June 2002

White Star Line
The Battleship, Ethel
XL Birdsuit
Yellow Jacket Avenger
Ten Year Drought
Tara S'Appart
Currently In These United States
Skywave
Alcian Blue
Mellonova
Dr Noh
DJs
MCs

WHITE STAR LINE
WAVELENGTH 116
SUNDAY JUNE 2, 11PM
Purveyors of: A sense of wander
http://whitestarline.indiegroup.com

Upon returning from a month on the road with The Creeping Nobodies, Julia Muth, Corruptor of Youth interviewed Stephen Dohnberg of beauty-fuzz rockers White Star Line via email.

Since I have been stuck in the back of a tour van with four smelly boys for the past month, I'm a little behind on the Toronto indie-rock gossip. Is it true a) that you have moved back to St. Catharines? Why?

Yup. I'm spent from living in a city like Toronto. Financially and so on. The smog last summer was unbearable besides. Don't get me wrong -- St. Catharines still really sucks too, but it is much smaller... I'm working in Queenston and Niagara-on-the-Lake on farms. It's nice to get completely away from all the various static and sirens and noise. I'm a loner-type in reality... Wandering around in orchards suits me.

And b) that White Star Line will be going through another line-up change? (My favourite incarnation of your beautiful selves was the Wavelength you played with John Crossingham on drums...)

Yeah. Yet another drummer. The last one just went incommunicado. I think from WSL's inception we've had 23 different drummers play with us. John C.'s a great drummer and was gracious enough to fill in despite his busy schedule. Lately, both Clayton and Andy from The Two Minute Miracles have sat behind the skins too, and now Pete Hall from A Northern Chorus is bashing away in exquisite style. Who knows what'll happen next? I really have no clue.

Is varying the people you play with part of the plan?

Welllll... Yes and no. it's good to have the option for different instruments and variation, but having Luca and myself at the core is kind of ideal as far as consistency... This way it isn't just me doing all the writing in my bland talentless way...

On checking out your website, I noticed that you guys are keeping busy in spite of these changes. Are you finding it difficult to commute from St. C. to the big smoke?

Ahh, hell no... It's only an hour drive, and I'm in Toronto a quarter of the time still, anyway. Plus, I usually drive 130+ and avoid traveling during obvious rush-times...

I also noticed, when searching WHITE+STAR+LINE on Google, that the origin of your name is not what I thought. I had assumed that it was an allusion to cocaine... but, no... it actually has something to do with the Titanic... please explain your inspiration for this name?

Cocaine? That's so funny... I guess the potential imagery lends itself to that... it's a long story but it's actually connected to the Lusitania... I like broad inferences and allusions and aesthetics that can be wrung from a title that has history...

So, if you had the magical power to make Celine Dion disappear from the face of the earth (please, please, please!), how would you have scored the movie Titanic?

I wouldn't have. The Titanic fucking sucked. Do you know we get actual mail from all over the world from people looking for relatives that were on the Titanic? Passenger logs and everything. Get over it, people... "Wooo weee, I'm related to some poor fucker that drowned in icy waters on an over-extravagant ship."

THE BATTLESHIP, ETHEL
WAVELENGTH 116
SUNDAY JUNE 2, 10PM
Purveyors of: The music is writing itself! Quick! Invite an audience!
http://thebattleshipethel.tripod.com

The last time Paddy O'Donnell had seen The Battleship, Ethel, they were at the Raven in Hamilton. One Mike McLean was on stage, playing in front of an impressive old organ, while the rest of the band were outside the club, stuffed into a minivan filled with computers, keyboards, mics and melodicas, playing "remotely" with earphones and very long cables running from the minivan back into the club. Paddy O'Donnell met up with The Battleship, Ethel for an "interview" at Sneaky Dee's prior to Wavelength's big move to College & Bathurst. The interview, in true TB,E style, ended up being something of an extended improvisation with guests. Here is a rough synopsis of the night's events.

¥ The Battleship, Ethel can be traced back to Tally Hum Orchestra and Cedrumatic, former projects with other members, all of which overlap. Cedrumatic started out primarily concerned with the beat, specifically, of drums. Tally Hum Orchestra developed this concern with beats into a concern with breakbeats. The Battleship, Ethel is primarily concerned with the moment and is not afraid to be beatless.

