Les Mouches, Rockets Red Glare, Mean Red Spiders... these beloved groups are just a few of the Toronto artists who have experienced the mixing-console magic of Jeff McMurrich over the last decade. Wavelength spoke to the creator of The Sweatshop, T.O.'s most indie-(and-jazz-) friendly studio...

Unlike most recording producer/engineers, you only take on projects that interest you artistically. How do you balance the desire for artistic fulfillment with the demands of the almighty dollar? The choices I make with regards to the projects I get involved with are motivated by a number of factors, the people involved being the number one consideration. Life is too short to spend it surrounded by assholes. If you enjoy and respect those you are working with, then it usually follows that you respect what they are trying to artistically express. In terms of financial motivation, there is none. I enjoy the struggle. It keeps me young, and put in a global perspective, it's truly a charmed life. I support the development of a strong local music community and am a huge fan of establishing a micro-economic structure within that community. What this really means is that at any one time I'm owed various sums of money from a number of starving artists. You know who you are!!!

You also involve yourself more in the creative process than your average engineer. How do you get the best out of artists without interfering with their vision? One thing I look for in an artist is a strong vision. One I don't need to mess with too much. If it doesn't exist, people will most certainly pick up on that. One thing people need to realize is that recording is conceptual. It's my job to try and match the artist with the correct conceptual approach. I'm a big fan of live-off-the-floor recording. Dynamics happen when people perform together. This is carried over from my work in the jazz world, where it is the only approach. Often just a few overdubs will complete the vision.

You now have a new studio space to call your own. Can you tell us a bit about this sweet set-up? The Sweatshop v.3.0! I recently fell prey to downtown development a second time and had to move to make way for a Shoppers Drug Mart. The upside was that the couple upstairs moved out eight months before I did, giving me full run of the house. Needless to say, much recording ensued. I'm now in a huge 1200 sq ft. apartment with a room filled with gear. It's my home base. I can do loud stuff at traditional studios and bring it back to edit/overdub/mix. Sometimes a record is done entirely in an outside studio, sometimes it's a combination. I run ProTools at home for maximum portability. It's the best of both worlds.

How do you feel about the Toronto music scene right now? Is this a good place to live and work for you? I love Toronto. I was born here. In my opinion, the indie scene has never been stronger. The last couple of years has seen foreign labels and media embrace Toronto and I think the provincial stigma is quickly eroding. The local community has to make sure that it can use this as an opportunity to create a local infrastructure. If foreign companies invest in Toronto acts, it pays to keep the money here. To all the labels and independent promoters that are circumventing the establishment, I give full props. Getting back to the question posed, yes. I feel very fortunate to be working with so many talented people here. If I could change one thing, it would be to bring back Rockets Red Glare. I'm very serious.

Enlighten us a bit as to the existence of the mysterious entity that is Infinite Systems. Infinite Systems is me in experimental mode. I think everyone has to experiment, go way off the map and then bring some knowledge back that they can apply to randomize convention. I try to create “infinite systems,” which are pieces of music that can play by themselves and never repeat. The use of controlled feedback is essential. Feedback has always seemed like the closest thing to God I've ever experienced. That's the “infinite” part. It's a terribly prententious and self-indulgent exercise that acts as both therapy and a musical palate cleanser between sessions.

For more info, go to www.jeffmcmurrich.com.

BY JONNY DOVERCOURT

FEATURE ARTICLE
the whipper-snapper vote

I'm going to admit something right off the bat: I'm a politics junkie. Throughout the day, I devour reports and commentaries on what leaders of cities and nations and propped-up regimes are trying to communicate to their followers and enemies.

I need my fix quite regularly. When the newswires get slow, I can usually cruise on over to the state-sponsored media site of North Korea. It never gets boring, as they spew venom at the U.S. or Japan, their two sworn enemies. They call Americans “cowboys” and “cowards,” and the Japanese “gangsters” and “thieves.” Most times these stories, with their flamboyant translations, ease my addiction.

But nothing quite hits the sweet spot of a politics junkie like an election does. Sadly, not everyone is so intensely interested in campaigns and policy as I am. In fact, less than one in four Canadians under the age of 25 go to the voting booth on election day. In the 2000 federal election, only 61.2 per cent of eligible voters cast their ballot, the worst turnout in Canadian history.

Why won't youth vote? Most studies say a “lack of interest and knowledge.” So Elections Canada has launched a campaign of TV and magazine ads to encourage us to visit the ballot booths. But using tax money to buy media space that tries to convince us to vote is a non-starter. I don't think it's the government's obligation to get us out to vote. Once of the greatest strengths of democracy is the freedom of choice. The people responsible for the low youth turnout are the federal parties and the young voters themselves.The Liberals and Conservatives do varying degrees of youth outreach. But most of their campaign promises directed at young people are about lowering student loans. The Liberals have a text messaging network operating where their “Young Liberals” can share concerns directly with Prime Minister Paul Martin. They are even trotting out Bono as some kind of prop (note to Martin organizers: Bono attracts the over-35 crowd these days, and you don't want U2 fans on your side 'cuz they'll come back to haunt you some day, somehow).

The NDP and the Green Party take the youth vote much more seriously and address other youthful concerns like the environment, proportional representation, AIDS, and the Iraq war. These two parties seem like natural places for the youth vote to gravitate towards, yet a recent Ipsos-Reid poll found that 50per cent of people under 25 will vote for the Liberals. To counter this trend, 27 of the 308 NDP's candidates are under the age of 26.

But tossing youth a few election-time promises is not nearly enough. The main problem youth have with politics is that they don't believe their vote makes a difference. Politicians are seen as liars and power-hungry old farts who are only in public office to further the interest of their buddies. Politicians need to dispel this notion, and attract honest and selfless people into public office.

On the other side of the responsibility coin are the youth. It pains me to read quotes from potential young voters, like these from a recent Toronto Star article: Silvia, age 23, says, “I could probably force myself to read the papers, but I just can't get myself interested in current events.” Or Shirley-Anne, age 20: “I just don't see the point. It's all about single moms and dental and welfare and stuff I don't care about.”

You know what? You should fucking care. The government collects GST, PST, and money off your income to spend on things like machine guns, steak dinners and corporate subsidies.Young people, no matter which side of the political spectrum they're from, should give some thought as to what kind of country they want to live in: one where a bunch of politicians, elected by a small percentage of voters and influenced by campaign donations, make decisions about your health care, security, and future?

If you do care about voting and participating in democracy, take the time to email your friends and encourage them to vote. Send them links to the policy of each party. If you feel comfortable enough to endorse a candidate, tell friends or family in your riding. And if all else fails, you can register a non-vote by either checking off all the candidates names on the voting card, or by telling the election official that you'd like to spoil your ballot. Those votes are counted and listed in election results.

If you want assholes and bloodsuckers to run this country, then stay home on June 28th. If you want to make a difference, cast a vote that represents your opinions.

You get what you vote for.

BY M@B