The
Two Minute Miracles
Anagram
Jonasson
Beef Terminal
Venus Cures All
Eamonn Vitt
The Plath
Corpusse
The
Weird Library of Art
DJs
THE
TWO MINUTE MIRACLES
WAVELENGTH 134
SUNDAY OCTOBER 6, 11PM
Purveyors of:
Porch tunes
www.teenageusarecordings.com
Andy Magoffin is the brains behind The Two-Minute
Miracles. Rounded out by Aaron Curtis, Clayton Corneil, and Michael Cristoff,
the London-based Miracles are on the verge of releasing Volume 3 (teenage
USA), which will surely cement their status as one of the most powerfully
understated and talented bands in Canada today. Along with Vancouver's
Jerk With A Bomb, I can't think of many other acts who are so adept at
the art of traditional songwriting, making music that could be timeless
today, or 50 years ago. If that wasn't enough, Andy also runs The House
of Miracles, his home/recording studio that has recorded or mixed the
sweet sounds of the likes of The Constantines, The Co-operators, The Neutron
Stars, By Divine Right, The Hidden Cameras and many, many more. If he's
not recording, he's touring, if he's not touring he's learning the art
of piano tuning. Here Nora Charles gets the scoop on what Andy considers
The Top Ten Miracles Of All Time.
1. The peaceful easy feeling you get from a 12 pack of Labatt 50 and a stack of records made by people you know.
2. Being blown asunder by a truck in a Northern Ontario snowstorm and plunking harmlessly into a soft ditch and not a. into another truck; b. into a wall of rock; c. down the 40-foot cliff on the other side.
3. Instant potatoes with instant gravy.
4. The human circulatory system -- especially the heart, my hero.
5. Spoken language -- the ability that we monkeys have developed to communicate by producing and perceiving sound.
6. To love and be loved by someone enough to call them "fucker" and be understood to mean "darling."
7. Earth is still here.
8. It is possible to make a living, in this age of cheap but incredibly powerful digital technology by recording independent musicians "who could probably do it themselves," even though as clients they are all chronically broke.
9. "Miracle" -- from the forthcoming full-length studio recording by The Hidden Cameras
10. The patience of the piano tuner.
Andy
says: "Let me just add that, while interesting and effective, this
technique of letting the artist interview himself is markedly similar
to assigning homework, an activity most working musicians are glad to
think they have put behind them." (Editor's note: Andy's critique
of Nora Charles' slacker
interview style has been duly noted and she has been ordered to take a
journalism correspondence course from the University of Denver. For just
$271 (U.S.), in two weeks she will be fully qualified once again for the
high journalistic standards of Wavelength.)
ANAGRAM
WAVELENGTH 134
SUNDAY OCTOBER 6, 10PM
Purveyor of: Exploding insanity from the void
www.geocities.com/anagramis
Matt Mason (vocals), Willy Mason (guitar), John Schawartz (saxophone), Chris Taylor (bass) and Clayton Churcher (drums) make up Oshawa's Anagram. When you see these guys play, it's like a journey into another dimension. A place full of disorder, chaos, madness... insanity! Plunging into the unknown, I bring you the first and only interview with the five mysterious music makers known simply as: Anagram.
Now I know you've told me repeatedly how much you don't want to do an interview or pose for any group photos... What's with that anyway? Why do you want to remain a mystery?
Willy: Uh... next question...
Matt: (Laughs) We don't particularly want to remain a mystery, I'm just
kind of a lazy guy...
Chris: We're just anti-social, I guess. Well, no, I don't mean that... What
I meant was, we're not very articulate people.
John: We don't want to remain a mystery. We're just five guys who play
in a band.
Whenever I see you guys play a show, I'm literally taken aback at the connection you seem to have with each other, from John's wailing sax to Matt's unique vocal style and a lead guitar/rhythm section that just brings it all together so right... Rumour has it that you guys all grew up together in a little town known as the 'Shwa, and that Matt and Willy are actually twins! Are the rumours true?
Matt: Sure.
Chris: We're all twins, man, we were separated at birth...
John: I wasn't born in Oshawa!
But you grew up there, right?
John: (defeated) Well... yeah.