¥ TB,E formed shortly after the booking of its first show. They had intended to "write" songs, but, given the time constraints of their debut appearance, decided not to "write" and, rather, just to "play". ¥ October 28, 2001 was the date of the first The Battleship, Ethel show.

¥ TB,E never rehearse. They record in one take, and do overdubs in one take. They have three studio albums recorded, two EPs, plus a few more tracks they are expecting to compile. They are expecting to release one of these many albums on June 27th at Raven. It seems the release in question was recorded in (and is partially a recording by) a winter storm that came out of nowhere and dumped tons of snow in the middle of spring, only to see all the snow disappear the next day, as if the whole thing never happened.

¥ Hamilton has proudly announced that its air has 10% less bauxite. A good ratio of bauxite to have in the air is zero %.

¥ Madness is never planned at a Battleship, Ethel showÉ It just happens.

¥ The Battleship, Ethel have included and or will include amongst its membership such luminaries as: a member from Hamilton 70's space-rock legends Simply Saucer (the one who left in '72 because he felt they were "selling out"), Daniel from head | phone | over | tone, Wax Mannequin, Mark Raymond, Mike Bored (sp?) of Buck Reed fame, Carl Didur from Cedrumatic, Mike MacGillivray from Tally Hum Orchestra, Mike Ford (who plays the theremin), Nash The Slash, and a litany of others.

¥ Guitars and the re-introduction of the beat may figure into TB,E's future sound. The primal sounds of rock'n'roll will never be neglected for long.

¥ The Battleship, Ethel will not be playing the theme to Ben Hur at Wavelength on June 2nd.

XL BIRDSUIT
WAVELENGTH 117
SUNDAY JUNE 9, 11PM.
Purveyors of: Streamlined Calgary spazzcore
xlbirdsuit@hotmail.com

Former Calgarian Chuck Skullz caught up with fellow Calgarians XL Birdsuit (who go by the monikers Ex-Spectres, Vail Halen, Guitallus and New Drummer Mark) for some westernly discussion about all things related to the band XLB.

You all come from a wealthy pool of past and present Calgary bands.Tell us a little bit about these projects and how XL Birdsuit came together.

The Shecky FormŽ guys hooked up with the New 1-2 guy on account of it being the last possible combination of Calgary musicians. Some fellow Calgary players literally laughed when they heard about the match-up; others complained that it would either be a wussier New 1-2 or a testosterony Shecky. All reactions turned out to be fair. We're just a bunch of silly little violent sissies. (P.S. The word "testosterony" is mine - hands off!)

Live, you can be an intimidating band. Is this conscious? What effect would you say you like to convey to an audience?

Intimidation is important when you have CDs for sale. So is pity.

Knee-pads and Ô80s metal guitars: Aesthetic revival? Terror tactic? Or just pure love?

Knee-pads are an effective tool of terror, ugly guitars make people sad. I think that covers all of our potential fan base.

A few years back there were semi-regular performances at a space called the New Gallery in Calgary. These seemed to be artist-run exhibits that embraced all sorts of under-the-surface musicians, video, performance and visual artists. XL Birdsuit members have appeared there under one or more guises and projects, correct? How do you feel that experience compares with bar shows you play now in this band?

We appreciate bar audiences more now because we usually have a couple of drinks before we hit the stage, and that helps. Also, berets are distracting when you're trying to improvise. We don't see a lot of berets at XL Birdsuit shows.

YELLOW JACKET AVENGER
WAVELENGTH 117
SUNDAY JUNE 9, 10PM
Purveyors of: This ain't no Police picnic
Pictured: Geoff Pye

Yellow Jacket Avenger: Interview by Mr. Boon. Answers provided by Lisa Adubrovich, public relations representative for The Geoffrey Pye Foundation.

What have you been up to since relocating from Ottawa to Toronto?

Mostly he has been working different jobs in order to survive, enjoying the fruits of his labours when he has enough energy to, and somewhere in there living a good clean Jewish life. Oh yes, and of course making hit records.

