BeatRoute Magazine [AB] print e-edition - [November 2017]

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EDMONTON EXTRA TIMES TIDE collaborative debut in less than 30 minutes Hardcore band realizes they’re old for a hardcore band. Edmonton hardcore troupe Times Tide may not be completely self-aware. Like many projects before them, Time Tide has undergone the usual musical chair scenario before settling on their current line-up. When BeatRoute sat down with half the line-up, our questions shone a light on aspects of the group they hadn’t previously considered. With the release of their debut album God, I’m Alone Here on November 1, the members photo: Cole Hadley are now on the same track, creating an album cohesively for the first time in their four year history. Guitarist Benjamin MacKenzie and drummer Byron Mayer started out with a different vocalist before choosing Colten Reid to fill the void left behind by a man they simply refer to as “John.” Joel Frost eventually became their bassist and the rest fell into place. “They asked me to do vocals originally because I was straight edge,” Reid says, smiling. “We tried to take that route for awhile and made some bad justifications for it.” “Now we have a bunch of shirts that say Edmonton Straight Edge on them,” says Frost, laughing. “We really need to do something with those.” Even though Times Tide can’t technically be considered a straight edge band anymore, they are still an untethered force to be reckoned with. Reid’s vocals are razor sharp and full of deep emotional weight. It’s something he says happens naturally without any training or forethought, which is additionally intriguing considering he’s never had the lung capacity to blow up a balloon before. “It pisses me off!” With these deliciously scathing vocals God, I’m Alone Here continues to set itself apart from other hardcore recordings with a variety of guitar textures and tones. “Most of my Income Goes to Hypnotists” is a 42 second heavy hitter with scratched out instrumentals and a quick back up vocal tease that adds a slight bit of comic relief from the rest of the album, which is thematically quite dark. “Thoughts at Red Lights” is a slowed down ballad with similarly strained vocals, fuzzed out to a faded sample murmuring about the potential invulnerability of depression. What’s even more interesting about this album is the fact the band chose to record it in one weekend all together, which hasn’t been the case for the previous EP Past Lives or their first demo, which dates back to 2014. “This is the only release we actually wrote together by Brittany Rudyck and collaborated on,” offers Reid. “The last recordings were more spread out. We would do drums one week, guitars the next and I would do vocals whenever I felt like it. It was all over the place.” Working together in this way is a good look for the band, who all ready seem excited to write new material and play new songs at their shows. “We’ve been playing a few of these songs for awhile,” admits Frost. “That bums me out we’ve been playing these songs for that long,” groans Reid. “That hurts a bit. We’re old for a hardcore band. But maybe that means we have more potential than a simple hardcore band. That’s my dream.” Times Tide also work toward inclusivity in Edmonton’s tiny local hardcore scene, championing all-ages hall shows and working with Good Grief Collective. When BeatRoute asked about collaborating within such a small scene and supporting its growth, Frost got real. “More than anything, it’s about vulnerability,” he says. “For a lot of people it’s that raw, emotional experience when they come to a hardcore show. That’s why we want to do all-ages shows and open the scene up. There’s no ego, everyone wants to support each other and contribute.” Come to the Times Tide all-ages album release show at the Small King Edward Hall on November 10 (Edmonton). The opening bands include Manitoba’s Viva Non, locals Rayleigh, False Body and Underbite. Ten bones at the door! VISSIA artistic musings by local flaneur Stony Plain native Alex Vissia is no stranger to the all-encompassing pendulum of a busy musical existence. Vissia is soon to release her new album Place Holder on November 10, all the while balancing her other current projects: The Hearts, Bad Buddy and the recent launch of her new label Hurry Hard Records, all Edmonton based projects. Vissia’s years from youth spent braided in the music community are undeniably present in the full and expansive debut album. The four-year incubation has made Place Holder a treat to listen to. The swaying groovy ambience and effortless twists through a wide array of genres creates a nostalgic, relatable mood. Surf guitar riffs, wayward reverbs, sonorous backing vocals and timeless slide guitar all float behind Vissia’s deep harmonic voice. The album title Place Holder holds a resonating connotation to life’s beguiling narrative. “This album is a collection of songs, each holding a place in my experiential past,” she explains. “Like any memory, the edges get fuzzy with time and my perspective on situations can change, but I look at each song as a snapshot, a moment in time and each song brings me back to a place.” Vissia tells BeatRoute she was once a sucker for nostalgia, however now “Writing songs is a way for me to acknowledge situations and experiences and then set them free.” Vissia’s observant and reserved nature allowed her to compose Place Holders insightful lyrics that are an affirmation to existential queries. “I’m really intrigued by emotions and how people interact, or how they choose not to communicate,” muses Vissia. “How lack of communication can open up so