How has this closeness affected the way you guys connect with each other on a musical level?
Matt: I think that seems kind of obvious.
I know this is a question repeatedly asked to people in interviews and that it's a big burden to answer, but, how do you go about writing your songs and where do you come up with the ideas for the things you write about?
Matt: Just jamming.
We just play and come up with things and work with them. We try different
things and when we find something that works, we keep it.
Chris: Spontaneous group composition.
Willy: I think these guys summed it up pretty well...
John: We just go with whatever feels right at the time.
You guys are known to really put on a crazy show -- every time I see you, Matt seems to run out into the audience and do everything from rolling around in shards of broken beer bottles to knocking people over! What's the secret ingredient that makes people lose their minds?
Matt: Rolling around
in beer bottles was an accident -- I really don't enjoy spending time in
the hospital emergency room. Other than that, what the hell else am I
supposed to do? I don't have an instrument... it just seems natural.
Chris: We play music to make Matt dance.
What does the name Anagram mean? And why are you so set on not preceding it with "The"?
Chris: I'm against the use of a definite article. There are too many "The" bands out there. Anagram means whatever you want it to mean.
Sort of like you sound like a different band to everyone who hears you?
Chris: I hope so.
Matt: Why wouldn't we call it Anagram? It's one great stream of vowels
and consonants, strategically placed. Chris: There's no real cryptic meaning
to it. It just worked. It's vague, and it fit.
-- interview by Daniella Costanzo
JONASSON
WAVELENGTH 135
SUNDAY OCTOBER 13, 11PM
Purveyors of: Breakbeat
country
jonassonmusic@yahoo.ca
Ex-Guelphites unite, as TCB queries Jonasson's Liz Forsberg:
As many don't know, you are one of the best kept secrets in the expat Guelph community. What are your thoughts about performing live and do you enjoy performing in front of an audience?
Playing in bedrooms and basements is a lot less intimidating than pulling off an engaging club show. That said, I'm getting to a place where I can really enjoy playing live, but I still have to pretend that I'm rocking out without an audience. When I think of a great live show, I think of bands like King Cobb Steelie, The Constantines and the forgotten Phleg Camp, who put on mesmerizing performances. When I leave after a show like that, my senses feel fully engaged.
Are there other aspects of your life akin to stage performing, and if so, do you handle these events in a similar fashion?
Just waking up, getting out of bed and going to work is like performing sometimes, especially when your day starts at midnight.
Speaking of live performance, I have always known your music for your solo performances (voice and guitar). Some of the members of your current band (including two-thirds of King Cobb Steelie) prefer to work on the music behind the scenes, but might not be performing as part of the public performances. How will their contributions be accounted for during shows? Are they lending any kind of Junior Relaxer (KCS side project) feel to the music, or is it an entirely distinct musical contribution?
Hmmm... Well, Michael Armstrong wrote the drum beats for a five-song recording we did, however live his beats are interpreted by our drummer James. Michael's beats are written on a sampler and in reality would take a couple of drummers to re-create. James' live drums are more dynamic than those done on a sampler. For this show we will not be playing with any KCS members but will be joined by bass player Rob Taylor (ex-Change of Heart), who shares a lot of the same kind of dub and punk-rock influences of Kevin Lynn. That said, this is definitely not Junior Relaxer.
When I think of the old Guelph shows, I think about both your guitar-playing and mesmerizing voice and lyrics. Do you think you are more influenced lyrically or musically by other artists -- if at all -- and if so, which artists in particular?
When I first started writing on guitar, I was listening to Phleg Camp's Repeat Until Change a lot, despite the band being defunct. This is what I had in mind for some of the songs I'm performing now. When I first started singing, I discovered Cat Power and was really into the earnest, quirky and painful vocals captured on her records. (Never was impressed by the live shows.) Then came PJ Harvey's Stories from the City, Stories From the Sea. Most of the time, I don't consciously reference specific music, but I do see it coming through unconsciously.
Do you feel that your music has been influenced by the oft-talked about "Guelph music scene" growing up? Do you think it ever existed? If so, does it continue to?