For its Wavelength performance, Yellow Jacket Avenger is a rock band. However, the latest YJA recording, Becoming A Silhouette, is a collection of two-minute electronic pop instrumentals, none of which will be heard at the show. Mr. Pye, are you a Gemini? Please explain.

He is not a Gemini, he is a Cancer. The Avenger seems to wear many hats: sometimes he is the sensitive guitar-wielding singer, and other times he is the pensive, arty, scantily-clad electronic composer. You never know what you're going to get when the Avenger drops by.

Becoming A Silhouette marks a return to your solo work. But unlike the adventures in analog we found in Big Sal recordings or Texas Food Chain, you are now recording exclusively with a sampler. Tell us about the new recording process and how this has changed your music.

Using the sampler allows him to write with very careful control, even though sometimes he will end up with something completely different than what he had started with. He is not "sampling" in the traditional sense (James Brown drum beats, etc.). He will go through records and CDs looking for interesting instruments and then format them for his keyboard. He quite likes when two sounds (one organic, one totally sterile and produced) are put together. It seems to create a strange tension in the composition.

The new CD sounds like it could be late Ô80s TV drama theme music but made for children, like an episode of Law & Order with Barney the Dinosaur up for murder one. What sort of visual representation do you imagine for these apparent soundtracks?

He would like to see these pieces used in a nice movie one day. Perhaps a film about Siberia or Romania, or somewhere like that. He had also thought of performing some kind of dance along to the music, but I think that is something better appreciated in the privacy of his own home.

What will you be up to once relocating from Toronto to... Halifax??

He hopes to seek out the nice quiet Maritime life and continue to work and make music as long as it makes him happy.

TEN YEAR DROUGHT
WAVELENGTH 118
SUNDAY JUNE 16, 11PM
Purveyors of: Regret, complacency and defeat
tenyeardrought@yahoo.ca

We don't know too much about Ten Year Drought. We sent them some questions, but they felt that answering might be too difficult a task (perhaps they didn't like the questions we sent). They requested that we reprint the biography someone else wrote for them in our Ôzine instead. Okay thenÉ

Ten Year Drought:
Eric Arner (bass, vocals)
Adam Fox (guitar, vocals)
Colin Huebert (drums)

In late summer of '98, disgusted and disillusioned, Adam Fox turned his back on the subways and plastic, packaged lifestyle of Canada's largest city and stole back to the geographically bankrupt facelessness of southwestern Ontario. Spurned by a fresh disdain for all things metropolitan and the passionlessness of contemporary modern music, Fox chose to draw from the dry wells and empty stretches of sideroads to form Ten Year Drought. Comprised of former bandmates from short-lived sonic endeavours, Ten Year Drought winds down a different path -- a barren, emotive landscape reminiscent of the sparse, lonely county town of Harrow, which they once called home. A tentative sense of decay spirals lazily from Fox's vocals, weighted with themes of regret, complacency and defeat that ascend into a promising brightness, before sinking deliberately and gently into the comforting arms of spacious guitars. Punctuation is meticulously crafted in all the right spots by both rhythm section, piano and slide guitar. And with this craftmanship and restrained emotion, Ten Year Drought competently fill in the blanks left by bands such as Rex, the Red House Painters and Son Volt. -- Tim Powell, Room magazine

TARA S'APPART
WAVELENGTH 118
SUNDAY JUNE 16, 10PM
Purveyor of: Solo trips to the moon
www.elevator.ca

Paddy O'Donnell quizzed Tara about being a solo artist, creating music, and playing Wavelength.

Tara S'appart features songs written by yourself, but Rick White and Joel Plaskett have also played with you. Do you consider this a solo project, or are other members integral to the sound?

Initially, Tara S'appart was me and my lonesome self with my Space So Pretty cassette. I recorded it in bits and pieces whenever Rick was on tour with Eric's Trip. I could only write or record with a privacy factor at top notch. With the "Little" 7" and The Faces Of The Moon, Rick kindly offered his skills by laying down drum and bass tracks, and with Joel's pedal steel tracks, the sound of my songs definitely headed in a direction I was longing for. I enjoy what's been done with the sound and mood that has become my songs from what everyone's offered sonically, supportively and skillfully.

How long have these songs been with you? Does Tara S'appart exist because you had songs to play, or did you decide to do this project, then write the songs?

