaudible] you thank
00:01:41:17 Tim Kinsella, what was his involvement with the record?
00:01:46:16 My best friend lives in Chicago, and I went out there
00:01:50:13 I guess in 2003.
00:01:54:11 Yeah.
00:01:56:22 And I stayed out there for like a month,
00:01:58:21 and then recorded a bunch of stuff with him.
00:02:00:28 He works at a recording studio, and he has recorded a bunch of
00:02:04:26 albums for like Joan of Arc and a bunch of various other
00:02:09:04 Tim Kinsella other offshoots,
00:02:11:11 because he has got about a million bands,
00:02:13:10 like Make Believe and stuff like that.
00:02:15:18 I met him, and the song, Ghost Blues,
00:02:18:15 I had actually recorded a version of that in Chicago
00:02:22:14 way back then and Tim Kinsella actually sang on it,
00:02:26:05 and he kind of like had some of the...
00:02:30:01 he helped to sort of like shape, kind of carve the song,
00:02:33:21 so I was like, well, I've got to give him proxy...
00:02:35:03 Back to Colona versus Vancouver.
00:02:38:07 When did you move from Colona to Vancouver,
00:02:41:09 like at what age were you guys?
00:02:43:08 I was like the last one to move there.
00:02:45:28 I mean, I moved there for six months or something
00:02:49:23 when I was 18 or 19, but I moved back
00:02:53:22 because I couldn't hack living away from the nest,
00:02:56:24 I guess,
00:02:59:21 I moved there in 2004 or something,
00:03:04:23 these guys lived there for a long time.
00:03:06:17 I moved there in 1999.
00:03:09:20 And are you guys living in East Vancouver, is that right?
00:03:13:00 Yeah.
00:03:14:10 There's some hairy parts of those neighborhoods.
00:03:17:09 I don't live in the hairy part.
00:03:18:29 Okay.
00:03:20:11 It's crazy, but it's not dangerous.
00:03:22:26 It's totally mellow. Yeah.
00:03:24:08 It's weird though,
00:03:25:18 because I was just talking about this with someone yesterday
00:03:27:12 about how it's, you see the most harsh,
00:03:30:18 most extreme fucked up shit every single day,
00:03:33:08 and like I don't even flinch.
00:03:36:13 Like I'll see someone with the needles hanging
00:03:38:18 out of their arms, or something like rolling on the ground,
00:03:42:16 clawing at their face and screaming,
00:03:44:26 and it's just like, oh, okay,
00:03:46:10 and I'm on my way to work.
00:03:48:20 it doesn't even affect you after a while,
00:03:49:28 which is pretty kind of weird and sick.
00:03:53:28 You see some pretty extreme stuff.
00:03:57:10 Well, Pigeon Park, I mean like even when...
00:03:59:18 you come down East Hasting and like...
00:04:00:28 I remember seeing that for the first time
00:04:02:08 just thinking that it was fucking,
00:04:05:14 like we're in a third world country.
00:04:08:07 I've seen so many people just like selling their stolen things
00:04:12:17 and... I work at Pigeon Park Savings Bank,
00:04:16:28 run by a nonprofit organization down there,
00:04:19:28 for the people of the downtown, East side.
00:04:22:28 Then they're having a lot of trouble with the
00:04:24:28 For Needles Program.
00:04:26:08 But it saves lives,
00:04:29:14 it's a really good service that they do.
00:04:33:03 But obviously, I mean, people are going to have problems.
00:04:36:05 Unless the government stops someone from selling crap.
00:04:39:28 Well, you know, because the Olympics are coming in 2010 to
00:04:43:19 Vancouver so they're doing this whole thing,
00:04:44:28 where they're really trying to like clean up this city
00:04:47:18 and like... but they're not doing anything
00:04:49:13 to like help the problem,
00:04:52:11 they're just sort of like sweeping it under the rug
00:04:56:07 or further East.
00:04:58:08 There is like rumors that they're shipping
00:05:00:08 all the homeless people to Victoria and stuff like that,
00:05:04:02 we were talking about that.