For sure. I felt like I was nursed by older musicians in the scene like the Super Ex-ites, who used to open up their basement every Sunday for jams. There really wasn't all that much to do in Guelph, so you had to create your own culture. And some of the best culture in Guelph was the culture of basement music. This culture was sustained by local radio and people like Aaron Riches, who put on all-ages shows. There definitely was a scene and it had a kind of abundant feeling to it. Everybody played with everybody. One day I would be jamming with Jimmy Guthrie in his basement, and next day I would be over at the Super Ex house with Magali Meagher. I feel really disconnected from the scene now, since I've been away for four years but last I heard there were basement rock shows happening at Jimmy Guthrie's old place.
I seem to recall that you are attending school to gain accreditation for art therapy. How is it going? Has it changed how you approach music?
Almost done. Part of my training involves doing my own studio work, which has made me devote time on a regular basis to making music. I think I'm learning that in order to make good music you have to let yourself make bad music too. And this is a very frustrating process.
Finally, you are a great cook. If you could feed Wavelength with both food and music, what would you make?
Lazy me. I'd get my boyfriend to cook you something... maybe some rice flour pancakes and bacon. I'm a big fan of breakfast for dinner. I'd make a big pot of smoky tea and put on Sparklehorse's It's a Wonderful Life.
BEEF
TERMINAL
WAVELENGTH 135
SUNDAY OCTOBER 13, 10PM
Purveyors of: Echo-drenched, guitar-drenched, rain-drenched cityscapes
www.beefterminal.com
Wavelength's new electronic music expert Anne Sulikowski interviews Mike Matheson, a.k.a. Beef Terminal:
How long have you been involved in music? Please comment on your first attempts, recording and the way in which you write songs.
I have been involved in music since I started playing I guess, which was when I was still in high school. I have been playing guitar for about 15 years now, which is kind of scary because I think if I've really been playing that long I should be a hell of a lot better. Anyways, I've been in several bands, the most memorable being Kennel District in the mid-to-late '90s. I wrote a lot of power-pop Weezer-esque kind of stuff with the band. But all during that time I was exploring another side of things, which was Beef Terminal, and I was recording these weird instrumentals, and I found it very satisfying. When the band (which was also signed to Noise Factory records, my current label) ended, the label was moving in a more electronic/ambient sort of direction. I played them the stuff I had been working on and they liked it and told me that if I did an album they would put it out. So that's how that came about. As for recording, the first album and a tiny bit of the second were just recorded on four-track cassette, then the majority of the second (The Grey Knowledge) was done on digital eight-track, and now I've moved strictly to computer. The way I wrote songs when I started this project... I just kind of would start screwing around on the guitar or the drum machine until I found something I liked and could work with. I still pretty much do that today.
When 20 goto 10 was released to the campus stations in Canada it came with a black-and-white journal type thing that had photos and what seemed to be excerpts of a journal. Please comment on these and the way it related to the album's meaning, music and atmosphere.
Basically the 20 goto 10 press kit was sort of a journal entry kind of thing, basically some true stories and thoughts that I kind of combined into a journal form I guess. I just hate bios of all kinds basically, and I didn't figure that anyone will be bothered trying to know anything about me anyway, so I just had Noise Factory send that out instead. I thought it fit with the music on that album really well, and most reviewers went to town with it, drawing all sorts of odd inferences and conclusions using that as a basis. I found it kind of funny actually. But it did sort of have a roundabout connection with what was on the record, as it dealt with some real things, and those real things inspired some of the music on 20 goto 10.
How is your new album, The Grey Knowledge, different from your previous release? What do these new songs mean to you?
The new album is different in that I think it has a more defined, yet dense sound than 20 goto 10. I think the ideas are kind of the same, just expressed better and in a more refined way. I like to think that this album is sort of a bridge to get me from 20 goto 10 to whatever I do next... these songs have enabled me to get over a sort of identity crisis about what it was I was trying to do, and opened all sorts of new doors and launched many new ideas, and without sounding too Tori Amos about it, I am grateful to these songs for doing that. When I listen to the album now, I actually really like it, which is weird for me. It's rare that I make something that I like this much, but perhaps as I go on in music, that will happen more frequently, if I'm lucky.
If your music could be expressed as colour, what would it be?