The songs for Faces Of The Moon are two or three years old. It took a long time to figure out how to release it. I started writing and recording because everyone around me seemed to enjoy it so much, and it seemed like a good way to pass the time while Rick was away. But now it's become a cathartic release of otherwise very misguided emotions and energy. So, in short, songs first, and the project has become what it is now, and will be what it will be.

Who will we see on stage for your Wavelength gig?

Well, myself, I'll attempt to sing and play guitar, Rick has been ever so kindly singing and playing bass for me, another Monctonian friend of ours, Todd Gallant, will grace the stage by playing pedal steel, and thanks to the maker or makers of the universe, John A. MacDonald will be playing drums while our usual drummer, Lonnie James, will be away playing with Royal City.

Your disc, The Faces Of The Moon, is not exclusively about the moon, but keeps coming back to it as subject matter. What is it about the moon that compels you to write about it?

I've always had a strong affinity for the moon, and I recognize the phases of it as turning points for change. Having lived for ten years next to the ocean (well, the tidal river Petitcodiac) at a spot which accommodates the highest tides in the world (off the Bay of Fundy), watching the dramatic high and low tides in synchronicity with the phase of the moon, my affection for the moon's beauty and its physical, metaphysical, psychological effects on the earth and its inhabitants grew to be an important source of inspiration for me. Having worked in many bars for ten years, there is an undeniable effect on people during the full moon. I'm glad I'm not working tonight: spring fever and the full moon!

The artwork, music, and ideas put into The Faces Of The Moon are all excellent. Is there more to come?

I hope so. Since I've lived in Toronto (almost two years), I've been pretty busy and big city life has been quite distracting. I definitely yearn to paint, write and record. I just have to acquire some focus and inspiration from the bedlam of the Big Smoke.

You have recorded, produced and released your music on your own. Is this important to you? Explain.

It is somehow important. Aside from being quite self-conscious of my lyrics, playing, singing, and being deathly terrified of playing live, and hoping there's room in the world and the hearts of humankind for yet another person's artistic endeavours, I do feel happiest having the final product of a recording or having lived through a live show. So, yes, I suppose for some reason unknown to me, it somehow is important. Again, perhaps because of the catharsis of creating something, anything.

Anything else?

UmmÉ where to start, where to end? SoÉ thank-you Wavelength gang, and to everyone, keep on keepin' on.

CURRENTLY IN THESE UNITED STATES
WAVELENGTH 119
SUNDAY JUNE 23, 11:45PM
Purveyors of: Rock'n'roll music
www.geocities.com/heretictactician

IAll we can tell you is that, for this Wavelength appearance, Currently In These United States will consist of: Rocky Jukebunce, Master Language, Chuck Skullz, "The Temple Threat" and Norm Reaganomics. Visuals: Edjuardo with Pants

SKYWAVE
WAVELENGTH 119
SUNDAY JUNE 23, 10:45PM
Purveyors of: My Bloody Jesus & Marytine (but louder than God)
www.killerrockandroll.com

Wavelength asked tourmates Alcian Blue to interview Virginia's one and only Skywave, who return to us after tearing the roof off Wavelength 100 in February. We believe Jacob Reid was asking the questions. Here is the result.

Skywave is one of the best bands around, making great albums and ultra-loud performances... How does it feel to be the future and hope of rock'n'roll?

Paul: Thank you for the compliment. If that is the case, we're not aware of it, really. We just do what we like.

Your music is the closest thing that any young kids can get to what the late '60s music scene was like. Do you guys listen to a lot of late '60s tunes when looking for ideas in writing?

John: I listen to lots of Ô60s music, but there's usually only a brief moment or mood which is the inspiration for writing.
Oliver: We do what comes naturally and then if any of us aren't too thrilled about it, we drop it.
Paul: It's definitely a mix of all kinds of time periods, but it's really just about the song. There are great and horrible songs in just about every sub-genre or time period of rock music.

When I think of a band being D.I.Y., it begins and ends with Skywave. How did you learn to do everything you guys do in order to make the band work?

Oliver: You have to give it everything you've got, though I wish someone else was doing the busy work for us. But it is very fun to have total control.
Paul: I wish we could just focus on the music. It's a lot more exciting making music than, uh, phone calls.
John: We work together.

