Tag: Paper Bag Records

Ep. #160: PS I Love You

Post author By vish
Post date January 29, 2015

PS I Love You are a tremendous, melodic noise-rock two-piece band originally from Kingston, Ontario. This past October, Benjamin Nelson and Paul Saulnier were at the Halifax Pop Explosion touring behind their latest PS I Love You album, For Those Who Stay, which is out now via Paper Bag Records. Over the next two weeks, they’re wrapping up some support dates for Death From Above 1979 with METZ and so this seemed like a good time to share our conversation while we were both at the Halifax Pop Explosion. Here, Benjamin, Paul, and I talk about wandering around Halifax, how Ben loves Chad VanGaalen, O.M.D. and Black Buffalo Records, how Paul thought he’d live in Halifax, how Ben loves Mike O’Neill, Jerry Granelli, the Creative Music Workshop jazz camp, directions to Gus’ Pub from a woman with kale, massaging the kale, the Inbreds, Randy’s Pizza, Seafood, and Donair, running into the band TEEN on the street, kitsch, garlic fingers, living in Toronto, how Ben ate donkey, eating and not eating meat, the boar in First Blood, the story of Ben and Paul, David Bowie, Stephen Morris of Joy Division, Jon Wurster’s touching tribute to Tommy Ramone, how Paul wanted to be like the late Cliff Burton of Metallica, really getting deep into Jimi Hendrix, the latest PS record For Those Who Stay, health talk, Bad Brains, David Lynch documentaries, touring with METZ and DFA 1979, the song “Hoarders” and that’s the end of pizza time.

Related links: paperbagrecords.com/artists/ps-i-love-you/ vishkhanna.com

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Ep. #148: Slim Twig

Post author By vish
Post date November 20, 2014

Slim Twig is the moniker for a young man from Toronto named Max Turnbull who is a noted actor and musician. Over the past 10 years, he has released a lot of challenging, artful pop music in projects like Tropics, Archaic Women, Plastic Factory, U.S. Girls, and of course, Slim Twig. In 2010 he made a record called A Hound at the Hem but it didn’t see the light of day until 2012 when he released it via Toronto’s Pleasence Records and the Calico. Corp label he operates with his wife, Meghan Remy of U.S. Girls. The record is now seeing wide release via DFA Records who also plan to put out the next Slim Twig album. Here, Turnbull and I talk about house sitting in New Mexico and recording Darlene Shrugg tracks, Independence Day and Valentine’s Day, living in Toronto, Albuquerque cashing in on Breaking Bad, seeing Bob Dylan in Fargo and talking to people at the Blockbuster there, Fargo myths and Breaking Bad meth, the delayed release of A Hound at the Hem, Paper Bag Records, why Sof’ Syke was a safer alternative, becoming a popsmith, incorrect Canadian media labels that have been thrust upon Slim Twig, people get stuck in the past, samples and instrumentation, trying to change, employing different voices within the same song, Tom Waits and Paul McCartney voices, paying tribute to Serge Gainsbourg via a conceptual, narrative-based album, wanting to make a grander statement, impenetrable lyrics and the role of a backstory for a record, employing Owen Pallett, opaqueness and David Lynch, getting into acting before playing in bands at 13, writing from an indirect perspective, growing up in an art house, the desire to perform, seeing the Hives, how DFA got in the Slim Twig biz, Eric Copeland and Black Dice, the joy and pain of Discogs.com, the next Slim Twig LP might be a stoned protest record, playing a few shows, @twigoftoronto, the song “Hover on a Sliver,” and then it’s over.

Related links: slim-twig.com dfarecords.com vishkhanna.com

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Ep. #108: Born Ruffians

Post author By vish
Post date June 12, 2014

Born Ruffians are a terrifically sharp indie-rock band whose latest album is called Birthmarks. Released in 2013 via Paper Bag Records, it’s the band’s third record and found them exploring more polished pop production. On Sunday July 27, Born Ruffians are playing the penultimate Main Stage set at the 2014 Hillside Festival so I tracked down singer, guitarist, and songwriter Luke Lalonde and bassist Mitch DeRosier at Ronnie’s Local in Kensington Market where they drank and we chatted about the visceral reaction people might have when they see Constantines and/or the San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat play again, hanging out together in Elora at Riverfest last summer, Shirley Temple, Ashley MacIsaac, my unwanted festival advances, how Born Ruffians set the table for Serena Ryder, if the band has hang-ups about its status in this country, Cam Lindsay does his research, Luke does an impressive array of improvised impressions, the Canadian music industry, being nominated for the ‘Breakthrough Group of the Year’ at the Junos after being around for 12 years, always being a new band to someone, drinking with your tiny baby at Ronnie’s Local, Luke and Mitch are second cousins, I own a Beatles t-shirt older than people in Born Ruffians, family ties, the weird, lawsuit-baiting restaurant that Mitch’s family owned in Midland, Luke forced Mitch to play bass after travelling through time, Steve Hamelin got inspired to buy a drum kit, musical dads, Mitch reads other people’s sad texts, getting into music on your own, the Minutemen and the Unicorns, discovering bands and punk aggression, the bold pop moves of Birthmarks, the weirdness around making Say It, losing Steve the drummer at least twice, Luke and Mitch have been drinking, Steve will play on the new record but other drummers might too, there are 150 songs written towards the new Born Ruffians song, no, there are zero new songs written, Born Ruffians killed a guy, Mac DeMarco’s friend Chas interrupts this interview, there’s a secret Makeout Videotape show happening during NXNE either on the Saturday or the Sunday, I offended Chas, the dove-eating story could’ve been way better, Hillside hat-trick, the song “Oh Cecilia,” dove’s D, and scene.

Related links: bornruffians.com hillsidefestival.ca vishkhanna.com

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