Hmmm. Colour. I'd like to think of it as a sort of washed out brown, like the colour of something you would see on an older person's living room wallpaper in the late '70s on a sort of hot summer night, when people were around the house, but not really doing anything. But they aren't happy about not doing anything -- they aren't relaxing. They are just there.
Electronic music is something that is ever evolving. What directions do you think it will take as a genre in the future? Where do you see yourself musically in the future?
As far as electronic music goes, I think the possibilities are truly endless, as you now see dudes playing shows with laptops, and to me some of that clicky stuff doesn't really sound like music. But that's just me. I can see how people would be interested in it. I'd like to see someone play a show that just plays out of their head one day. But I figure if it keeps going that way, we are in danger of losing that human quality. That's probably a common argument, but I would much rather listen to Boards Of Canada than something like Oval, because to me there is a beautiful sad fucked-up human feel to Boards Of Canada, whereas Oval sounds like my CD player is broken. But again, that's just me. Musically in the future, I just want to be making music that means something to myself first, then to others. Both are important to me, but I have to always remind myself to please me first.
Tell me your favourites for the following...
a. song: Geez, one song. That's way too hard. I have many, but two I can think of off the top of my head are "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out" by The Smiths and "Grounded" by Pavement.
b. album: Two-way tie between Fleetwood Mac's Tusk and DJ Shadow's Endtroducing.
c. piece of gear: My trusty 15 year old boss DD2 digital delay pedal. Oh yeah, and my police scanner.
d. musician: Again I have many that I admire, but two in particular would be DJ Shadow and Johnny Marr, two people that seem like they know why they have been put here, and they just do it, and let the music do the talking.
e. movie: Glengarry Glen Ross.
f. book: A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again or Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace.
Who do you think was cooler -- the Silver Apples or Kraftwerk?
Ummmm...I know nothing about the Silver Apples and almost nothing about Kraftwerk, so I guess i'll go with Kraftwerk. I think Kraftwerk hold the record for the longest song ever to hit the charts, which was "Autobahn" I believe, so I can get behind that.
Any question you have wanted to be asked in an interview and never was? What is it, and your answer?
"Tell me about your dog." My dog is a brown dog. His name is Max. He is a border collie/retriever sort of cross. He is not named for the Mean Red Spiders song "Max," although I often wish he was. The name just fits. He is kind and gentle and full of love. He is the perfect dog.
L to
R: Andrew Henry, Sara Montgomery,
Sally Lee, Lisa Myers
VENUS
CURES ALL
WAVELENGTH 136
SUNDAY OCTOBER 20, 11:45PM
Purveyors of: '90s rock
www.mp3.com/venuscuresall
Venus Cures All formed in early 1994, when Toronto's all-female punk band Chicken Milk decided to break up and reform with a male drummer. For three short years, they rocked hard across the continent, the renegade progeny of Crazy Horse and Drive Like Jehu. Then they split, leaving a double 7" and CD to their memory. Five years later, Wavelength is proud to present VCA's reunion show...
Like your heroes (and mine) Mission of Burma, you've chosen 2002 to reunite. They officially termed their reunion "Inexplicable." Is there a reason for your regrouping, and if so, what?
Sara: Inspired by
the Eagles, I figured we could charge $100 a person at the door, flog
overpriced merch and take everyone back to those golden, heady '90s where
men had long hair and women had short hair and everyone had "tribal" (read
fake Celtic) tatts.
Andrew: Fun, the songs are fun, I want to play them again.
Sally: "Incorrigible."
Lisa: "Inspane."
What tour story stands out the most in your mind from those heady days of Venus?
Andrew: The great
flood in New Orleans, carrying Tyler's drum gear through a flooded boulevard
over our heads while various vermin swam around us.
Sara: No one story -- the long drives, the beautiful country, stopping
to gaze in wonder at the Aurora Borealis, the community centres, the new
friends, the alcohol, recording, loving and hating.
Sally: Stopping in the middle of the Rockies to tie the muffler back on
to the underside of the van with a used bass string. Feeling like I was
gonna get lynched after introducing the band as Venus Cures Y'All in Atlanta.
Buy me a vodka tonic at the show and I'll tell you about the time a famished
Lisa filled herself up on pie at a cottage party we played up north not
knowing the pie was an alternative to the special brownies. I really could
go on...