With just three people you have more sound than most four-piece bands... How do you do it?

Paul: Lots of amplifiers. We concentrate on the overall sound.
Oliver: We focus on the way things sound in contrast to each other. We try to cover and slice up the total audible frequency range between the instruments.

What was the best experience you guys had playing live and the worst?

John: The best is hearing from people who really like the music. The worst was the 1998 Bread & Puppet festival. Two kids got murdered and a van blew up like a block from us. Oliver: That was fucking crazy.

John is a natural wonder on the drums. Does anyone ever have to administer CPR to him after a show? Are the rumours true that he is part robot?

Oliver: John sometimes pukes, and I swear I've seen a couple of computer chips fly out when he does, but I don't know if he's a robot or he just likes to eat computers.
John: Does not compute.

-When is the new album coming out and what can we expect to hear?

Oliver: It's pretty much done, we are just looking for strong label support. What you can expect to hear is what we were trying for with the previous albums -- at least in the sense of it being over the top. We really worked a lot on getting the true dynamics in the songs and explored more with the sounds.
Paul: We've got a new 7" coming out soon. That and the Don't Say Slow EP are sort of in the direction that the album is sounding like, but there's a lot more room for experimentation on the album. It should be the kind of album that lasts forever, and doesn't sound like it's from any time in particular.

ALCIAN BLUE
WAVELENGTH 119
SUNDAY JUNE 23, 9:45PM
Purveyors of: A little bit shoegaze, a little bit rock'n'roll
www.alcianblue.net

Wavelength asked tourmates Skywave to interview D.C. psych-rockers Alcian Blue. Oliver was asking the questions. Here is the result:

You guys are making one of the most impressive walls of sound in music today, and although I know it is absolutely intentional, I was wondering what you guys thought you were doing?

Jake: It's more or less a split between listening to our influences and taking ideas from that and forging onward... Also, Sam and I are just trying to out-do each other in creating a thick, warm sound. We want the audience to be overcome by our sound and see colours and images through the noise and loudness.

I heard that Sam, one of your guitar players, got exposed to some intense radiation. How does this affect him and the rest of the band?

Sam: I may be permanently infertile or prone to having mutated offspring... Who cares about chromosomal abberrations when there's rock'n'roll?
Jake: We can run all of our pedals through Sam. No more 9-volt batteries!

Your music has been described as "scenes viewed from a passing train." What do you feel?

Sam: It's relaxing to me... I also like finding sounds in there that weren't there to begin with.
Jake: It's the music of Pet Sounds played by an orchestra of F-15 Engines.

What do you think is in store for the future of music?

Jake: Music is so broad. Definitely a lot of incredible stuff is going on in the underground. I listen to new bands every week on MP3... Rock needs to find itself again. Like another Ô60s revolution. Hip-hop is doing great things these days...
Sam: It's obviously in a strange place presently... There's definitely cool underground things going on...

Who are some of your biggest influences and how did they influence you?

Sam: Speaking for myself, My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, Steve Reich, various ambient/experimental stuff. I dig on things that are multi-layered. It's more rewarding to listen to something where each listen reveals something new. This is also why I like accidents when I'm playing; so long as it isn't blaringly obvious, it is pretty cool.
Jake: I think we all love The Cure and Joy Division. Obviously we have shoegaze influences. I've been listening to a ton of oldies and Motown recently. The melodies and song structure are timeless.

What does it take to have such a rocking rhythm section for such an ambient-oriented band?

Sam: Clark's an animal! If it weren't for him we'd probably turn into a boring post-rock band or something...
Jake: Yeah, if you try to take the rock from Clark he'll hit you with a beat you can't refuse!

Slow Colorless Stare is kind of hi-fi meets lo-fi. How do you merge the beautiful dreamscapes with the all-out distorted white-noise songs?

