BeatRoute Magazine Alberta print e-edtion - June 2016

COUNTERFEIT JEANS
playful indie rockers serve up some seriousness on debut album
For as serious as their music makes them seem, the three dudes in Edmonton’s
post-punk poster children Counterfeit Jeans are more than
a little goofy. Passing through quite a few Simpsons before landing
on Counterfeit Jeans, the trio are funny dorks who don’t take themselves
too seriously.
Their relaxed approach to making music has served them well in the
two-ish years they’ve been a band and even recently earned them two Edmonton
Music Award nominations. Now they’re preparing to release their
first full-length self-titled record on July 1st, and the process still seems
just as fun as when they first started, as vocalist/guitarist Jed Gauthier
described with a chuckle.
“We did everything on this record ourselves except for the artwork and
the mastering. It was recorded in the jam space and in my living room.
My living room was where most of the vocals were done… probably in my
underwear,” he laughs. “My cats hate it when I sing or make any noise. They
just run and hide, which tells you how good of a singer I am.”
The new record is being released with the help of local Edmonton label,
Sometimes Music, who are helping distribute the album across Canada and
beyond. When asked about the friendly partnership, they indicated they were
stoked about it, yet it wasn’t a surprise the question was met with a joke.
“Basically we signed a 20-year contract and gave them the rights to our
names, images, power of attorney…” Gauthier smiled.
Heykants chimed in, “I think he gets, like, 95 per cent of the T-shirt
profits.”
Gauthier quickly added, “And Tyler’s first child.”
To which Bedford replied, “We signed a deal with Rumpelstiltskin, essentially.”
They’re a funny bunch, but Gauthier’s B.A. in Philosophy clearly shines
through in many lyrical explorations. Their first single, “No Desire,” clearly
states, “This is the sound of joyful elation, through the grips of self-annihilation.
I cannot wait to die to strip myself of desire;” an homage to Eastern philosophy
and the death of the ego. The Simpsons references seem to be a ruse.
Thoughtful lyrics appear to be a side effect of skillful musicianship, since
the music was written before the lyrics were even considered.
Counterfeit Jeans bring philosophy to rock and roll.
by Brittany Rudyck
photo: Meaghan Baxter
“All of the songs are disjointed in a sense. We had written all the music
and then when it came time to record, I had to write all the lyrics for the
recordings. It was really stressful to write 10 songs worth of lyrics at once.
So, if there are any recurrences, it’s because I was trying to hammer it out
as fast as possible,” Gauthier says with a smile.
You can see Counterfeit Jeans at Sled Island and their album release 9910 in
Edmonton on July 2nd.
THE NEEDLE VINYL TAVERN
new Edmonton venue welcome in wake of closures
The Needle Vinyl Tavern believes in its local music scene.
In the heart of downtown Edmonton, in the old CKUA headquarters, you
will find The Needle Vinyl Tavern: one of Edmonton’s newest bars, restaurants
and mid-sized venues that opened earlier this year. The Needle has
two stages, a state of the art sound system, a VIP area, and musical murals
(including an image of Prince) and is complete with a vinyl-tiled floor.
BeatRoute checked in with owner Rob Campbell and promoter/booker Daniel
Lenz to get the skinny on the Edmonton’s newest hot spot.
Edmonton lost many crucial music venues in 2015, but many new ones began
in 2016. “That is a bit of weird coincidence. We actually started the project more
than three years prior to opening. We really felt that location was critical. There
were venues around at that time that subsequently closed, and we were as
disappointed as any other music fan in town to see them close. We saw the vision
of our venue to be different than venues in existence. It took us the better part of
two years to find the right location,” explains Campbell.
Rob Campbell and fellow owners Neil Bosh James Leder had plenty of time
ROCKPILE
photo: Levi Manchak
by Jenna Lee Williams
to establish their business plan; a business plan that sets The Needle apart from
other bars. “We wanted to create a place that was designed from the ground up
a music venue. We wanted to build a place that had great sound, a proper green
room, and be comfortable for patrons also,” says Campbell. “We really do want to
make a difference in the Edmonton music scene and try and be supporters and
promoters of Edmonton music.”
The owners and staff of The Needle are also supportive of the Alberta Music
City initiative. Edmonton is a festival city, but is also well on its way to becoming a
music city of the north, similar to Edmonton’s sister city, Nashville, Tennessee.
“If you go to a city like an Austin or a Nashville, whether you are going for
brunch, lunch, happy hour drinks, a Saturday night out, there is music all the
time. We want to really try to bring that, have a place to go to be exposed to live
music,” notes Campbell.
This is a feature of the venue that stands out for Lenz also: “With having
longer business hours than most venues in Edmonton it allows us to have
more live music. We have music seven days a week including happy hour and
brunch acts, regular Sunday and Tuesday nights as well as ticketed events
throughout the week.”
What type of shows are booked at the Needle? From local bands to international,
The Needle hosts them all. Upcoming shows include: Danny Michel
on June 17th, SUUNS on June 15th, and of Montreal on June 19th. “Jim Cuddy
from Blue Rodeo, the Cuddy Family Band will be doing a fun party set in early
July. We also want to do a Canada festival and have some great talent lined
up,” says Campbell.
With the owners and staff all being music lovers themselves, Campbell discusses
the importance of community: “We believe in growing the whole music
scene in Edmonton. It benefits everyone in town culturally, and we really want
to actively engage in the music community and hopefully see it getting stronger
rather than the deterioration we have seen with the closures.”
The Needle is located at 10524 Jasper Ave. and is open daily from 11 a.m. – 2 a.m.
Monday to Friday and 10 a.m. – 2 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.
BEATROUTE • JUNE 2016 | 43