What have you missed most about the band?
Sally: Sara, Lisa
and Andrew.
Andrew: Sally, Lisa and Sara.
Sara: Rehearsing a couple of times a week, Lisa's guitar lines, Sally's
harmonies, Andrew's pummelling.
Lisa: The lavish stage wear.
It sounds like everyone's done a fair amount of world travelling in those intervening years. Tell us a bit about it. And what's the coolest place in the world?
Andrew: I didn't do
much world travelling, just Canada, and the coolest place is the top of
Sunshine Village ski resort. Canada's built for dope smoking with its
wide open spaces.
Lisa: Alaska, Yukon and Liard Hotsprings, Northern B.C.
Sara: Any place is the coolest if your heart is there, but Berlin definitely
ranks as a high point with its Ping Pong Punks and their fighting dogs.
Don't go to the U.K. without a large wad of cash. I'll always love driving
around the States, the beauty of topography.
Sally: I was based in Seoul for five years, mainly working at a news website.
Played in a band called 3rd Line Butterfly my last six months there, which
was great fun. Travelling-wise, besides various places in Korea and North
America, I've been to Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Bali, Lombok, Berlin,
Crete, Santorini and Paris. There are cool places everywhere, but my current
faves are the alleyways of Seoul and the village of Oia on the northern
tip of Santorini.
If Venus Cures All was a crack team of bank robbers brought back together for one last big heist, who would play what role?
Andrew: Lisa would
be waiting in the van outside, Sally would the nice innocent one we send
in to case the joint, then Sara and I would come in with stockings over
our heads to bust up the joint.
Sally: Sara would be the mastermind, Lisa would be the gadget specialist,
Andrew would be the sweet but lethal muscle and I would drive the getaway
vehicle.
Lisa: Sally would distract the security guard while Andrew grabbed his
gun. Andrew would announce to the bank patrons not to try any funny business
as Sally scrambled their bank security code using her handy palm pilot.
Sara would demand the money from a timid bank teller with me watching
her back with my deadly array of cooking utensils. I would of course drive
the getaway car!!
Sara: Andrew would be Doc McCoy from The Getaway, Sara would be Fay from
After Dark My Sweet, Lisa would be Lilli Dillon from The Grifters and
Sally is Lila Luthar from Recoil.
How has the Toronto scene changed since you guys called it a day in '97? Do you think it's more sympathetic place to make music now or not?
Andrew: Everyone's
gotten younger. It's about the same, it's easier to play here than anywhere
else I've been. In Banff, if you're not a reunion band like April Wine,
there's nowhere to play. It's all that and David Wilcox.
Sara: Really little has changed, the musicians are still broke and the
reviewers all own houses. Hmmm.
Lisa: Sympathetic?? Hmm... well we shall see, "somewhat entertained" would
be better.
What about these rumours that you're going to cover the whole of Slint's Spiderland for this show?
Andrew: Someone got
that wrong, we're actually signing with Sprint and they're covering our
tour expenses.
Sara: There is no band that was more pivotal for what we were doing back
then.
Sally: Yeah, right after the Sonny Sharrock tribute set.
Lisa: Listening to Spiderland was therapeutic in my withdrawl from Venus,
so if I can hold together, then it's a go.
Which departed local legends would you like to see get back together next?
Sara: Slow Loris,
Secret Agent, Living Proof, impossibly Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet,
and though not local, Shotmaker.
Andrew: UIC, Shadowy Men, Adventure Playground.
Sally: Phleg Camp. Yeti. Fifth Column. The Lawn. Smallmouth. Pecola.
Lisa: The answer is simple: Nomind. As I listened to Rush's "Bastille
Day" the other day, I was reminded of Nomind's cover version, and felt
a great nostalgia for the heaviness of Nomind to re-emerge. Crazy, huh?!
Venus' ex-members continue to be active on the music scene. Andrew drums for The Soft, Lisa plays with 24 Achres, Sara is in The Co-operators, Gesundheit and countless others, while Sally and Sara are now reunited in The Magnetars.