Sam: The "mid-fi" nature of the recordings is partially due to the equipment we used to record. At the time I think we were aiming for the highest fidelity possible, a pristine sound like the Cocteau Twins, but along the way I think we started to find warmer and more blurred lo-fi sounds to be more interesting.
Jake: It was a ton of moods thrown in. We were learning how to record and use all this equipment all at once. There was frustration and then there were calming parts, but we tested ourselves daily and I think you can hear conflicts and such on that album. "Empty Roads" is the best song on that in my opinion because we all just let the tape go and did it live. No overdubs or anything. It was the last thing we recorded and we were seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

MELLONOVA
WAVELENGTH 120
SUNDAY JUNE 30, 11PM
Purveyors of: Giving Birkenstocks and drama class a good name
www.mellonova.com

Slightly Happy is your first full-length release. How has the music evolved from your previous EP?

Andrew: More body hair, less reverb.

What makes a song "Mellonovian"? At what point do you "give up" on a song?

Andrew: a) If the song makes you weepy/ecstatic/angry while drunk, it might make the criteria, or if it makes you feel drunk or altered in some way when you're sober, it meets the criteria. b) When our internal organs start hemorrhaging and if the song doesn't grow teeth.
Matthew: a) When the song maintains the highest of high drama. b) Not enough drama.

Minesh told me a story about saving Mike's life one night. Have you all been saved?

Mike: This is true. Minesh did save me. I was being attacked by a colony of squirrels. I tried to escape, but they kept pinning me to the concrete. I ran for my Bianchi (a $20 speed racer bought outside of Igor's bike shop on Queen West -- dodgy, yes, I know), but I kept going. A moment of darkness enveloped me. Then along came a Mean Red Spider that sat down beside me and drove me all the way home. Wooh, wooh, wooh.

If Mellonova were a drink, what would it taste like?

Matthew: We would like to think we taste like Laphroaig -- single malt, expensive and sophisticated. But we're probably more like a Canadian Rye -- blended, cheap and easy to drink in large quantities.

You had a track featured on Buffy The Vampire Slayer... Was that a dream show for you to have your music featured on? What's your next choice?

Dream Gigs:
Andrew: The fireplace channel.
Matthew: NBA theme song.
Matt, Andrew & Mike: Disclaimer for both should read: "Kids... TVs are only good for throwing out of hotel room balconies."

-- interview by Gidget Adams

DR NOH

WAVELENGTH 120
SUNDAY JUNE 30, 10PM
Purveyors of: Post-kitchen sink
www.flatwax.com/drnoh

Dr Noh is an instrumental sextet from Montreal with a sound that defies description, although some have tried. A review on chartattack.com says that they lie "between post-rock, prog-rock, drum'n'bass, free metal and experimental jazz." Their upcoming album Pave was recorded during a residency at the exclusive Banff Centre for the Arts, and it runs the gamut from groovy electronic beats'n'pieces to scorching guitar-driven walls o' sound.

Please give us a run-down of who is in the group, and what they all do.

Neal Gupta (bass), Marcus Paquin (guitar), Pat McGee (drums), Mike Shulha (drums), Andy King (trumpet, keyboards), Blake Markle (bass, keyboards, sampler).

There are some elements of so-called "post-rock" in your sound, which suggests a connection to the gybe!/Constellation crew. Do you feel any particular connection to that collective? Or perhaps a more general connection with the "vibe" that seems to be running through the Montreal music scene in the last couple of years?

Marc: The music vibe in Montreal is definitely good right now. With bands like godspeed! and The Dears making their homes here, there's lots of good music to be heard. I don't think the post-rock sound is something that we consciously try to achieve. The tunes that we write are a reflection of our collective. Each one of us brings something different to the songs and that's why this group is truly unique... None of us would be able to write this music as individuals.
Blake: We're not post-rock, we're post-prog(Ôn'bass).

Your upcoming album was recorded during an artist residency in Banff. Can you you talk a bit about that? Did working in that seemingly idyllic location have any effect on the material you composed and recorded while there?

Blake: During our ten-week residency, we made our own schedule and played pretty much every day, and also played some hot floor hockey with some Swedes.
Andy: Banff was a great place to work. It is a great location with ample resources for study and work. The community of all sorts of artists is an inspiring one. It is an all-too-rare place in this country.
Marc: It definitely gave us the opportunity to tighten up our playing and write tunes that are more complex in terms of form. The visuals certainly didn't hurt our inspiration.