many avenues for misunderstandings and how you process those kind of things. I am writing for my own personal experience, but a lot of times I’m also observing people that I know.” With a timeless voice, Vissia offers the listener an album that could transform any mundane task into a romantic, folk experience. Each of the nine songs on the album have their own distinct melody, holding that resonant place in time. Vissia’s deep bluesy tone and full backing band are a welcoming introduction to opening track “Mountaineer,” a song lyrically focusing on that wayfaring compadre “that you really care about,” abandoning you once again. Place Holder hits a crescendo with the eerie electric guitar intro of “Night Romancer,” drawing lyrical and melodic innuendos paralleling the hazy confidence of drunken romance. The sixth track, “The Kind Of Good” speaks to lost love and finding yourself “on the floor of a hotel corridor.” Oscillating between poppy jovial timbre and poetic imagery, Vissia is at ease striking a chord for many. Along with the release of the new album, Vissia has paired up with partner Nick Davis for the launch of her own label Hurry Hard Records, under which Place Holder is released. “We came up with the ideas to start a record label from just having a lot of experience already doing all the things that a record label does.” Being already established musicians in the Edmonton scene, the duo is focused on harnessing and supporting their roots within the community. “We’ve definitely built a relationship with people here; you don’t want to go in it all alone,” she says. “So we have lot of community support from a lot of different musicians, which has made it that much better.” Vissia’s album Place Holder comes out on November 10. If you happen to be in Eastern Canada, she has a string of tour dates all throughout the month that can be found on her Facebook page. Rootsy new album tells timeless tales. by Caroline Reynolds photo: Matt Kraus 34 | NOVEMBER 2017 • BEATROUTE ROCKPILE
HEDORO anthropological pollution meets doom What do you get when you mix apocalyptic doom metal with electronica and the odd sample? One of Edmonton’s newer dirty doom bands, Hedoro. Their aim is to infuse elements of electronica and pop culture samples into their music while touching on dark themes, of course. BeatRoute interviewed drummer Daniel Klassen and got schooled on the meaning of the word “Hedoro” among a few other nifty details about this new project. BeatRoute: The tape you’re putting out is a split with local power violence band, Hatchet Face. Can you tell us about that? Daniel Klassen: Through some fortunate timing, Hatchet Face had songs ready around the same time that Hedoro was ready. It was a great opportunity to make a DIY project with two bands writing, recording, producing and promoting a split EP cassette. We collaborated on a track called “xSMOGMONSTERx” which is exclusively on the tape. Hatchet Face is going through some member changes but is still active. Hedoro has a few new songs we will be playing for the first time at the cassette release. One of these songs has a retro, ‘70s rock feel that we’re very excited to share. BR: Listening to the two tracks from the split, the term “dirty doom” is understandable. “Into the Black” fades into a slinky drone tune. It’s interesting stuff. Can we expect a similar sound on upcoming releases? DK: Through the use of pedals, samples and electronic drums, we hope to have a set that feels more like an audio experience than your standard first show. We aren’t adverse to using audio clips from movies, TV shows, hip-hop songs or self-produced audio made with Ableton Live or pre-recorded pedal loops. For upcoming releases, we may incorporate more electronica though strictly in EDMONTON EXTRA by Brittany Rudyck interludes. We want to prioritize playing as a rock band or using pedal-loops that are produced organically. We are influenced a lot by Rosetta, who are a band that uses Ableton Live and pedal-loops while staying true to their progressive rock/doom metal roots. BR: When we looked up Hedoro, we were led to a few different places. How exactly does this word apply to your band? DK: Bryn, our bass player, has a connection to Japan and visits frequently. Hedoro is the Japanese word for slime, ooze or pollution. This is not to be confused with Hedorah, a Japanese slime-monster in the Godzilla universe. Hedorah is famous for being one of the few Godzilla monsters to actually consume humans on film in the movie-series. Certain anime characters are also named Hedoro, either in reference to sludge or Hedoro may be written by its kanji. Bryn came up with the band name, which resonated as more of a reference to apocalyptic themes and the causation of anthropological pollution. BR: Is there anything else you’d like to add? DK: While anime or fandom doesn’t take a huge part of our writing, we do appreciate anime and other aspects of Japanese or American culture. Bryn produces toys with his company King Hideous Toys (@kinghidedeoustoys) Bryn is producing art work for us which has a great H.R. Giger meets Ninja Scroll vibe. We are also working on doing a few cover songs - some hardcore, some classic rock. Our goal is to play short tours in Western Canada. It’s a great time to get back into the scene with so many great bands coming up in Edmonton. Pick up Hedoro’s tape at their release show on November 2 with Milkers Wanted (Vancouver), Pill Crusher (Calgary) and Highbernation at the Sewing Machine Factory (Edmonton). Electronic drone infused dirty doom act release new tape. ROCKPILE BEATROUTE • NOVEMBER 2017 | 35
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