-- interview by Jonny Dovercourt
EAMONN
VITT
WAVELENGTH 136
SUNDAY OCTOBER 13, 10:45PM
Purveyors of: Acoustic medicine for your emotions
www.eamonnvitt.com
Karate's '95 s/t release is one of those records that I get as much or more joy from listening to today as I did when I first heard it. So finding out that founding member Eamonn Vitt was coming to play Wavelength made the fan in me ecstatic. Eamonn left the band to pursue medicine, but that hasn't stopped Dr. Vitt from continuing to play and record. The EP old wave new ride was released last year, and the full length Deserted Music will be out in December, both on the Self-Starter Foundation label. The new disc is inspired by his time in New Mexico with the Zuni Indians and the poetry of William Carlos Williams. Just don't let him perform acupuncture on you when he's drunk. -- Nora Charles
Music and medicine? Did these paths run parallel, or just converge occasionally?
When I left Karate and started medical school, it felt completely divergent, actually. On the surface the two worlds do seem quite separate. You know, touring in a van and writing songs versus getting up at 4 or 5 in the morning every day and sticking needles in people and having very little free time for creative efforts. I have incredibly huge student loans and exist in a different realm of financial reality/responsibility than most of my musician friends. The responsibilities are obviously not the same. Really different worlds in a lot of ways. But five years later I'm able to understand and even articulate more clearly why I made the change, and to appreciate the convergences. To me, artists who create important and interesting work generally, are doing the same things great doctors should be doing. You know, implicitly or explicitly trying to make a change, to make a connection, to communicate some idea or emotion, to create improvement or resolution or awareness. From the most personal to the most public themes, from a song about a broken heart to a song about a broken justice system, the idea is the same. And often they're doing it because they just have to, because there really isn't anything else to do -- like a calling or whatever you want to name it. And you are putting yourself out there. In a great physician I think you find these same instincts and processes. I was initially drawn to medicine because of the tools available for making broader social changes. But now I'm deeper into it and appreciate more every day not only the importance, but the fulfillment that comes from these intense relationships and encounters. Again, to get really involved, you also have to really put yourself out there. Like getting on a stage. It can be so intense. When you help a Mom deliver a baby, it's an incredible thing. It's a pretty similar feeling when someone comes up to you after a show or sends you an email and tells you they were really into it or moved by a song or performance.
What inspires you to keep writing and performing?
I think most of my songs end up being about relationships or traveling or a combination of the two. Being in a new place always shakes things up, and luckily I've managed to get around quite a bit. And my friends and family who make music or write or teach or cook or raise kids or whatever they do with passion keeps me going. Anyone who gives a damn and is working hard.
Does your former band loom like a spectre or a pleasant memory?
Definitely a pleasant memory. I was 19 when we started Karate, so I did a lot of growing up in that band. Overall it was such a positive experience and we had a great time. I'm still close friends with everyone and actually get to hang out with them pretty frequently.
Karate was becoming decidedly jazzy at the end -- why is that, and did your fans appreciate this direction?
Well, it's not the end yet -- they have a new record out this month. I think the change in sound is a function of a lot of things, and I think it's a great progression. All three of them have extensive jazz performance background, and I think when I departed it left them space to explore and grow in those directions. But you'll have to ask them about that. And yes, the kids seem to love it.
Did you become a doctor to improve your golf score?
I last played golf about eight years ago, and it was a bad scene. I did play a mean game of bocci with my dad and some cousins this weekend though, maybe I'll take that up?
The '90s seem downright idyllic compared to these reactionary times. What is your take on the way the world is currently spinning?
I would say the times are always reactionary if you look around. I think it's easy and lazy to be reactionary. Thinking critically, questioning authority, making changes -- it's hard work, hands down. But it's really important work, especially the way things are going now. About the current war/future war -- I actually happen to live in downtown NYC and worked at Ground Zero with the medical teams. So I've seen and had enough of murdered civilians. That goes for civilians abroad in Third World countries, too. I hope we in the USA (and you Canadians, too) can find an enlightened and peaceful solution to the problems that we're now facing.
What's your favourite Bill Murray moment?
He made fun of a friend of mine at a baseball game when she was about 16. I wasn't there, but it sounded hilarious.
Anything you've read lately that knocked your socks off?
Catch 22 by Heller.