At least a couple of the members are involved in other musical projects as well. Can you tell us about some of them? Is there ever any problem with commitments to those projects interferring with Dr Noh, or vice versa?

There's Ice Nine, a really smart rock band in which Mike plays drums; Stars is a electronic pop band in which Pat drums; Blake is one half of downtempo drum'n'bass duo dB (2top Records), and does solo electronic stuff as Black Market; Neal and Mike make their own tracks as Shanker Resinator and Rogue Prince respectively; and Mike and Marcus both play with the Steve Eisenhauer Band.

Does the group have any particular songwriting process, or do you just sort of jam and see where things go?

Andy: Often we jam, then arrange what we've come up with. Sometimes things are conceived beforehand, and we all add our thoughts afterwards.
Marc: We usually start with a jam, find a section that we like and then expand on that section. We don't put any boundaries on what we bring to the jams.

What five artists (musical or otherwise) would you say are the biggest influence on Dr Noh?

Miles Davis, Squarepusher, Converge, David Lynch, Bill Hicks.

Besides Dr. No, who is each band member's favourite Bond villain, and why?

Blake: Grace Jones in A View to a Kill.
Andy: No comment.

-- interview by Greg Clow

WAVELENGTH DJs

June 2
Eat DJs Fuck The Man & Crazzy Gravy

Eat was first featured on Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom in 1976. These creatures, DJs Fuck The Man and Crazzy Gravy, taken from their dormant gustation period of two-and-a-half decades, have returned to spin black and silver discs on Thursdays at 56 Kensington on a bi-weekly basis (June 6th & 20th). Let's take an excerpt from the transcript of the original broadcast of that Wild Kingdom: "The Eat scavenge all day about this wasteland of recorded musics for something the gustropologists call ÔRock'n'Roll of All Kinds'. These aural fixations may lead the Eat to a state of ecstasy where for two-and-a-half to three minutes they will growl with joy. This call of pleasure produces noises like Ôfucking yeah,' Ôthe only thing better than a Stones song is another Stones song,' or, Ôyou don't think I'm a burnout do you?' Verging on extinction, they spend their evenings ingesting malted beverages and absorbing nutrients like Black Sabbath, XTC and Funkadelic through their ears."

June 9
DJ Erik (Veritable Infusion)

Playing mostly old sheet from the worlds of soul, reggae and their spin-offs, sneaking the odd obscurity or drifting between other fun and funky genresÉ Check it out Mondays from 8-10pm on Veritable Infusion, CIUT 89.5 FM.

June 16
DJ Digital D

Digital D says: "Let's continue to get somewhat funky."

June 23
DJ Corruptor

... Finally instituted a wet filter process, in which the fine material would be suspended in a solution that was then drained away. This procedure was excruciatingly slow.

June 30
DJ Greg Clow

Greg Clow is the host of Feedback Monitor, a long-running radio show (Tuesdays, 10pm on CIUT 89.5 FM) that features new releases in electronic, experimental and related music. He also runs a website to complement the show at www.feedbackmonitor.com, that has been described as "the nexus for up-to-date information in the Toronto electronic and experimental music scenes". Along with his wife Sheryl Kirby, he runs a record label (Piehead Records) and a concert and event promotions company (Stained Productions). On top of all that, he manages to hold down a day job as a systems analyst. He likes peanut butter, comic books and Pingu.

WAVELENGTH GUEST MCs

It's true! The official "voice of Wavelength" Doc Pickles has left our continent in order to trek through Italy! Since he will not be returning to the Wavelength fold until November, we have been discreetly asking around to see who will take the mic and temporarily fill those impossible shoes. As it turns out... we have a start...

June 2
Mystery Emcee... who will it be? Beats you. Beats me.

June 9 and/or 16
Chris Mills of Just Like The Movies will set a fire on your ass!!! He really knows how to rock and he hosts nights as smooth as an operator in an elevator.

June 23
MC Cabinet Shuffle has no comment and takes offense at the word "scandal."

June 30
Steve Lindsey steps out from behind the projectors for once, to explain the subtle relationship between the prismatic effects of a crystal on light and the manner in which sound distorts into multiple colours when viewed through a pint glass. Steve also hopes to introduce some good friends and excellent musicians.