00:05:05:17 They're going to reopen like the Insane Asylum,
00:05:09:01 this part of the region, they're there in the first place.
00:05:10:28 Yeah, lot of free mental institutions to set everyone up.
00:05:13:13 -Riverside. -Set everyone up on the street,
00:05:15:16 and they've been talking about reopening that,
00:05:17:13 and like housing people in there.
00:05:19:27 [Music]
00:05:22:08 This is Strange Notes, you are welcome.



00:00:00:14 [Music]
00:00:05:26 ♪ [Music]
00:00:36:28 I know a lot of people around here
00:00:38:19 that have never even traveled West,
00:00:40:09 like what are the more human aspects of it?
00:00:42:00 It's great, there's places to go hiking, the ocean.
00:00:45:09 Like you can drive like ten minutes out of the city and
00:00:48:23 go for a beautiful hike in the mountains,
00:00:50:18 through like rain forest and...
00:00:52:21 You can go camping on like a seconds notice.
00:00:58:20 Like nowhere.
00:01:00:02 Like Friday afternoon, it's 5:30 what are we going to do?
00:01:01:26 Let's go camping. Alright, let's go, and...
00:01:04:18 I'm sure you can do that here.
00:01:06:00 There's all the islands between Vancouver and Victoria,
00:01:08:08 there's all these little islands, it's beautiful.
00:01:10:14 -It's on a ferry rides. -Yeah. So it's really nice.
00:01:12:02 It's a bit expensive, but they're nice.
00:01:13:08 Yeah.
00:01:14:23 And if you're like athletically minded or inclined, you can...
00:01:19:06 in one day you can go skiing and like water skiing.
00:01:23:08 You can do the Iron Man.
00:01:25:08 When is the next record happening?
00:01:27:07 you guys been in writing or...
00:01:28:16 Yeah, I mean, the plan now is to just go back home
00:01:31:22 and not go on tour for a while,
00:01:34:21 and start practicing, write lots of songs.
00:01:38:15 Try to work on those and hopefully do some recording.
00:01:41:19 I really want to record and release some seven-inches,
00:01:45:09 just some singles, do like three or four of those.
00:01:48:25 I mean, it's probably not going to happen, but that's like...
00:01:51:08 They're pretty easy to make.
00:01:52:18 Yeah, I mean, just like a matter of like
00:01:54:17 scraping together a bit of cash to do it.
00:01:56:12 But I would like to do something like that,
00:01:59:23 just have like about seven-inch vinyl
00:02:02:02 and download codes or whatever and...
00:02:05:18 That seems to be what a lot of people are doing.
00:02:08:19 I'm a bit of a record collector myself, and just like...
00:02:12:16 it just seems like a more fitting format sometimes.
00:02:17:04 And sometimes it's almost tough to get people like...
00:02:19:12 I don't know, like the single...
00:02:20:27 a lot of my favorite bands are really into like singles.
00:02:23:13 Yeah, it seems to me the way that music business is shifting,
00:02:26:27 nowadays anyway, back to where it started, as the single.
00:02:31:07 Yeah.
00:02:32:14 And they're cute.
00:02:33:22 They're cute, it's fun.
00:02:35:07 Girls like them too.
00:02:37:07 CDs are so sterile, it's like a...
00:02:39:08 The last visceral sort of musical product
00:02:42:12 in the end, I think, will be vinyl.
00:02:45:09 My parents records, that I got from them, I can still play.
00:02:49:25 But the first CD I ever bought, like it's, I don't even know,
00:02:54:01 it's in some land field somewhere probably.
00:02:56:17 It's in some coffee shop, hanging from the ceiling.
00:03:01:21 Sort of it's in an orchard, scaring birds away.
00:03:05:20 I think that's lot of tough for you guys,
00:03:07:02 unless there is anything else you guys want to talk about,
00:03:08:13 Is there anything?
00:03:09:28 Model T cars.
00:03:12:12 Model T cars.
00:03:16:02 ♪ [Music]
00:03:50:08 [Music]