Clockwise from top L: Shannon, Cheryl, Mary-Jane, Aron.
THE
PLATH
WAVELENGTH 136
SUNDAY OCTOBER 20, 10PM
Purveyors of: Last chance for a queercore dance
www.theplath.com
The Plath are breaking up. That's one thing punk-rock
bands do really well. The star that burns twice as bright burns half as
long and all that. If you want to know why, it's probably none of your
business. I know from my own experience that band relationships can be
just as intense as capital-R relationships. But in this case I can only
speculate, and I don't see the point.
The Plath were a great band. Oct. 20's Wavelength will most likely be your last chance to see them. They also play Sneaky Dee's the night before, as part of their "So Long and Thanks for All The Shit!" weekend. Having gone through several line-up changes, the final version of The Plath is a quartet: Cheryl on drums and vocals, Shannon on bass and vocals, and Aron and Mary-Jane on guitars.
The mark they leave on the world includes one fine CD and the first two Ladyfest Toronto installments, of which they were the primary organizers. There's nothing more insincere than saying "good luck in your future endeavours," but I really do hope they all keep doing the rock in an excellent fashion.
-- Jonny D.
CORPUSSE
WAVELENGTH 137
SUNDAY OCTOBER 27, 11PM
Wavelength Halloween Party!!
Purveyors of: Strange outfits, experimental squawk, goth-opera
www.corpusse.com
I have found the Corpusse philosophy on your website. It is as follows:
The Corpusse Philosophy: Stay true to yourself. / Do whatever you want. / Don't let anyone tell you what to do. / Where there's a will, there's a way. / Fuck the banking job. / This is what I'm going to do. / This is what has to support me. / It has to be done. / There is no alternative. / This is it. This is my life. / I'll die doing this.
How has this philosophy served you so far? Would you ever revise it?
Corpusse: I have no regrets and I don't revise anything. I live by my own rules.
Corpusse makes perfect sense on, say, Hallowe'en... but that is obviously not the point. There are obvious elements of humour to Corpusse, though. How serious are you, and why?
Corpusse: I'm as serious as bleeding haemorrhoids in your ass, 'cause I won't go away that easily.
Some people are obviously quite fanatically "into" what you are doing, while others have a hard time doing anything other than laughing it off dismissively. How do you feel about both of these reactions? Is there much middle ground between these two extremes?
Corpusse: Those who know where the gold is become rich. Those who do not, stay, live, and die poor. Fuck the in-between, the only thing in-between is where I plunge it.
Corpusse had a store for several months in Kensington market. It was a cafˇ/art gallery/novelty store. This seems to be in keeping with the pervading idea of Corpusse the music project. How is it that the socialising, nourishment, art and novelty all live under the same roof without interfering with each other?
Corpusse: It doesn't work. So I don't do it anymore. You stay true to one thing, and that one thing succeeds.
Lorenz, you come from a zine/comic/graphic-based background. Tell us about your work outside Corpusse, and how it affects Corpusse's overall sense of purpose.
Lorenz: Drawing is my first love, and then came drawing to the sounds of my AM radio, and it was all downhill from there. Playing in Corpusse invigorates my passion as an artist all around. And it works both ways. We laugh a lot, sometimes the songs erupt out of pure hysteria, and that is where I like to spend my time. What is the musical ideology of Corpusse?
Corpusse: You don't need the standard band to rock and roll, dude.
What's coming up in the world of Corpusse?
Corpusse: My cock, in a big way.
Tell us a good Hallowe'en story.
Corpusse: Getting ready once at a Nash The Slash show, backstage, Nash's dog freaked out... I don't know... I got no story about it. Hallowe'en is my day off. It's when the rest of the world catches up to me.
Corpusse was interviewed by Paddy O'Donnell. Paddy was not wearing a funny hat or anything even remotely provocative or unusual... even if it was near Hallowe'en.
THE
WEIRD LIBRARY OF ART
WAVELENGTH 137
SUNDAY OCTOBER 27, 10PM
Purveyor of: The synthetic sounds of yesterday -- today
http://home.eol.ca/~voxman/wloa/wloa.html
This library is filled with volumes of a different kind. The shelves are crammed with patch cords and vintage electronic musical gear. The dust has worked its way into the faders and pots of every console in sight. That is the reason everything sounds so deliciously harsh and unfiltered. This is the honest sound of machines and the people who use them. Enter the Weird Library Of Art.
You have been making music as Weird Library Of Art for how long now?
Nick: Our first show was in February '92. Before that Malcolm put out a solo tape as Weird Library of Art, I think he was still in Blank Crowd at the time.
It seems that you're a band that's not a band at all. Just when it appears certain that you've vapourised off the face of the planet, there you are playing another show (or a series of shows), then you're gone again -- for months -- or maybe even years. And there's only two of you! How does this happen?
Nick: Well, Hallowe'en and all... I've been traveling a lot in the last year and a half. We played our last show in September of '99. Eventually the urge to play takes over and we do something.
You usually don't practise for Weird Library Of Art shows. In fact, you seem adverse to the idea. Are there ever exceptions? Do you feel the music suffers or benefits from this rather liberal approach?
Nick: We just use a different approach. We trade tapes of ideas, and then get together and figure out what we are going to do with the ideas. The last few shows we played we were playing old material, so we didn't need a lot of review. Sometimes one of us will spring a new tune on the other at a show, but that wasn't the greatest idea.
Harsh sounds seem to attract your ear. It seems you will always prefer analogue synths and the punk-derived late '70s industrial scene -- i.e. Cabaret Voltaire, early Mute releases, The Residents. There have been many changes on the electronic-based scene since then. What do you think of them? Are you drawn exclusively to the spirit found in earlier forms of electronic music?
Nick: I grew up listening
to that stuff, so it is a pretty strong influence. We played our first
show opening for Steven Brown of Tuxedomoon (who were on Ralph Records).
We also booked and played shows with the Silver Apples, who have been
making music in that vein since the '60s, and EAR/Spectrum, who are more
recent. Malcolm has turned me on to newer music like Muslimgauze and Banco
de Gaia. I haven't been that excited by the "DJ culture" thing because
it just seems like McDonald's food... and there is a lot of generic bad
music coming out of it. But every now and then you hear something amazing.
Malcolm: I have always been drawn to electronic music in all forms, from
the electro-acoustic composers of the '60s to the many offshoot categories
that exist today. I like some of the music on the Six Degrees label, sort
of an ethno-techno type of stuff and I've enjoyed techno-ambient acts
like the Orb, which I would consider a bit of an influence on some of
my music. Creating new sounds that sound good as music is an ongoing part
of the new frontier that electronic music has opened up. That doesn't
mean that you can't use the old sounds but you can combine them and work
with them in your own way to create something new.
Is there an official Weird Library Of Art release? Where can your music be found?
Nick: There is a tape, Liferamp to Externity, by Weird Library of Art, which was Malcolm solo. We've burnt and sold various CDs, but haven't done any mass printings. There is some material available at the website.
Tell us something seasonal. It's almost Hallowe'en.
Boo, we are back.
-- interview by Paddy O'Donnell
Oct. 6
DJ Candy-Ass
Candy-Ass Radio: 3+ years at CKLN, playing punk and other rawk, new wave, and random trash. Program guide says "for soldiers, prostitutes, dykes, and punks." (Old Westwood McLaren sign from their Seditionairies shop.) Candy-Ass Radio: alternating Sunday nights/Monday mornings from 2-7am on CKLN 88.1 FM. Real Audio: www.ckln.fm
Oct. 13
DJ Charade
Inspired by crystal methamphetamine, sounds like UKG and drum'n'bass...
Oct. 20
DJs Anti-Hornrim and Professor Anti-Indie Plaid
Bellnites in our past lives, we (DJs Anti-Indie Plaid and Anti-Hornrim) are used to being on the Rabbitskin glue underside of things. But what do shadows gain from hiding anyway? All we ask is that you please listen to the sirens. They are requesting a moratorium on plaid shirts and horn-rimmed glasses this night. Expect the mirror versions of everything you probably already own. Thank you.
Oct. 27
DJ Skull of a Hippie -- a.k.a. Richard Wyman
An eclectic mix of obscure garage rock, lo-fi trash and art-damaged rock from all over the world.